Garmin Vivofit 2 Review
Pros
- Backlight & Audible Alerts
- 1+ Year Battery Life
- Daily Activity Tracking
- Wireless Uploads to Garmin Connect
- Waterproof
Cons
- Can't be used for tracking run data
Best Garmin Fitness Wrist Band & Activity Tracker 2015 Review
The Garmin Vivofit 2 fitness tracker includes all the best features of the previous version released in 2013 while adding required upgrades. The 2013 Vivofit 1 was Garmin’s first ever attempt at delivering a fitness band and it wasn’t necessarily a bad attempt. Vivofit 1 came with a 1+ year battery life and an always on display, however it did lack a backlight and automatic syncing.
The Garmin Vivofit is a great alternative to Fitbit and other leading brands. However if you want every GPS activity tracking feature available on the market then the Vivofit 2 probably isn’t the device for you. It’s a simple and easy to use every day tracker which will motivate you to keep moving and will let you count those all important calories by pairing with myFitness Pal. It has a comfortable strap and is easy to switch out bands to suite your individual taste. We highly recommend the Vivofit 2 as one of the best entry level activity trackers of 2015.
Recommended reading: Garmin Vivofit 3 Review (2016 version)
Vivofit 1 also had a habit of falling off your wrist, so much so that Garmin issued all customers with a free ‘Vivo Keeper’ to stop the band coming unclasped. The new Vivofit 2 now has a new twist locking clasp designed to ensure the band always stays on your wrist. Garmin have also addressed some of the other features missing from the first version with this upgrade.
Vivofit 2 – Best Fitbit Activity Tracker Alternative?
Garmin are up against fierce competition with well established brands such as FitBit with their successful range of activity trackers and fitness watches (Fitbit Flex, Charge and Surge). However the Vivofit 2 is a one of the best FitBit alternatives in our opinion. Garmin are the market leaders when it comes to designing GPS sport and fitness wearables so will be applying this experience to their fitness bands. We are now starting to see a range of products with daily activity tracking built-in, this includes the Garmin Vivoactive GPS smartwatch, Fenix 3 and Forerunner 920XT outdoor sport watches. All of these wearables track daily steps, distance and calories burned.
Buy the Garmin Vivofit 2 Activity Tracker
Click here to see current Vivofit 2 best prices.
Garmin Vivofit 2 Feature Review
The 2015 Vivofit 2 activity tracker features audible ‘time to move’ alerts which remind you to stay active throughout the day, it also displays a red move bar which appears after one hour of inactivity, additional segments light up after every 15 minutes of inactivity, walking for a few minutes resets the move bar. This feature is very useful if you sit for long periods of time during the day and need to take a break from your computer screen – just walking to the coffee machine will help! If you wear the Vivofit each day it will quickly learn your daily step count and activity and automatically assign a personalized, attainable goal each morning.
Daily Step Counter
The step goal goes a long way to motivating you to beat your daily target, the screen displays a ‘+’ symbol so you know when you’ve reached your target and beaten it. Vivofit 2 now has a stop watch for timed activity so you can use it for running. However the Vivofit isn’t targeted towards runners (see Garmin Forerunner).
Garmin Connect Free Fitness Tracker App
Like all modern fitness bands a large part of the activity tracking is the mobile app which syncs your data and allows you to make sense of it. The Vivofit is no different with Garmin Connect Mobile available from iTunes and Google Play. The app has been improved with the launch of the vivo range and we expect further updates down the line if Garmin wish to keep up with the competition.
Syncing to the Garmin Connect Vivofit fitness app used to be a fairly manual task but the new version now automatically syncs when your smartphone is in range or at strategic times during the day, like when a step goal is met. You can also join in with weekly step challenges and create leaderboards between friends or connections for extra motivation. If you don’t have a smartphone with Bluetooth you can use the Garmin ANT+ USB stick which plugs into your computer so you can sync with the desktop version of the app.
Year Long Battery Life
The Vivofit 2 boasts a year long battery life so you won’t need to worry about charging it. When the year is up you can easily replace the battery with a CR1632 standard watch battery available at any good hardware store. It’s impressive that Garmin have designed an activity tracker with an always on display and backlight with such a long battery life. To see how easy it is to change the Vivofit battery watch this Youtube clip from Garmin: Changing the Vivofit 2 Battery.
Monitor Your Sleep Movement
The Vivofit 2 has a new backlit display, missing in the previous version, simply press the only button to light up the screen. This is also handy if you wear the device at night to monitor your movement in Sleep Mode. If you’re interested to see how much you’ve moved during the night or if you’ve had a good nights sleep. Wirelessly syncing to the Garmin Connect app in the morning will give you a graph of how much you’ve moved the night before. You can also record how you feel when you wake up with a range of either smiley or sad faces.
Garmin Vivofit 2 Best Weight Loss Tracker
If you’re looking for a daily calorie counter then you can’t go wrong with the Vivofit 2. Paring with myFitness Pal lets you closely monitor your calorie intake. Both Vivofit 1 and 2 record calories burned throughout the day including base metabolic rate, allowing you to easily track your weight loss.
See: Syncing Vivofit 2 with myFitness Pal.
Vivofit 2 Style Review
The Vivofit has been designed cleverly, Garmin have clearly thought about designing an activity tracker which can be worn with any outfit and as a stylish accessory. The Vivofit is designed in 2 parts, the strap which is easily interchangeable, and the activity tracker itself – the brains of the device. This means you can easily accessorize the band to suit any outfit that you might be wearing any particular day. The screen is controlled by one single button and it’s easy to press and cycle through the data displays.
