Garmin Vivosmart 4 Activity Tracker Black

This is what I am looking for in a fitness tracker. It comfortable, I can swim with it, it tracks my sleep, I can read it in the sunlight. If it detects me walking for 5 minutes it automatically turns on the activity mode. You can buy separate colored bands. The only thing it does not have is a pulse sensor. It's very easy to upload my data into Garmin Connect software on my phone. The soft ware will collate your data and give you readouts and charts for the past weeks or months. It's easy to join challenges and your activity stats transfer to the challenge you are participating in. I love this band.

A new way to tell myself to rest.

I needed a fitness tracker to start keeping a closer watch on my heart rate and my heart rate variability (HRV) to manage post exertional malaise from chronic illnesses. I have Long Covid, POTS, and probably Chronic Fatigue, so I am always exhausted and my heart rate is always high. I read about how you can use a fitness tracker to monitor the times of day where your energy stores are high as well as when they are low so that you can do your necessary activities when your energy is higher and rest when your stores are low. I looked at several different watches and liked the look of the Garmin VivoSmart 4 best and it turned out to have higher ratings than my second choice as far as features were concerned, so it was the winner. The Stress score is virtually ones HRV, ... MoreI needed a fitness tracker to start keeping a closer watch on my heart rate and my heart rate variability (HRV) to manage post exertional malaise from chronic illnesses. I have Long Covid, POTS, and probably Chronic Fatigue, so I am always exhausted and my heart rate is always high. I read about how you can use a fitness tracker to monitor the times of day where your energy stores are high as well as when they are low so that you can do your necessary activities when your energy is higher and rest when your stores are low. I looked at several different watches and liked the look of the Garmin VivoSmart 4 best and it turned out to have higher ratings than my second choice as far as features were concerned, so it was the winner. The Stress score is virtually ones HRV, and when one has any type of heart issue like I do, you want to monitor this closely. The VivoSmart 4 has a Body Battery, which has a score between 5-100 that tells you your body's energy stores for the day. Your body battery charges up while you sleep or when you nap, and it depletes during the day as you are active. For me, with severe chronic illness, I lose a point just getting dressed. My body battery was only 29 when I put it on and it quickly dropped to 5. It stayed there. I Googled this, and many new usersexperience this for their first week as the watch learns their body. For me, my batter didn't start charging until day 10, but I am really really fatigued from my illnesses. The highest score I've woke up with yet in 14 days is 51, and that was only once, but I have a really high heart beat, which affects how the watch calculates Stress, because my HRV is low. It's really complicated for me. But now that it's beginning to measure me accurately, it's giving me a lower stress score, and eventually I hope my body battery will become higher, because even a 50 is still low, and most of my body battery is super low which means I need to rest. And I actually know that's true. I do need to rest. I can feel that in my real body. I look forward to using this to navigate my chores more efficiently. If I see my body battery higher I can do dishes or laundry and then nap to recharge. This is why I bought it. I know many people buy these for fitness workouts, but they are great resources for people managing post exertional malaise and learning to avoid causing it. Now as for fitness workouts, it often believes I'm doing a high intensity workout when I take a shower, when I do dishes, and when I cook, because my heart rate gets so high during any of these activities. I don't know whether to laugh or cry about that.

Better than my Honor Band 5

Bought this to replace my Huawei Honor Band 5. The Garmin app is SO much better than the Huawei app. And much more information. The Vivosmart 4 is smaller than the Honor Band and more comfortable. The band is a stretch rubber so it fits snug around your wrist and never too tight or loose. I love the auto feature that automatically starts recording an activity after it senses you’ve been doing it for 10 minutes. The heart rate feature is constantly on and records in real time so you don’t have to select it and then wait for it to display. It’s always just a flick away. I leave it in heart rate display when I work out so I can see my heart rate in real time, instantly. Can’t say enough nice things about the Garmin Vivosmart 4. And that’s coming from someone that loved ... MoreBought this to replace my Huawei Honor Band 5. The Garmin app is SO much better than the Huawei app. And much more information. The Vivosmart 4 is smaller than the Honor Band and more comfortable. The band is a stretch rubber so it fits snug around your wrist and never too tight or loose. I love the auto feature that automatically starts recording an activity after it senses you’ve been doing it for 10 minutes. The heart rate feature is constantly on and records in real time so you don’t have to select it and then wait for it to display. It’s always just a flick away. I leave it in heart rate display when I work out so I can see my heart rate in real time, instantly. Can’t say enough nice things about the Garmin Vivosmart 4. And that’s coming from someone that loved the Honor Band. This is better than the Honor Band in every way. The only thing the Honor Band had up on the Garmin is it had a beautiful color OLED display. The Garmin Vivosmart is black and white. But just as clear and easy to read. Now that I’ve used it for a while, I like this display even better.And lastly, customer support from Garmin is incredible. I contacted them to purchase an extra band loop and they shipped me two of them for free!!

