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Fitness trackers usually fail badly in the test Devices measure a lot of crap
Electronic aids in sports
Nowadays, more and more technical or electronic aids are being used in sports. Amateur athletes rely on apps, gadgets or fitness trackers to measure, for example, the distance traveled or the calories consumed. Meanwhile, some devices are also co-financed by health insurance companies. Last summer, for example, the AOK health insurance fund was the first in Germany to announce that it grants such a subsidy to its insured. Shortly thereafter followed the Techniker health insurance, which announced to pay their members 250 euros for an Apple Watch. Apparently, not all products are worth supporting. In a test by consumer advocates, many products have turned out not to be recommended.
Fitness trackers performed poorly. Image: estherpoon - fotolia Devices mostly "not yet ready for the market"
According to the APA news agency, fitness trackers in the form of an electronic wristband, according to consumer advocates, are for the most part "not yet ready for the market". Amongst other things, such sports gadgets should increase the number of steps, the heart rate and the calorie consumption and thus spur on the wearer. But the testers criticized in the magazine "consumer" the inaccuracy of the devices: "They work imprecise, are more motion than pedometer." As has been proven in the technical review by the Stiftung Warentest as well as the "consumer" -Praxistest, measures the, who measures a lot, "a lot of crap". According to the information evaluated the devices doing hand gestures, such as typing on the computer, as steps, as well as the brushing and hanging laundry.
The measurements are not to be trusted
"Even a subway ride counts as an activity and is converted into steps," consumers said, according to the APA. In addition, the stated calorie consumption should be considered "a rough estimate rather than a calculated value". The measurements of the heart rate is also to be trusted. If they are done via a sensor on the wrist, they are pretty inaccurate. According to the "consumer", only the models with chest strap worked precisely on this point. Also not convincing is the collection of sleep quality: The user "sleeps" until he switches the mode even by hand on wakefulness.
Personal data is often not secure
In a test of fitness wristbands last year was criticized by other experts that privacy is often neglected. Similar criticism is also currently. As the news agency APA writes, the personal data is stored on external servers of the provider or in clouds. But the Bluetooth connection between the band and smartphone is partly not sure. According to some devices also transfer without the knowledge of the user all stored on Android e-mail addresses. Also the heavy load of the mobile phone battery when transmitting the data was criticized. All devices require additional smartphone apps or PC programs in order to fully read the evaluated data.
Smartphone makes fitness bracelet superfluous
The conclusion was therefore: "Actually, a fitness tracker on the arm is unnecessary." A corresponding app for the mobile phone fulfill the same purpose. Smartphones make fitness bands superfluous, because countless data are already stored in the various applications anyway. "Who uses it for fitness, decides for the lesser evil. After all, it does not allow the data to make a detour to the providers of the tapes, "said the consumer advocates. (Ad)