Accessorize with a range of color straps
There are a range of color options to choose from and 2 Vivofit straps included in the box – large and small. Garmin have also partnered with a famous designer – Jonathan Adler who has designed a range of patterned bands available to buy separately. Ideal for style the conscious these bands are actually quite trendy and make the Vivofit look more like a bangle or bracelet.
Potters may not have a reputation for unbridled athleticism, but I confess: I’m a fitness fanatic. As a designer, I was thrilled to work with Garmin to add some of my favorite colors and patterns to the Vivofit and Vivofit 2 accessory bands. As a gym-goer, I’m thrilled to take my fitness to the next level with Garmin’s activity trackers, Jonathan Adler the Vivofit 2 band designer.
Why Buy Garmin Activity Tracker?
With so many of us now living a sedentary lifestyle, i.e. we sit around on our behinds all day either at work or on the couch, it’s important to keep moving throughout the course of the day. Research shows prolonged periods of inactivity such as sitting at a desk decreases your body’s production of fat-burning enzymes. You can reverse that effect by taking frequent, short walk breaks throughout your day and this is where an activity tracker comes in use.
Garmin Vivofit 2 Best Prices: For the best deals and prices we recommend buying the Vivofit 2 direct from Amazon. Click here to check the prices in your local Garmin store.
The Garmin Vivofit reminds you when you’ve been inactive for too long by displaying a red move bar on it’s display. The red move bar appears after 1 hour of inactivity and increases in size every 15 minutes, a subtle alert also sounds reminding you to get up off your bum and walk. You can also pair a compatible Bluetooth smartphone and set it to vibrate as your own reminder to move.
The Vivofit is really targeted towards those who just want and need some motivation to keep active rather than a full-on training device. If you’re looking for a fitness wearable to track activity data such as pace, VO2 max, cadence etc then look towards the Forerunner GPS running watch series or Garmin Fenix 3 outdoor watches.
Would you like an advanced activity tracker and fitness band? The Garmin Vivosmart has a hidden OLED touchscreen display which activates with touch. Read customer reviews to learn more and shop for the best price.
Garmin Vivofit 2 Product Comparison
Compare the latest range of Garmin fitness trackers. Each tracker has the same base features, however the further you move up the range the more advanced features are included. The Garmin Vivosmart and Vivoactive can be paired with a compatible Bluetooth smartphone for on screen notifications on your activity tracker. These include texts, calls and emails alerts as well as social media notifications, handy if your phone is in your pocket – one glance at the vivo display and you’ll know wether or not to action the notification.
Vivofit Activity Tracker Comparison: If you would like to compare features across the Garmin Vivo range check out the Vivofit comparison chart.
Designed to be with you 24/7 with features including one-year battery life, audible move bar alert, always-on display with backlight and fashionable band options from the Style Collection, Vivofit 2 keeps you motivated wherever you go.
Garmin Vivofit 2 Activity Tracker Review Summary
The Garmin Vivofit is a great alternative to Fitbit and other leading brands. However if you want every GPS activity tracking feature available on the market then the Vivofit 2 probably isn’t the device for you. It’s a simple and easy to use every day tracker which will motivate you to keep moving and will let you count those all important calories by pairing with myFitness Pal. It has a comfortable strap and is easy to switch out bands to suite your individual taste. We highly recommend the Vivofit 2 as one of the best entry level activity trackers of 2015.
Vivofit 2 Pros:
- Counts steps, calories burned, distance, heart rate
- Waterproof – can be worn 24/7
- Time of day – can be worn as a watch
- New backlight
- Move bar with audible alerts
- Stopwatch
- 1+ year battery life (replaceable)
- New auto sync to Garmin Connect
- New band design with locking clasp
- Pair with a Garmin heart rate monitor
- Monitor your sleep movement
Vivofit 2 Cons:
- Syncing to Garmin Connect can be troublesome
- Step count isn’t always accurate
- Can’t be used for running
Where to Buy the Garmin Vivofit 2 Fitness Tracker
There are a wide range of online retailers selling the Vivofit 2 however the best deals and options are available on Amazon. Vivofit 2 comes in 4 standard colors – Black, White, Navy or Pink and is also available as a bundle, packaged with a standard Garmin heart rate monitor so you can wirelessly transmit your heart rate during a workout. An ANT+ stick is also packaged in the box which plugs into your computers USB port so Vivofit can automatically sync when in range. This gives you the option of using the desktop version of the app if you don’t have a smartphone.
Garmin Vivofit 1 – Best Cheap Fitness Tracker
The original Garmin Vivofit 1 released in 2013 has now drastically reduced in price due to the 2015 update. The key differences between these 2 entry level activity trackers are the backlight, automatic syncing to the Garmin Connect app via your smartphone and stop watch. If you can live without these features then we recommend buying the Vivofit 1 direct from the Garmin store on Amazon, you’ll get a good entry level fitness tracker at a bargain price!
Garmin Vivosmart HR with wrist-based heart rate review: Vivosmart HR is the latest activity tracker with heart rate monitor built-in. It captures your heart rate 24/7 and also includes new features such as workout intensity and floors climbed. Read the Vivosmart HR review to learn more.
