Why you'll love it: The
Fitbit Versa is a better fitness tracker than it is a smartwatch, but if that's what you want, it's a great alternative.
If what you really want is a great fitness tracker with a few key smartwatch features and not a techy smartwatch, the Fitbit Versa is a great choice. It's the best looking Fitbit smartwatch so far, and it has a nice Apple Watch-like design that looks great on women.
The Versa tracks your fitness metrics just like every other Fitbit. It has a built-in heart rate monitor and it uses your phone's GPS to track workouts. It doesn't have standalone GPS like the Apple Watch, though, so runners who like to leave their phones behind may be disappointed.
As a smartwatch, the Versa isn't as fully featured as the Apple Watch or WearOS watches, but it has more than enough smart features to keep most people happy — so long as you want a fitness tracker first and a smartwatch second. As a fitness tracker, the Versa is great. It has excellent pre-set workouts you can follow, you can swim with it on, it has a personal coach, tracks your sleep and activity, and you can see how your workout is going in real time for more than 15 types of exercise.
The Versa can hold about 300 downloaded songs and it works with Deezer or Pandora. Unfortunately, other music streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music are MIA. Again, this only matters if you leave your phone behind because otherwise, you just play music on your phone. You can also pair wireless headphones to the Versa if you do want to leave your phone behind.
The app and watch face selection is still fairly limited, but hopefully more developers will add apps as time goes on. You can get notifications for texts, calls, and WhatsApp messages on the Versa, which is a nice touch. Sadly, iPhone owners can't reply to messages on the watch, though Android users have the option to reply with a few canned responses.
From a distance, the Versa almost looks like the Apple Watch, but close up, it looks much more like the now-defunct Pebble Time Steel. The screen is more square in shape than the curvy rectangular Apple Watch, but it still looks quite nice if slightly less polished. The Versa is good enough looking that you could easily wear it to work or with a nice outfit.
The case is made out of aluminum and you can get it in silver, rose gold, or black finishes. Each Versa comes with both small and large silicone wristbands in either gray (for silver), black (for black), or pink (for rose gold). There are some special-edition bands, too.
You can also choose to buy additional wristbands made from leather, metal, or silicone. Those come in a variety of fun colors and styles. The only downside is that they cost extra.
I tested the silver Versa with the gray silicone wristband and a special Horween leather wristband. Both options looked great with the Versa, and I liked wearing the leather one for work and other nice occasions. The silicone one is perfect for workouts, yoga, and running because it can handle sweat without being damaged.
Pros: Good fitness tracking, heart rate monitor, uses phone's GPS, notifications, some apps, can choose your watch face, good looking
Cons: Bezel isn't as slim as it could be, few apps, no built-in GPS
Buy the Fitbit Versa from Fitbit for $199.95
Shop Classic Versa silicone bands for $29.95
Shop Versa leather bands for $49.95
Shop metal Versa bands for $99.95