Fitbit Flex 2 review: The best simple Fitbit

Time sure does fly. Originally released in 2016, the Fitbit Flex 2 is a little long in the tooth now, but the company doesn’t seem to have much interest in replacing it. So should you buy one today?

Yeah, absolutely. If you just want simple step tracking in a stylish package, then the Fitbit Flex 2 has an awful lot going for it. The addition of swim tracking is a great little bonus, and Fitbit’s community features are second to none. It’s especially appealing now as it’s quite a bit cheaper than its launch price of £80: it’s £50 at Argos, for example. 

No, it doesn’t have built-in GPS or heart-rate tracking, but if those things matter to you, you’re probably not the Fitbit Flex 2 demographic anyway. The Fitbit Flex 2 is a masterclass in minimalism, and it does what it sets out to achieve brilliantly. Even three years into its life.

Jon’s original review continues below

Despite being the best in fitness-tracker wearables, Fitbit has shied away from waterproofing in the past. Fitbit’s Charge 2 was great, but its lack of protection against water let it down. Fitbit waterproofing is finally here, with the affordable Flex 2 fitness tracker.

As an avid swimmer, this is the most enticing new addition. I’m always in the pool, but I’m still after a fitness tracker that works just as well when I’m out of the water, even if I don’t fare so well on land. Fitbit’s Flex 2 is well rounded, with the waterproofing paired with some welcome added extras such as keeping track of how many (or how few) lengths you just swam in your local pool.

The best thing is that absolutely everything (other than food intake) is tracked automatically thanks to the in-built SmartTrack tech. Simply take part in that activity for 15 minutes or more, be it cycling or your weekly gym session, and it will log all the necessary info.

It’s crammed with the usual fitness-tracking features, such as step-tracking, sleep-monitoring and gym-session debriefs. It will also roughly calculate how many calories you’ve consumed during the day in relation to your height, age and sex, as well as help keep track of food and water intake.

Fitbit Flex 2 review: Design

The Flex 2 is not so dissimilar to its 2013 predecessor, but there are a smattering of practicality improvements. For one, the five status LEDs placed on the plastic tracker itself give you a handy heads-up about remaining charge and any important notifications. It will vibrate when it wants you to do something, act as an alarm clock in the morning, and give you a nudge when any text messages or phone calls are on the way.

The plastic strap I was sent with my Flex 2 review unit is black and basic, but you do get the choice of five different colours. It’s super-comfortable to wear, and I only noticed it on my wrist from time to time. It feels remarkably well put together, with the clasps holding on tight, so I wouldn’t expect this’ll fall off on accident all too often.

If you’re the type that wants standout accessories, be prepared to pay some pretty hefty sums of money. For gold- and rose-finished pendants, you’ll be forking out around £80 – although they are plated in proper 22K gold. The “silver” version costs about the same, however, but is just stainless steel. And if you do get the extras, it’s not recommended you take them in the water.

Fitbit Flex 2 review: Performance

As always, the Fitbit Flex 2’s app integration is near perfection. Both the Android and iOS versions have everything you need, with all the nitty-gritty data right at your fingertips.

Syncing wirelessly with your phone, the Fitbit Flex 2 transfers over every bit of data, displaying it in a handy vertical list. Want to know a bit more information about that particular stat? Just tap on that entry to get more detail and break down the activity by the hour.

A couple of updates make the app even more useful. The new Adventures section helps incentivise targets, with impressive virtual milestones and some interesting adventures to get started with. You can go on all sorts of hikes, in both the New York Marathon to the Yosemite National Park. It’s a wonderfully engaging way of getting you out of bed and keeping up with your fitness.

Because it’s waterproof, the new swim-tracking feature is my new best friend. Tracked automatically like the other activities, swim-tracking lists your activities on the dashboard and, even though the software doesn’t distinguish between strokes, it count your lengths surprisingly accurately. One of my swim tests even pointed out a ten-minute swim break in the middle of my swimming session. 

The only thing you need to do is let the Fitbit Flex 2 know the length of the pool before swimming. I wrongly assumed it would ask afterwards, and the setting is buried under a bunch of other features, so it’s hardly something you’ll notice at first. Set it once and it’ll remember every time, though – perfect if you’re the kind of swimmer that sticks to the same pool every session.

Battery life is reasonably impressive, with a single charge getting me through roughly a week’s worth of fitness regimes. Just be sure not to lose the annoying proprietary charger when you do need some extra juice.

Fitbit Flex 2 review: Verdict

Despite the occasional annoyance, the Fitbit Flex 2 is a fantastic fitness tracker. It does pretty much everything you need it to, with new waterproofing, app updates and swim-tracking for a pretty affordable price. You’ll have to look elsewhere for heart-rate monitoring or barometric pressure sensors, though.

Whether or not it’s for you boils down to how much you think you’ll get out of it. If you’re after a tracker that tracks absolutely everything you do fitness-wise, the Fitbit Flex 2 might not be the one. The Moov Now is more of a complete package, with interactive coaching, more reliable swim-tracking, and longer-lasting battery life. If you’re not a swimmer, the Jawbone UP3 gives you heart-rate monitoring for less.

That being said, if you’re just trying to achieve a healthier lifestyle, you won’t be disappointed with the Fitbit Flex 2. It’s seriously easy to use, with a great app that offers a decent amount of helpful data to give you a leg-up when reaching for those goals. It’s a great fire-and-forget fitness tracker, and something that’s a worthy addition to the rest of Fitbit’s offerings.