ActiveFitbit Sense vs Fitbit Sense 2 – Is the new health smartwatch worth the upgrade?Which Fitbit Sense device is for you? We compare the popular smartwatch brand’s flagship wearables head-to-headWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
ActiveFitbit Sense vs Fitbit Sense 2 – Is the new health smartwatch worth the upgrade?Which Fitbit Sense device is for you? We compare the popular smartwatch brand’s flagship wearables head-to-headWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Which Fitbit Sense device is for you? We compare the popular smartwatch brand’s flagship wearables head-to-head
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Fitbit)
(Image credit: Fitbit)
Launched in October 2022, the Sense 2 replaces the original Sense as Fitbit’s top-of-the-range smartwatch, offering a wide variety of health and fitness features, including ECG, stress and sleep tracking, automatic workout recognition and more. Is it worth the upgrade, though, especially considering that the new Fitbit Sense 2 is more expensive than its predecessor?
(Image credit: Fitbit)
(Image credit: Fitbit)
Fitbit Sense vs Fitbit Sense 2 – Price and availability
The brand new Fitbit Sense 2 was launched in October 2022 and is available now directly fromFitbit UKas well as many other major online retailers for £269.99 / $299.99.
The original Sense wearable, which was also £269.99 / $299.99 at launch, has come down in price since its release in September 2020 and can be picked upfrom retailers such as Amazon UKfor as little as £185 (at the time of writing) despite it being listed for £219 on the official UK Fitbit web store (it’s recently disappeared from the US store).
As for colour options, the Sense 2 can be purchased in grey and graphite, white and platinum, or blue and gold, whereas the original Sense comes in grey and silver, carbon and graphite or white and gold colourways. None of the Sense series’ colour options has ever overwhelmed us, but they’re accessible for the most part.
Today’s best Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Sense 2 dealsFitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all pricesFitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Sense 2 dealsFitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all pricesFitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Sense 2 dealsFitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all pricesFitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Sense 2 deals
Fitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all pricesFitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense
Fitbit Sense
$165.90View
$165.90
$165.90
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Fitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense 2
Fitbit Sense 2
$193.46View
$193.46
$193.46
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We check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Fitbit Sense vs Fitbit Sense 2 – Design
What you’ll first notice (or rather not notice) about the new Sense 2 is that it’s practically identical in design to the original Sense and also very similar to Fitbit’s other, more established smartwatch series, the Versa. There’s the same curved aluminium housing paired with a silicone band and a 1.58-inch ALOMED screen, touting a fairly decent 336 x 336-pixel count.
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A closer look at the Fitbit Sense 2, however, will reveal some slight tweaks over the first-gen model, such as a slightly lighter and slimmer chassis. And when we say slightly, we mean it. The watch casing is 1.1mm thinner, now measuring 11.2mm, while the entire device is 6g lighter, weighing 40g. Some barely noticeable differences are still very welcome, nonetheless.
Oh, and one more thing: the one button on the Sense is now of the physical variety as opposed to the haptic version found on the original, which was never really that ergonomically pleasing if you ask us. That’s probably why Fitbit changed it.
(Image credit: Fitbit)
(Image credit: Fitbit)
Fitbit Sense vs Fitbit Sense 2 – Features
However, the big new Google software features Sense 2 users will really benefit from, which owners of older Fitbit devices won’t – such asGoogle Mapsand Wallet – won’t be seeing these apps until a firmware update “later in the year”, the firm has said. So, out of the box, you won’t really see any major improvements as far as apps are concerned.
In fact, the Sense 2 lacks on-wrist Bluetooth calls, which are also expected to land later this year, while the older Fitbit Sense already has both. So, to really garner the benefits software-wise, you’re going to have to play the long game here. Especially since we’ve heard older devices Fitbit launched pre-Google won’t be getting the software upgrades their successors are.
(Image credit: Matt Kollat/T3)
(Image credit: Matt Kollat/T3)
The original Sense also had an EDA sensor, but you had to initiate a reading manually and cover the watch with the other hand for it to be able to measure stress. The Sense 2 is more convenient to use for stress tracking, not to mention it also has more stress-busting features onboard than its predecessor.
And what about battery life? Both the Fitbit Sense and the Sense 2 are quoted as running for six days on a full charge.
Fitbit Sense vs Fitbit Sense 2 – Verdict
While the Sense 2 delivers some decent improvements over its predecessor – including more sports tracking options, an updated cEDA sensor for stress tracking and a slightly more sleek design – it’s not quite ready to take the crown from the original Fitbit Sense due to the lack of WiFi, the currently missing features, and the higher asking price.
However, if you’ve never had a Sense device before and want the best that Fitbit has to offer when it comes to smartwatches, then we’d certainly recommend weighing up whether the relatively incremental improvements in the Sense 2 compared to the original Sense, alongside a bit of Google future-proofing, are worth the difference. If you do a lot of different sports and stress tracking is a big thing for you, then we think you already know the answer…
Today’s best Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Sense 2 dealsFitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all pricesFitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Sense 2 dealsFitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all pricesFitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Sense 2 dealsFitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all pricesFitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best Fitbit Sense and Fitbit Sense 2 deals
Fitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all pricesFitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense$165.90ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense
Fitbit Sense
$165.90View
$165.90
$165.90
See all prices
Fitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense 2$193.46ViewSee all prices
Fitbit Sense 2
Fitbit Sense 2
$193.46View
$193.46
$193.46
See all prices
We check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
We check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
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