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Withings Activité Pop: A Basic, If Not Fashionable, Fitness Tracker
Withings Activité Pop is the Swiss watchmakers' lower cost option, that's functional even for swimmers.
Last updated: April 16, 2019
Withings is a Swiss watchmaker, and one of the first to make the jump from analog timepieces to wearable technology. The company's first foray, the Withings Activité ($449), offers curved sapphire glass, a Swiss-made case and a French-made calf leather straps.
The Withings Activité Pop ($116) is a lower cost alternative made in China, featuring a plastic cover, coated metal case and rubber straps. Other than its design, the Activité Pop shares little physical characteristics with its Swiss-made precursor.
Despite the relatively cheap materials, the Activité Pop feels nice. While the rubber has a soft texture – much like a Swatch – it makes the Pop stand out when paired with formal clothing. Since it is a common size, the rubber strap can easily be replaced with any standard 18mm band (including leather).
On the face are standard analog hands as well as a step counter numbered from one to 100, counting progress towards a customizable goal. Inside, the Activité Pop is actually a digital watch powering analog hands, powered by a common CR2025 coin battery which can last up to 8 months.
The Activité Pop is rated as water resistant to 5 ATM (or 50 meters deep) and Withings has updated its firmware to include relatively accurate swim-tracking.
The Withings Healthmate app organizes data collected by the Pop, and can break it down by daily, weekly or even hourly activity.
The Activité Pop also features automatic sleep detection for sleep tracking, although with a thicker face than most wristwatches, I did not find it comfortable to wear in bed. Then again, I have worn a watch for more than 10 years and always take it off before bed.
If you do choose to snooze with your watch on, the Activité Pop features a silent, vibrating alarm. One cool feature is that you can double-tap the face, and the hands spin to show the time your alarm is set for. The Activité Pop also changes time zones automatically when it is paired with your smartphone.
The Withings Activité Pop is a sharp-looking piece of wearable tech that does not look as smart as it is. Compared to popular fitness trackers like the Jawbone UP3, the Activité Pop is just as good at tracking, more stylish and arguably more useful – it looks like a nice watch and displays the time.
In terms of activity tracking, the Activité Pop may not be advanced as the Fitbit Charge, but thanks to a fantastic mobile app that organizes detailed data and its stylish look, we would highly recommend it as a basic fitness tracker for the fashion-conscious.
Pros: Sleek design, several color options, great mobile app with detailed info, battery lasts for months, reasonable value for the price, waterproof to 50 meters and tracks swims
Cons: Devoid of advanced tracking data, rubber straps make it look too casual, and run tracking can be on the stingy side
To learn more about Withings Go, their fitness tracker for swimmers, check out Withings Go Review: Fitness Tracker Best Suited For Weekend Warriors.
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