I bought Google’s Fitbit Sense 2 . I got the Platinum Aluminum body with a Lunar White band.
I ordered it from the Google Store on Thursday, May 1st, and it arrived on Saturday, May 3rd. This is my first smartwatch since the Amazfit Bip I got back in [2018-01-28-1] .
Purchase Price
The retail price was ¥32,800, but I had ¥15,000 in Google Store credit from buying a Pixel 9a in [2025-05-04-1] , so I effectively paid ¥17,800.
I think that’s a great deal for a smartwatch.
Why I Bought It
I didn’t strictly need to spend the Google Store credit, but I figured it was a good opportunity to try out a modern smartwatch.
That naturally led me to compare it with the Pixel Watch 3 . In the end, the deciding factors were:
- Battery life reportedly lasts about 6 days
- Pixel Watch 3 only lasts 24-36 hours
- The price of ¥32,800 is reasonable
- Pixel Watch 3 costs ¥52,800 for 41mm and ¥59,800 for 45mm
…That said, the real reason I pulled the trigger was that I mistakenly thought the Fitbit Sense 2 could detect signs of atrial fibrillation (AFib) 😅
🔗 Fitbit、「Inspire 3」「Versa 4」「Sense 2」を日本で発売――心電図は非対応も「承認に向けて取り組んでいる」 - ケータイ Watch
なお、Sense 2について、日本では「心電図」機能は利用できない。
This article is dated September 16, 2022, but the ECG app still appears to be unavailable in Japan as of now. Disappointing.
In hindsight, the Fitbit Versa 4 (¥27,800) might have been good enough.
The Good
My usage is fairly light, but the smartwatch works just fine for everyday use.
- It tracks steps, calories burned, floors climbed, heart rate, sleep duration, etc.
- I can check smartphone notifications on the watch
- I can set a Do Not Disturb mode to disable vibrations during specific hours each day
The battery life is excellent, so I rarely have to worry about charging. Charging during bath time is more than sufficient, and forgetting once isn’t a problem.
The pin buckle is flat, and the band tucks inward, so it rarely catches on clothing.
By the way, I’m using the ChronoBasic watch face. I chose it because it can optionally display seconds, step count, calories, and more.
But I Can’t Recommend It
Unreliable Behavior
Sometimes a tap is mistakenly recognized as a scroll. The overall responsiveness also feels a bit sluggish at times.
After changing the watch face, fonts occasionally become inconsistent — some turning bold, for instance. It usually fixes itself eventually.
The tiles that appear when swiping horizontally also don’t reliably reflect the settings from the Fitbit app.
False Detections
It counts clapping as steps. I’ve been attending women’s pro wrestling events frequently lately, which means plenty of clapping…
After waking up and removing the watch to get ready in the morning, my heart rate suddenly spikes and active zone minutes shoot up. I’d really like to believe that’s a false reading.
Uncertain Future for the Product
Fitbit was acquired by Google in January 20211. The Fitbit Sense 2 was released on September 29, 2022.
No successor has been announced since then, and given that Google has the Pixel Watch, I think it’s unlikely that Fitbit will see a resurgence. There have been leaked reports suggesting the same.
That said, metrics flow into Google’s Fit app, so I’m not too concerned about it.
Half-Baked Features
I don’t use these myself, but several features feel half-baked 💦
- The voice assistant is Alexa, not Google Assistant
- It can’t sync with the Suica on your phone. You’d need to create a new Suica specifically for Fitbit
- The selection of supported credit/debit cards is limited2
Conclusion
I’ve listed plenty of complaints, but wearing a smartwatch on a walk after such a long time does lift my spirits a little. And the daily step count is more accurate than relying on a phone.
I’ll keep using the Fitbit Sense 2 until I get bored of it or it breaks.
amazon.co.jp