Halo View Review: An Affordable Fitbit Alternative
RRP $ 79.00
"The Halo View competes with Fitbit and offers robust functionality and a price that doesn't break the bank."
benefits
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Inexpensive
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Affordable membership
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Easy
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Focus on wellness
disadvantage
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No GPS
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Not as durable as others
Amazon unveiled its Halo fitness band in 2020 to mixed reviews. While many liked the simple design and abundance of wellness features, the voice tracking and fat scanning features caused quite a stir. The company has listened to this feedback and is back with its second iteration of the fitness tracker. The new Halo View takes the best features of the original Halo, removes the controversial ones, and adds an important feature that is missing from the Halo band. Is this new band keeping their promise to "build a healthier lifestyle right from the wrist?" We tested it to find out.
Fitbit-like and feature-rich
When I first saw the new Halo View from Amazon, my first thought was, "This looks like a Fitbit". The Halo View features Fitbit's traditional rectangular case, soft elastomeric strap, and a bright, colorful AMOLED display. It's a bit more boxy than the current-gen Fitbit Charge 5, but the similarity can't be denied.
Halo View's feature set is very competitive. It has a battery life of seven days and has withstood this claim in my tests. It's also equipped with an optical heart rate sensor, a pulse oximeter that can take both background and on-demand measurements, and a temperature monitor for your skin. Thanks to its 50-meter water resistance, you can wear the Halo View in the shower and while swimming.
Light as a feather
The Halo View looks like a Fitbit but doesn't have the same feel as a Fitbit. Compared to most other fitness bands with a weight of 30 grams, the Halo View is incredibly light at 20.6 grams. The View is so light that I've often forgotten I'm wearing it. It's also very comfortable on the wrist with an easy-to-close strap that doesn't pinch or, at least to me, irritate my skin.
If you want a fitness band that won't weigh you down, the Halo View should be your first choice.
The Halo View doesn't feel as solid as a Fitbit, either. While it feels cheap, it doesn't work like a cheap device. The Halo View exceeded expectations during the test. The battery life was up to a week and the sensor readings were accurate. Although the tape is awkwardly attached to the top of the sensor unit, it held it securely on my wrist and the screen remained scratch-free during the test.
Fitness tracking falls short in one area
Amazon is new to fitness tracking, but you wouldn't know. The Halo app is surprisingly designed with a user interface that makes it easy to find the information you need. And that information is abundant. Amazon's Halo View gathers all of the common health metrics you need to track your fitness, like step count, heart rate, calories, and more. The View uses a weekly scoring system to measure your activity level, which is perfect for busy people. Instead of cramming thousands of steps each day, you can take a day off, exercise when you have more time, and still meet your fitness goals. GPS is the only blatant omission. The View has no built-in GPS and does not use your phone's GPS. As a result, it will not display distance or pace during an outdoor activity. Most people probably won't care, but runners and bikers alike will be disappointed.
Temperature tracking while you sleep
Halo View automatically tracks your sleep every night and is great at knowing when you fall asleep and wake up. It also calculates a sleep score, which is a quick and easy way for you to gauge your sleep quality without digging deep into a variety of metrics. If you want to explore the details, you can too. The Halo app divides sleep into deep, light REM sleep, as well as number of disturbances, awake time, and more.
Not only does Amazon Halo View track your nightly heart rate and movement, it also measures your skin temperature at night. This adds another metric that you can use to diagnose sleep problems or to monitor your health. Do you wake up tired but have slept eight hours? You can check the temperature stats to see if temperature played a role in your insomnia. You may need to shed a layer or add a blanket to keep yourself comfortable at night. Temperature can also be used to diagnose illness, track your menstrual cycle, and monitor other changes in your body or around you.
Halo Fitness brings the burn
Halo View integrates with Amazon's Halo Fitness, which provides access to a growing library of on-demand workouts led by professional fitness instructors. You can choose between cardio, outdoor, strength, yoga and mobility courses. And there are workouts for all fitness levels. Like Apple Fitness and iFit, the workouts are mostly bodyweight exercises, but that doesn't mean they were easy. The classes I took were strong enough to make me sweat and left me sore the next day. Most of the exercises take less than 25 minutes, so you can easily do them even on a busy day. Although I used Halo View to track my workout, the tracker stats don't integrate with Halo Fitness in the Halo app. I had to look at my watch to check my heart rate instead of seeing it on my phone's screen.
Decreased creepiness
Amazon raised some eyebrows with its tone voice analysis and the photo-based body fat analysis it added to its original Halo fitness band. Even though it removed Tone from the Halo view, Amazon kept the body fat measurements that require you to take a photo of yourself in your Skivvies. Measuring body fat using photos may be more accurate, but not everyone will use this feature.
Same goes for Halo View's new Movement Health, which uses the camera to assess your ability to make five simple movements. The data collected by the camera is then analyzed and used to improve your mobility, stability and posture. Fortunately, these features are optional and disabled by default. I turned it on for testing but didn't use it much after initial setup. Step count, activity score, and the weekly goal were my main motivators for keeping moving.
Diet adds a new dimension
Step count, heart rate and sleep tracking are only half the story. The Halo View is packed with a variety of health and wellness features that complement the fitness metrics gathered by the band's built-in sensors. Diet is one of the newest additions and shows promise. The Nutrition section in the Halo app contains customized single meal recipes as well as long-term nutrition programs to help you build healthy eating habits over time. I signed up for "Have a Glass of Water Before Every Meal" and cherished the daily reminders that encouraged me to improve my hydration each day. In the future, Amazon plans to offer instructions for meal planning and shopping lists that will be synchronized with Alexa.
Affordable monthly membership
Amazon nailed the membership options on Halo View. Some companies cripple their devices for non-subscribers, but Amazon gives you basic metrics like steps, heart rate, and sleep times for free. You do not need to purchase this additional subscription to take advantage of the device's minimal fitness tracking capabilities.
Those who want advanced metrics like daily activity results or personalized insights can sign up for a Halo membership. Amazon cost its membership at an affordable $ 3.99 per month. The View comes with a 12 month free subscription to Halo membership so you don't have to pay that fee right away.
Our opinion
The Halo View is a great value for those looking for an affordable alternative to the more expensive trackers from Fitbit and Garmin. It has more than enough metrics and wellness features to keep most users at ease. The Halo View might not have enough bells and whistles to draw people away from Fitbit or Garmin, but it's a great starting point for those new to fitness tracking.
Is there a better alternative?
The Halo makes a great entry-level fitness attacker, but there are better alternatives. With sleek, rounded lines and a beautiful AMOLED display, the Charge 5 is a worthy competitor to the Halo View. At an MSRP of $ 129, the Charge 5 is more expensive but offers the distance and pace metrics not found on the Halo View. Another option is Garmin's Vivosmart 4, which has a sophisticated design and loads of smart features to keep you both connected and healthy.
How long it will take?
Amazon Halo View is a budget fitness tracker, so don't expect it to last five years. Most users will be able to use Halo View for a number of years with normal usage. Adventure athletes or hand-working people such as mechanics or carpenters may find the View too sensitive for their harsh lifestyles.
Should you buy it?
Absolutely. With fitness tracking, sleep tracking, nutrition, and access to instructor-led workouts, the Halo View is ideal for someone who wants a fitness tracker but doesn't want to spend a lot of money.
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