(Pocket-lint) – Fitbit announced the fashion-focused Luxe activity and wellness tracker in April 2021, joining the Charge 4 and Inspire 2 in the company’s extensive portfolio.

How do the three devices compare though? You can read how all of Fitbit’s devices stack up against each other in our separate feature, but here we are looking at how the Fitbit Luxe compares to the Charge 4 and the Inspire 2. 

Price

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The Fitbit Luxe starts at £129.99 in the UK and $149.95 in the US, with the Special Edition model costing £179.99 in the UK and $199.95 in the US. There are a range of accessories available, including a Gorjana bracelet.

The Fitbit Charge 4 starts at £129.99 in the UK and $149.95 in the US, with the Special Edition models costing £149.99 in the UK and $159.95 in the US.

The Fitbit Inspire 2 is priced slightly lower than the Charge 4 and the Luxe, costing £89.99 in the UK and $99.95 in the US.

Design

• Luxe: Waterproof, slim, stainless steel, colour touchscreen, buttonless, interchangeable straps
• Charge 4: Waterproof, aluminium, large touchscreen display, inductive button, interchangeable straps
• Inspire 2: Waterproof, plastic body, touchscreen display, physical button, interchangeable straps

The Fitbit Luxe is the most premium of the three Fitbit devices being compared here, offering a stainless steel body, coloured touchscreen display, a buttonless design, rounded edges and a focus towards fashion and style, with a range of accessories available.

The Fitbit Charge 4 has an aluminium body, and it too offers a premium design like the Luxe, but it has squarer edges and a more sporty look, along with a monochrome touchscreen display and inductive button on the side. Different accessories are available, but they are more standard compared to the bracelets and stylish straps available for the Luxe.

The Inspire 2 has a plastic body so it’s a little cheaper in its appearance compared to the Luxe and Charge 4. It also has a smaller touchscreen display than the Luxe and Charge 4 and it has a physical button on the side, making for a less streamlined design than the other two models.

All models being compared here are waterproof and they all feature a PurePulse heart rate monitor on their underside, as well as charging pins. The Charge 4 has an SPO2 monitor too however. 

Features

• All: Steps, distance, calories, heart rate, advanced sleep, Active Zone Minutes, Auto exercise reognition, smartphone notifications
• Luxe: Adds stress monitoring, Mindful Minutes
• Charge 4: VO2 Max, NFC, Smart Wake

Many of the basic features offered by Fitbit are available across the Inspire 2, Charge 4 and Luxe fitness trackers, though there is some variation. 

All three trackers being compared here offer steps taken, distance travelled, calories burned and heart rate monitoring. They also all offer advanced sleep tracking with Sleep Score, swim tracking, Active Zone Minutes and they are able to automatically recognise some workouts with Fitbit’s SmartTrack, whilst offering the ability to specifically track others using the Multi-Sport Mode.

You’ll also find silent alarms on all the trackers, Reminders to Move, smartphone notifications with Quick Replies for Android users, Guided Breathing and female health tracking.

Beyond those features, things change a little between the devices. The Fitbit Charge 4 has NFC on board for Fitbit Pay, while the Inspire 2 and Luxe miss this off. The Charge 4 and Inspire 2 offer Cardio Fitness Level – which is a VO2 Max measurement – though it isn’t clear if the Luxe also offers this. The Charge 4 also offers Smart Wake, which uses machine learning to wake you up at an optimal time.

The Luxe meanwhile, has stress management like the Fitbit Sense, offering a Stress Score within the Fitbit app. It also launches a feature called Mindful Minutes, though this will come to the other Fitbit trackers and smartwatches.

Specs

• Luxe: 6-day battery, Connected GPS, no NFC
• Charge 4: 7-day battery, Built-in GPS, NFC, Altimeter
• Inspire 2: 5-day battery, Connected GPS, no NFC

The Fitbit Luxe has Connected GPS on board, which means you’ll need to bring your phone with you in order to map a walk or a run. It offers six-day battery life, but as we mentioned above, there is no NFC for Fitbit Pay. 

At the time of writing, we didn’t know if the Luxe has an altimeter to measure elevation, though we would expect it to. 

The Charge 4 has built-in GPS, enabling you to map your route without your phone. It also comes with NFC on board and it features a seven-day battery life. It has an altimeter on board for measuring elevation.

The Inspire 2 has Connected GPS like the Fitbit Luxe. It comes with a five-day battery life and like the Fitbit Luxe, it doesn’t offer NFC for Fitbit Pay. There is no altimeter on board.

Conclusion

The Fitbit Luxe offers many of the same features and benefits as the Charge 4, though it trades built-in GPS and NFC for a more stylish and fashionable design. 

There are a couple of extra features on the Luxe compared to the Charge 4 and Inspire 2, such as Stress Monitoring and Mindful Minutes, though the Charge 4 is likely to get some of these through a software update. 

The choice between these devices will likely come down to which features are most important to you. If you want built in GPS and NFC, the Charge 4 is the one you’ll want. If you want a stylish tracker that is packed full of features but misses off a couple then the Luxe appears to be a great option. If you want most of the features Luxe offers but in a cheaper package with a more basic design, then the Inspire 2 will likely be adequate. 

Writing by Britta O’Boyle.