Fitbit releases new style of band for Charge 2 health tracker. The new band is called sport band. It features a breathable, perforated design with flexible, durable elastomer material. There are 3 colour options: black, cobalt (blue-ish) and coral (red-ish). They look good, but these bands are quite expensive compared to most third party bands, is it really worth the price?

When I decided to get Fitbit Charge 2, I thought I can just grab any third party bands and match it with my health tracker. It is partially right. My health tracker does compatible with those third party bands. How those bands feel on our wrist is another story. When we wear a watch for 2-3 hours on special occasions, almost any material would do just fine. Most of us are able to tolerate few hours of a little discomfort, if any. Wear the same watch for 10 hours a day, most people would start expecting more comfortable band material. When we are expected to wear the same watch for almost the whole day continuously (which is the case for most health tracker products that also track sleep) the band material is more important than ever.

The material of the standard band from Fitbit is not the most comfortable I have ever felt. But it’s usable. Disclaimer, I don’t actually wear my Fitbit Charge 2 the entire day. I usually take it off at least twice a day, shower time. And I don’t immediately wear them again after shower. That gives me about 2 to 3 hours a day (in total) without wearing my health tracker. I find this pattern sustainable. My skin has enough time to properly “breathe”, and I no longer get the occasional cases of skin irritation, which I had when I tried wearing it full 24 hours except few minutes of bath time.

My other band (third party stainless-steel) looks nice. It feels nice in the first 3-4 hours wearing, then it starts to get uncomfortable. It can get even worse when I do some physical work that causes sweaty hand.

Fitbit Charge 2 Sport Band is made from the same material as the original Charge 2 bands. However, the breathable perforated design gives the user a completely different experience. I didn’t feel any noticeable difference until the third day of wearing it. Then I quickly prefer my new Sport Band compared to my original band. It allows my skin to breathe more. I feel a lot more comfortable wearing it after a busy (and sometimes sweaty) day. It stopped me from wanting to have long Fitbit-free time every evening.

Is it worth the cost? I still think it’s expensive, but if we do plan to continuously wear our health tracker day and night everyday, it does feel as a worth investment.