Fitbit’s Newest Inspire Fitness Trackers Fail To Do Just That

Despite what vesture makers would have you opine , it ’s not just all smartwatches . There ’s still a position for the humblefitness tracker . For starters , they ’re much cheaper than smartwatches , put up accurate physical fitness tracking , have secure battery life , and are dead adequate at delivering button notifications . This basically sums up Fitbit ’s fresh flagship fitness trackers , the Inspire and Inspire HR .

At $ 100 , the Inspire HR is literally a fourth part of the price of anApple Watch Series 4 . The Inspire , which miss the heart pace monitoring , is even flash at $ 70 . exchangeable non - Fitbit fitness trackers , like Garmin’sVivosmart 4 , are still more expensive at $ 130 . So from an affordability standpoint , Fitbit ’s Inspire line is unquestionably worth a closer exam . After all , if it ca n’t surrender the same performance customers have add up to expect from Fitbits , what effective is the low-down price ?

Fitbit Inspire HR

Do you feel inspired?

Do you feel inspired?Photo: Victoria Song (Gizmodo)

What is it ?

A super garish , chance fitness tracker for beginners .

Price

The design here is incredibly fine, but nothing to write home about.

The design here is incredibly fine, but nothing to write home about.Photo: Victoria Song (Gizmodo)

$ 100 ( $ 70 for the Inspire )

Accurate tracking at an affordable price .

The Fitbit Alta versus the Inspire HR.

The Fitbit Alta versus the Inspire HR.Photo: Victoria Song (Gizmodo)

No Like

tedious design . Does n’t stand out .

I spent a week with the Inspire HR , and so far , it ’s been a mixed bag . Functionally , I do n’t have much to complain about . It cross my step , distance , calories sting , and active bit — just like any fitness tracker deserving its salinity does in 2019 . I get continuous heart pace monitoring , and I can sustain that you ’ll get at least five day of battery biography off one kick . It ’s water resistant to 50 meters or 5ATM , which is generally the standard take to be considered swimproof — and yes , the Inspire HR come through multiple shower and run - Hoosier State with my dish .

Not a fan of the new pin mechanism, but to each their own.

Not a fan of the new pin mechanism, but to each their own.Photo: Victoria Song (Gizmodo)

As for truth , the Inspire HR render a substantial execution . On a one - naut mi treadmill walk at 3.5 miles per hour — the ordinary walking speed — it log 2,100 steps to my control pedometer ’s 2,139 steps for an excellent difference of 1.8 pct . It did equally well on a one - naut mi run at 5 mph , registering 1,924 steps to the ascendance pedometer ’s 1,992 steps . That ’s a adequate difference of 3 per centum . Heart rate trailing was also on point , falling within 2 beats per minute of an Apple Watch Series 4 during usage , and within 10 metronome marking of my Polar H10 chest strap . ( breast straps deliver more accurate readings than carpus - base optical proctor , as they ’re actually ship an electrical signal to your heart . )

Automatic exercise tracking is also decent . I wore the Inspire HR to a groovy dancehall socio-economic class , and while it tracked my 90 minutes of rhythmically challenged flopping around as a “ sport ” I was proud of it marked the exercise at all . Often time , I ’ll tire out a Series 4 to the same class and despite perspire my butt off , it wo n’t show as exercise .

So if barrage fire life is great , accuracy is on - head , and the Mary Leontyne Price is super , should n’t this be the seaworthiness tracker to terminate all seaworthiness trackers ? It might have been , if not for the plan .

Argentina’s President Javier Milei (left) and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., holding a chainsaw in a photo posted to Kennedy’s X account on May 27. 2025.

The Inspire HR ’s design is unsatisfying . It copies the slender and silky physique of Fitbit ’s popular Alta trackers , and usually , I ’d moot that a expert matter . However , on my wrist , the Inspire HR just looks bum . Gone is the Alta ’s anodized aluminum body — what you get now is black plastic . Also , the joints where the concealment come across the strap are less angular . While I can prize that Fitbit intend to make it a more rounded , modern look , I ca n’t help but feel the design choice fix it face more childish .

That ’s not to say the Inspire HR has n’t made any invention improvement . The touch screen is no longer subject on tap , which was one of the major annoyance with the Alta . The black and white sieve is now swipe - establish , as in you swipe down to get at a quick menu to exercises , and up to regard your daily stats . Still , Fitbit has n’t care to figure out how to reduce bezels and the Inspire HR has incredibly thick unity the width of my pinky finger at the top and bottom .

Also dissimilar is the chemical mechanism for swap band . The Alta had a ready to hand door latch that made switch strap super nonrational and easy . The Inspire HR has opted for the same pin system as the Versa . It ’s not concentrated per se , but it is ill-chosen and for me , makes me disinclined to ever swap out straps .

William Duplessie

you could , however , opt to do aside with straps exclusively and plank the tracker into a clip accessory , which used to be the purview of Fitbit ’s cheapest tracker . That ’s because with the Inspire and Inspire HR , Fitbit is obliterating its entire lower - close product oblation . The Inspire trackers will effectively replace the Fitbit Zip , One , Flex 2 , Alta , andAlta HR — entail your only other options in the Fitbit house will be its serial of smartwatches and the Fitbit Charge 3 .

That ’s voguish stage business , but wearing the Inspire HR , I ca n’t serve but mourn the Alta HR . Before theVersa , the Alta HR was the Fitbit I most commonly recommended to casual wearables users . Not only was it fashionable and discreet , it also was n’t horribly price and it delivered accurate trailing metric . Other tracker followed suit , and you’re able to decidedly notice the Alta HR ’s design influence on Garmin ’s Vivosmart 4 .

It might seem petty to screak about the Inspire HR ’s spirit , specially since functionally it ’s not really a compromise or step down from the Alta HR . But design is a big part of whether you in reality stay put with a wearable in the long outpouring , or if but collect junk at the bottom of your drawer . I ’m fairly sure no one is get to compliment me on the Inspire HR unless I choose for a nicer accessory . Meanwhile , I ’ve gotten peck of compliments while wearing the Alta HR and Versa . Sure , it ’s super vain , but it is a incite factor keep your tracker buck and on your wrist . In that common sense , the Inspire HR feel like a strident corporate cash snap , which is a stinking pity .

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All this makes Fitbit’sCharge 3a much more attractive option for a simple fitness tracker . It ’s only $ 50 more , but you get about seven day of battery life — and yes , an extra two day does make a departure — plus all the same trailing features , and some smartwatch - esque functionality via apps . There ’s a larger touchscreen , haptic feedback , and it ’s just a classier looking machine . Likewise , Garmin ’s aforementioned vivosmart 4 is also a solid choice . It ’s $ 30 more , and you give up the power to switch over out straps , but it actually make use of its Sp02 sensors and Garmin ’s integral software platform is better suited to anyone who really want to get into their datum . ( Fitbit ’s program is much more palatable to anyone who wants a more sleek view . )

But really , the Inspire HR ’s lackluster design and failure to truly differentiate itself from the Charge 3 just do me wonder : Why bother at all ? After all , Fitbit just exhaust its Versa Lite Edition which mystify you all basic powers of its smartwatch ecosystem , for just $ 60 more than the Inspire HR .

If this sound harsh , it admittedly may be . It is admirable that Fitbit managed to compute out a sub-$100 tracker , especially since it performs quite well . But naming your tracker “ Inspire ” ought to evoke that feeling in some variety — and it just does n’t .

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