Least Creepy Fitness Tracker?

December 17, 2020 12:36 PM

I've avoided fitness trackers (Fitbit etc.) so far, because I trust no one with my literal vital data. However, I find it really useful to be able to track my walking progress during ankle surgery rehab. Phone-only apps have seemed really inaccurate so far, and I know I won't keep up with manually recording data from a non-smart pedometer. What's the dumbest fitness tracker I can get that will still send data to my phone and is somewhat accurate?

Because I know someone will encourage me to think rationally about my threat model, I'll clarify that this is not a fear hackers could get and use my step count and heart rate for anything nefarious, and is instead the principle of not wanting to be free data for big companies (not even free! I have to pay for the device and possibly the service!). I just generally try to keep my home and my life as free from "smart" devices as possible.

posted by rhiannonstone to Health & Fitness (10 answers total)

Response by poster: I should also add the only thing I actually need to track is distance. Step count would be ideal, time is a nice-to-have.
posted by rhiannonstone at 12:39 PM on December 17, 2020

I use a Wyze Band and like it for the price. The app is nice. A bonus is it will do notifications, but you can turn that off.
posted by deezil at 12:55 PM on December 17, 2020

Response by poster: Thanks deezil! To calibrate a little, though, something that advertises Alexa built-in is probably the opposite direction of what I'm looking for.
posted by rhiannonstone at 1:25 PM on December 17, 2020 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I have had a succession of Mi bands but do not use the app. I use Gadgetbridge, which is open-source, non-cloud-based, and works with a moderate variety of fitness trackers.
posted by jackbishop at 1:27 PM on December 17, 2020

The kids' models from Fitbit and Garmin have less sensors, so there's less data being recorded which could be considered less creepy. I think these two only have movement sensors and no heart rate or microphones:

Garmin Vivofit Jr.
Fitbit Ace

I'd recommend the Garmin, as it's got an always-on screen (no button pushing or swiping) and a year long battery. However, the Garmin has a non-replaceable band which will probably fail in a year, but rehab may end and you may not care to use it.

They also cost more than lesser-known brands, because you are buying the brand name. But all those lesser-known brands are going to pack their devices with every possible sensor, and may be less than courteous with your data.
posted by meowzilla at 1:47 PM on December 17, 2020

Best answer: Not a specific gadget recommendation, but you may appreciate the research and data from Mozilla Foundation's Privacy Not Included project. They've rounded up data and privacy practices related to a number of different wearables.
posted by duien at 2:29 PM on December 17, 2020 [3 favorites]

I know you note the inaccuracy of phone-only devices, but hear me out: do you need absolute distances, or do you need directional/comparative information? If you only want to compare distance over time, (i.e. don't necessarily need to know the number of miles you walk with great accuracy) then your phone might be sufficient.
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 3:20 PM on December 17, 2020

Response by poster: chesty_a_arthur that's a fair point! But I left out the other reason I'm considering a wearable: I want to track walking around my apartment/yard, too, and wearing something is easier than trying to figure out where my phone goes in my pockletless yoga pants while I'm at home (I know, root cause problems...)
posted by rhiannonstone at 5:01 PM on December 17, 2020 [1 favorite]

Misfit makes what is essentially a pedometer that you can wear to swim. I had the older generation, but it doesn't track where you go, just when and that you DID go. It's somewhat accurate (though I was able to fool it-- vigorous mopping registered as swimming once and winding a ball of yarn as running.)
posted by blnkfrnk at 10:38 PM on December 17, 2020

I have an older FitBit (Flex 2, which they don't sell anymore) that just does steps (which it converts to distance and calories) and nothing else. I'd echo looking at one of the kids models, which seem to be similar. Also, you can take it off at night so that it doesn't do sleep tracking.
posted by hydropsyche at 4:52 AM on December 18, 2020