Fitbit Alta review: fashion meets fitness

The Fitbit Alta is a mid-range activity tracker for the everyday fitness fan, which is a real winner when it comes to slim, chic looks and a range of fashionable accessories. It tracks the basics (Steps, Distance, Calories and Sleep), plus boasts Caller ID, Text and Calendar notifications, and is cheaper than the more fully featured Fitbits such as the Charge 2, Versa and Ionic. Its higher-end sibling the Alta HR adds a heart-rate monitor if you want to dive deeper into your health, fitness, sleep and weight-loss metrics. But the cheaper Alta is a stylish tracker that will appeal to people who don’t want a giant sports watch on their wrist, or need a huge array of stats in the app.

Fitbit Alta review: A stylish tracker with long battery life and basic phone notifications

You can spot a Fitbit from across the room. The Fitbit Charge HR and Surge, the company's two most popular trackers, aren't exactly jewerly, and I would never be caught wearing one to a wedding or another formal event. But Fitbit is changing.

While ultimately a more stylish (but heart-rate free) version of the older Charge HR, the Fitbit Alta is a winning fitness tracker with solid style appeal.

The Fitbit Alta is a stylish fitness tracker with swappable bands, basic phone notifications and week-long battery life; The new "Move" alerts bring something new; Fitbit's software is still one of our favorites, and has the largest social base as well.

There's no heart-rate sensor, and it can't be worn in the shower; The tracker is expensive for what it can do and so are the accessory straps; The display is difficult to see outdoors and is susceptible to scratches, and notifications are hard to read.

Fitbit Alta Review

The $129.95 Alta is the first wrist-worn fitness tracker from Fitbit that doesn't really look like a Fitbit (save for the new watch-like Blaze ($142.95 at Amazon UK)(Opens in a new window) ). It's sleek, slim, and has a modular design that can be changed to match your outfit each day. Think of it as the new, fashion-forward Fitbit Charge ($142.95 at Amazon UK)(Opens in a new window) . It tracks many of the same stats as the Charge, including your active minutes, distance, calories, sleep, and steps. And it goes even further, with idle alerts and text notifications from your smartphone. But the Alta lacks an altimeter, GPS, or heart rate monitor, which means athletes who need more advanced features are better off checking out one of Fitbit's other trackers, like the Charge HR ($142.95 at Amazon UK)(Opens in a new window) or the Surge ($142.95 at Amazon UK)(Opens in a new window) .  Design and Display The Fitbit Alta ($142.95 at Amazon UK)(Opens in a new window)  tries its best to ...

The Alta is Fitbit's sleekest, slimmest fitness tracker yet, but if you don't care about looks you can get more functionality for nearly the same price.

Slim design; Swappable bands; Accurate fitness stats; Delivers idle alerts and smartphone notifications

Sometimes unresponsive; Display is tough to see in direct sunlight; No heart rate monitoring, GPS, or stair climbing; Not waterproof