There is a saying that good things come in small packages, and this rings true with the new Fitbit Inspire 3, an affordable fitness tracker with a color screen, and a fantastic battery life. This affordable little tracker is perfect for those looking to take their first steps into fitness, without a huge flashy gadget on their wrist, or a huge dent in their pocket, in a world of huge smartwatch screens and bigger energy prices.
The best cheap fitness tracker on the market was let down by its lackluster display. The new and improved Inspire 3 is the answer to this; the little tracker has had a facelift but is it worth investing in and how does it compare to some of the best fitness trackers on the market? If you want to read more, you can read our review.
Today’s best deals are for the Inspire 3.
Fitbit Inspire 3 review: Price and availability
The price for the Inspire 3 is 99/£899.99. It will be released on September 22, 2022, and is available for pre-order. The unit is only available in black, but there are three different colors. The wristband comes in two sizes. As with all of the best Fitbits, there is a range of accessories, including metal bands and an exercise clip, which allow you to wear the tracker on your clothing during workouts.
The specifications of the device, the Fitbit Inspire 3.
Price: $99.99
Size: 1.5 x 0.7 x 0.5 inches
Display: AMOLED
Water resistance: 164 feet
GPS: No
Battery life: 10 days
The tracker comes with six months of Fitbit Premium, which gives you access to more in-depth features, such as deeper sleep analysis data, and the Daily Readiness Score. If you sign up for a year’s membership, the price of the premium will go up to $80/£79.99 per month. Is it worth it to get the premium? The pros and cons are presented here.
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Fitbit Inspire 3 review: Design
When you first get the tracker out of the box, it’s pretty much the same size and shape as its predecessor, with the same rounded edges. It’s small and neat on the wrist, next to my Apple Watch 7, and is light-weight so that you can wear it 24/7.
The newer model has a bright, clear, AMOLED display as soon as it powers up, which is the main difference. I found the screen bright and easy to read, even in direct sunlight, because it matched the wristband’s color. Even though the price is the same, the brighter screen instantly gives the tracker a premium feel.
The weight of the tracker is kept down by the two buttons on the side of the tracker. Of course, the screen is small compared to the likes of the new Apple Watch Ultra and theGalaxy Watch 5, but I would argue that this little tracker is not designed for someone who wants to check their messages from their watch. It is for someone looking to get a better insight into their health, without being weighed down by a tracker.
Fitbit Inspire 3 review: Fitness tracking
You can track your heart rate, steps, calories, Active Zone Minutes, stress, SpO2, and sleep with the Fitbit Inspire 3 for under $100, which is similar to all of the best Fitbits. There is a list of 21 different options to choose from, including run, walk, bike, kickboxing, Pilates, tennis and golf, but you can load up to six different exercise shortcut onto the watch.
During an activity, you are able to scroll through and see live feedback on the watch, but on such a small screen, this isn’t easy to do. I preferred to start the activity, then clip the tracker to my bra. You wouldn’t train for a marathon with this watch, it wasn’t the most responsive when I had sweaty fingers, and the screen wasn’t the easiest to see, as the fitness tracker doesn’t have built-in gps.
The heart rate data was the same on both the Apple Watch 7 and the Fitbit when I wore them for a 30-minute ride. Both recorded an average heart rate of 142 beats per minute, with the Apple Watch reading my max heart rate as 168. I wish I wore a chest strap as well, but my point is that the readings are very similar, and the Inspire 3 is a fraction of the price.
Like some of the other popular fitness trackers on the market, you can set up a move reminder on the watch to prevent you from sitting down for long. You can set weekly exercise goals to encourage you to exercise for five days of the week, with common exercises like walking, running, and cycling counting towards your goal.
Fitbit Inspire 3 review: Sleep and health tracking
Even though a fitness tracker isn’t designed to just track fitness, it is still good at tracking sleep. I wore the Inspire 3 for a week to track my sleep, and it worked out the time I fell to sleep and woke up in the night differently than I thought.
Some of the most in-depth information behind a paywall is the only thing that bugs me about the sleep tracking product. Fitbit Premium gives subscribers additional insight into their sleep, as well as giving a sleep score, while free members can track their time spent asleep. Your heart rate, time spent awake or restless, and sleep stages are all used to calculate the nightly sleep score. Guided programs can help you improve your sleep and get into a better nighttime routine.
It’s not the end of the world if you spend $9.99 a month to get more data, but I feel that once you buy the tracker, you should be able to view all the data like you can with the best watches.
You can track your water intake, weight and menstrual cycle with the help of the Fitbit. On certain days of the month, I like to be able to see where I am in my menstrual cycle from my wrist, as I know on certain days of the month, I’m not likely to perform as well as others. I appreciated the clear reminders on the Inspire 3, and the period tracking element of Fitbit.
Fitbit Inspire 3 review: Battery life
I was curious to see if the battery life of the Inspire 3 was checked out, especially with the brighter screen. With the always-on display turned on, I did at least one workout a day for a week, and I used the tracker on 10%. I charged my Apple Watch 7 every night in that time, so it was pretty good, even though the Inspire 3 doesn’t have built-in gps, so tracking activities don’t act as much of a drain on the battery life, whereas the Apple Watch 7 does.
The battery life of the tracker may have been extended by turning the AOD off, but it is still impressive. It was fully charged in under two hours.
Fitbit Inspire 3 review: Verdict
Anyone looking to take their first steps into fitness, or just gain a better understanding of their overall health, can benefit from the affordable fitness tracker offered by the Fitbit. For the price, you won’t find a fitness tracker that tracks all the basics in such an attractive package, and the color screen upgrade this watch from good to great.
If you are training for a race or looking for a device that will keep track of your outdoor runs, the Charge 5 is worth a little more investment.
Today’s best deals are for the Inspire 3.