Good but Complicated!

I have had Fitbits for several years but lack of customer service led me to the Garmin Vivosmart 4. Everything was easy to navigate with Fitbit but the Garmin is harder. Maybe I don't remember the difficulty adjusting to the Fitbit but I am having a hard time with the Garmin. I don't need the weather and other notifications showing up on my tracker. But do you think I can figure enough to shut them off? I dud call customer support once with one question and Garmins support out shines Fitbit by miles. So that is a very positive for the Garmin company. I would recommend to Garmin keep it simple. Other than that it does everything I need it to do.

Good fitness tracker - with GPS issues

A very good fitness tracker, allows you to record a variety of activities, along with a lot of other features, like heart rate monitoring, stress level, SpO2 levels (values are not very accurate, I think), and sleep monitoring. I was impressed by the weight training recording feature, which can automatically detect (often correctly) what exercise you are doing. Good battery life. It doesn't have a GPS, and needs to connect to a phone for GPS.I had an issue with the first tracker I received, where it would reset right in the middle of an activity, causing me to lose all data for that duration. Garmin replaced the tracker for me; the new one doesn't seem to have that issue (so far). However, a persistent (and very frustrating) issue is that it is often unable to ... MoreA very good fitness tracker, allows you to record a variety of activities, along with a lot of other features, like heart rate monitoring, stress level, SpO2 levels (values are not very accurate, I think), and sleep monitoring. I was impressed by the weight training recording feature, which can automatically detect (often correctly) what exercise you are doing. Good battery life. It doesn't have a GPS, and needs to connect to a phone for GPS.I had an issue with the first tracker I received, where it would reset right in the middle of an activity, causing me to lose all data for that duration. Garmin replaced the tracker for me; the new one doesn't seem to have that issue (so far). However, a persistent (and very frustrating) issue is that it is often unable to connect to the phone GPS, and keeps trying to connect. This issue has been present in both the trackers I have had.

It's okay

Upon receiving the tracking device i had to charge it. I should have realized that when the description read NO CHARGER it meant that it would need a charger . I thought it would have a non chargeable battery. I quickly ordered a charger and when i got it all charged up i put it on and it was the most comfortable watch id ever worn. Watchbands are usually set where the strap is either too tight or too loose. This one was perfect! The screen is small and not in my way. I love the feel of the watch. I love how it takes my heart rate and breaks down sleep into categories. I like the unique charger cord. No one can take off with my charger! And it is securely connected for a good charge. For the not so good things, it just doesn't record my runs. It recorded my first ... MoreUpon receiving the tracking device i had to charge it. I should have realized that when the description read NO CHARGER it meant that it would need a charger . I thought it would have a non chargeable battery. I quickly ordered a charger and when i got it all charged up i put it on and it was the most comfortable watch id ever worn. Watchbands are usually set where the strap is either too tight or too loose. This one was perfect! The screen is small and not in my way. I love the feel of the watch. I love how it takes my heart rate and breaks down sleep into categories. I like the unique charger cord. No one can take off with my charger! And it is securely connected for a good charge. For the not so good things, it just doesn't record my runs. It recorded my first few runs and then just wouldn't record anymore. Sometimes it recordedy runs as walks and so the running app i use wouldn't recognize my effort as a run . This morning I made sure i set it to running before i started and it detected walking even though i was in hrzone3 It didnt give summary of my run that listed time, distance, hrzone percentages, etc which is the main reason i have this device. Maybe it's just a learning curve but right now i feel disappointed with my comfortable but ineffecient device.

Love this model

Having used a vivofit 3 previously, which I loved, I looked to garmin for an upgrade. I need a device with heart rate, pulse oximeter and swimmable. This fits my needs. Some activities it needs setting to log, eg swimming or cycling but for a walk or a run it will automatically log as an activity. The app is user friendly and the insights are useful. Syncs with UA my fitness pal. The heart rate monitor is good for a wrist based device as is the overnight pulse ox. You can test pulse ox as a one off during the day but overnight it will record a long period while you sleep. All in all it has some good features and is worth its rrp for anyone who wants a good overall picture of their sleep patterns and other health markers mentioned. More serious athletes will need to ... MoreHaving used a vivofit 3 previously, which I loved, I looked to garmin for an upgrade. I need a device with heart rate, pulse oximeter and swimmable. This fits my needs. Some activities it needs setting to log, eg swimming or cycling but for a walk or a run it will automatically log as an activity. The app is user friendly and the insights are useful. Syncs with UA my fitness pal. The heart rate monitor is good for a wrist based device as is the overnight pulse ox. You can test pulse ox as a one off during the day but overnight it will record a long period while you sleep. All in all it has some good features and is worth its rrp for anyone who wants a good overall picture of their sleep patterns and other health markers mentioned. More serious athletes will need to spend more serious money if absolute accuracy is required, but for the casual user the accuracy gives a good enough indication of health.

