Fitbit Luxe or Charge 4 – Which watch is best?

The Fitbit Luxe, which sits above the Fitbit Inspire 2 and next to the powerful Charge 4, is the newest member of the Fitbit family.

Priced the same as Fitbit’s top-tier tracker and offering many of the same features. Looking at the designs, they are vastly different.

We’ve focused a lot on the Charge 4 and have a great idea of what’s coming with Luxe. But we can still discuss how the Fitbit Luxe and Fitbit Charge 4 fare against one another.

Price

How much do the Fitbit Luxe and Charge 4 cost?

The Luxe costs around $150. There’s a special gorjana edition at around $200.

The Charge 4 is priced cheaper at under $100. The special edition is $20 more.

Excluding the Luxe special edition, the cost of the two wearables is somewhat similar. Based on that, you’d anticipate the features to be comparable. Here’s what to expect.

Design

While the Luxe isn’t out yet (but you can pre-order), it’s evident the design differs from the Charge 4. It bears a striking resemblance to the stylish Alta HR.

When measured against Charge 4, which is 35.8mm by 22.7mm by 12.5mm, the Luxe measures 36.30mm by 17.62mm by 10.05mm. The Charge 4 is slightly larger in several ways, whereas the Luxe is the more elegant.

The Luxe has a stainless steel case and a silicone strap, whereas the Charge 4 has a resin case and a sports watch-style band. Both have water resistance up to 50 meters.

The Charge 4 is available in four different colors and a special edition with a nylon band.

The Luxe comes in 4 styles, including a limited-edition variant, with a soft gold stainless steel tracker and link bracelet.

Fitbit defines the Luxe as a fashion accessory. Whereas the Charge 4 is more sporty, it can also be dressed up with sophisticated bands.

There is a substantial distinction between the displays. The Charge 4 has a 1-inch greyscale OLED touchscreen. However, the Luxe has a smaller 0.76-inch AMOLED touchscreen with a 124×206 pixel resolution.

If you’d like an elegant look and color display, go with the Luxe. It’s far more classy, and we can clearly tell it’s aimed squarely at ladies.

The Charge 4 appears more athletic and is clearly directed at men. The bulkier case is designed to fit larger wrists, but it may appear bulky on narrow arms.

Smart features

Fitbit makes an effort to include smartwatch functionality in all of its wearable devices, including the Luxe and Charge 4.

With the Luxe, you can see both first and third-party notifications. Though you can configure, do not disturb, and sleep times to disable those notifications. There are also silent alarms and the ability to create timers and use them in stopwatch mode.

The Charge 4 has the same capabilities. And Fitbit Pay, weather forecasts, and music controls for Spotify.

So, if you want a smartwatch with a little more oomph, the Charge 4 is the one. Don’t forget that the color display on the Luxe makes it a nicer experience to view notifications.

Battery life

Fitbit fitness trackers should last a minimum of 5 days. However, the best battery life is with the Inspire 2, which offers 10 days between charges.

The goal for its more costly trackers is 7 days of battery life. The Luxe lasts up to 5 days. However, the Charge 4 lasts up to 7. Also, it has a 5-hour GPS battery life if you want to track your outdoor activities more precisely.

Fitbit excels at fitness tracking, and indeed the user experience is consistent across all of its products.

Both devices have a 3-axis accelerometer for documenting steps, activity, and detecting sleep.

Both offer optical heart rate monitors for tracking heart rates and effort levels throughout exercise 24/7.  Although the Charge 4 has only an altimeter to gauge elevation, you’ll also get red and infrared sensors for SpO2 monitoring while sleeping.  Furthermore, both include a temperature sensor that monitors skin temperature while you sleep, offering a further data point for Health Metrics.

The Charge 4 does have more sensors. Including GPS built-in for accurate outdoor activity tracking.  Though, as the Luxe has connected GPS, you’ll need to hook it up to your phone, which can be irritating.

There is also daily activity tracking, Active Zone minutes, move reminders, and automatic sleep monitoring. You can also use Fitbit badges to encourage you to work out. The skin temperature sensor in Charge 4’s sleep tracking, on the other hand, provides more information.

When you swap to sports tracking, you get 20 activity modes with automated exercise recognition support for basic activities like running, walking, and swimming. The Luxe and Charge 4 both have pool swim tracking, though it’s a teensy bit sophisticated than what Fitbit’s smartwatches have.

Workout intensity maps (which show where you worked hardest on your run or ride) are missing out on the Luxe but visible on the Charge 4.

They are similar as activity trackers. Fitbit’s flagship tracker includes built-in GPS though, giving it an extra thumbs up from runners and cyclists.

Health

Fitbit cares about wellbeing and incorporating stress, relaxation, and mindfulness into its trackers. This is particularly true of the new Luxe. The guided breathing capabilities that have appeared on other Fitbit wearables are now available on the Luxe band, enabling you to spend some time calming yourself down.

More mindful features can be found in the Fitbit app, in which you can set aside time for self-care with new features like mindful minutes. It also generates stress scores based on physical demands on the body, as measured by the in-built heart rate monitor and heart rate variability readings. These health features appear to be at the heart of what the Luxe is all about, but they are features that most Fitbit customers can use.

For example, the Charge 4 will provide insight into your overall wellbeing by analyzing your breathing rate while sleeping with the built-in SpO2 sensor, identifying patterns over weeks and months. If you want to pay for access to Fitbit’s app and Fitbit Premium service’s wellness features, you can do so here as well.

Which is the better option for you: Luxe or Charge 4?

When these two Fitbit fitness trackers are compared, it’s clear that they’ll appeal to very different users and those who value different aspects of this type of wearable.

The Luxe is a more stylish, blend-in-with-your-outfit option with better fitness monitoring functions and a colorful display.

The Charge 4 has a built-in GPS for sports tracking, a lightweight design and can run for several days on a single charge. It also has a few goodies in the smartwatch category.

The Charge 4 appears to be the best option if you’re someone who wants a hybrid sports watch and fitness tracker. Though if that’s the case, we direct you to the Garmin Venu 2.

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