My gist of the Garmin Vivosmart 4

My son gave me Vivosmart 4 as I developed a heart issue. I love the tracking. I don't like needing to recharge every four days. I don't like how it continually disconnect from phone and constantly alerts me to the fact. There is no reason for it. Probably drains the battery early. My son shutdown the pedometer reminder. When that was on battery lasted two days. Those are unnecessary nusiances.I love the sleep tracking and the body battery, what an innovation though I can't phantom they work...Heart rate tracker very serious help.The other frustration is Garmin not responding to my sons several inquires as to whether or not to return for repair or replacement.Right now the hiccup is it doesn't track everything all the time. Somethings it sync's while it ... MoreMy son gave me Vivosmart 4 as I developed a heart issue. I love the tracking. I don't like needing to recharge every four days. I don't like how it continually disconnect from phone and constantly alerts me to the fact. There is no reason for it. Probably drains the battery early. My son shutdown the pedometer reminder. When that was on battery lasted two days. Those are unnecessary nusiances.I love the sleep tracking and the body battery, what an innovation though I can't phantom they work...Heart rate tracker very serious help.The other frustration is Garmin not responding to my sons several inquires as to whether or not to return for repair or replacement.Right now the hiccup is it doesn't track everything all the time. Somethings it sync's while it chooses to level others out with reason "not enough bla blah blah to assess bla blah blah....why not? The other "stuff" was sufficient.

Not very good at sleep tracking

I wanted a small fitness tracker that wasn't a huge watch, in particular to wear at night for sleep tracking, and this fit the bill. The form factor is nice, battery life is good, and it's not bad at tracking heart rate and steps. But getting the screen to wake up can be really hit or miss. Sleep tracking is also only really useful if you keep to a schedule. When I fell asleep off the schedule I'd given the tracker, it totally failed to record several hours of sleep. It's then over-eager to say you're asleep when in your set sleep window. It missed multiple late night wakeups where I fully got out of bed to feed and comfort a crying baby--it showed me as still asleep.I had a Samsung watch previously that was excellent about tracking sleep, activity, and heart ... MoreI wanted a small fitness tracker that wasn't a huge watch, in particular to wear at night for sleep tracking, and this fit the bill. The form factor is nice, battery life is good, and it's not bad at tracking heart rate and steps. But getting the screen to wake up can be really hit or miss. Sleep tracking is also only really useful if you keep to a schedule. When I fell asleep off the schedule I'd given the tracker, it totally failed to record several hours of sleep. It's then over-eager to say you're asleep when in your set sleep window. It missed multiple late night wakeups where I fully got out of bed to feed and comfort a crying baby--it showed me as still asleep.I had a Samsung watch previously that was excellent about tracking sleep, activity, and heart rate, but was too chunky to keep sleeping with. I expected the Garmin to be a bit less accurate than the larger and more expensive watch, but it just falls too far short in terms of accuracy.

Tracking off / causes skin blisters and burns

I purchased the item on 1st June 2022 and realised it had issues tracking sleep (some nights recording it, some nights not at all). It would also only 'spot' track my heart rate (for say an hour or so during the day, then dropping out) and some days, it wouldn't track my heart rate at all!The strap of the Vivosmart is also not good for the skin - it 'burnt' and blistered my wrist under where the heart rate monitor is situated and caused a rash, then blistering, and bruising - like a chemical type burn - this is even with washing the strap daily with isopropyl.Contacted Garmin Support on 16th June 2022 and went back and forth, being asked the same questions over and over, being asked to do the same things over and over, with no attempt to resolve the issues at ... MoreI purchased the item on 1st June 2022 and realised it had issues tracking sleep (some nights recording it, some nights not at all). It would also only 'spot' track my heart rate (for say an hour or so during the day, then dropping out) and some days, it wouldn't track my heart rate at all!The strap of the Vivosmart is also not good for the skin - it 'burnt' and blistered my wrist under where the heart rate monitor is situated and caused a rash, then blistering, and bruising - like a chemical type burn - this is even with washing the strap daily with isopropyl.Contacted Garmin Support on 16th June 2022 and went back and forth, being asked the same questions over and over, being asked to do the same things over and over, with no attempt to resolve the issues at all. Finally gave up on 30 June 2022 and returned the product and purchased a Fitbit which has been far superior so far!All-in-all, not worth the money, there are much better options within the same price range out there.