Fitbit Charge 3

Lightweight case, stylish design ; Offers smartphone notifications ; Excellent battery life ; Touchscreen display ; Interchangeable watch straps

Not fully compatible with iOS ; No built-in GPS ; Touchscreen slightly unresponsive

The Fitbit Charge 3 is a comfortable and sleek fitness tracker, that also brings smartwatch notifications to your wrist and packs a battery that keeps the device going for almost a week. Its heart rate and in-depth fitness tracking capabilities make it...

Large screen Light design Completely waterproof

No onboard GPS Monochrome screen Proprietary charger

The Fitbit Charge 3 is quite the improvement over the Charge 2, but you should only upgrade if you're after a more slick, lightweight design, a slightly larger display and a few new fitness tracking features. It's now been superseded by the Charge 4,...

Great design ; More than a week of battery life ; Reliable automatic workout tracking

Notifications are limited ; No real third-party apps ; Apple Health or Google Fit data sync still not happening

Correction: Fitbit had previously offered automated swim tracking on other devices, not only the Charge 3 as this article originally claimed.

Crisp screen. Long battery life. Updated with better heart rate and SpO2 sensors. Safe for swimming. NFC payments on Special Edition.

Swipe interface can be finicky. Proprietary charger.

Bottom Line: The Fitbit Charge 3 isn't a drastic change over its predecessor, but it has enough small tweaks to make it one of the best everyday fitness trackers you can buy.

Waterproof ; Cheap ; 7-day battery life ; Some mooted 'coming soon' features sound interesting ; All the key features of a smart watch (ie: notifications and paying for stuff)

No built-in GPS ; Hardly anyone supports Fitbit Pay contactless payments in the UK ; How many times can Fitbit keep putting out the same features in different-shaped devices?

Great lightweight and water-resistant design ; Fitbit platform is excellent ; Brilliant battery life ; Accurate tracking

No built-in GPS ; NFC only in Special Edition models ; SpO2 not working yet ; Display isn't colour

A fantastic evolution for the Charge family, the third-gen model adds water-resistance, a lighter build, touchscreen interface, and more features. It cements this as the fitness tracker to consider if a smartwatch isn't for you.

Slick form-factor ; NFC payments

Battery life feels like it ought to be better ; Lacks some features found in Versa

The Charge 3 is affordable, lasts a solid week on a charge and can be worn while swimming. It has a larger touchscreen and added features include app notifications, weather, stopwatch and timers. Works with iOS and Android.

Limited watch faces, and you can't get new ones or apps like the Fitbit Versa can. Single haptic pressure-sensitive side button isn't customizable to start workouts. No music storage or remote playback. No GPS (but syncs with a phone's GPS to record...

Fitbit's improved general-fitness tracker does just about everything well, and covers most everyday needs, including phone notifications. But the Fitbit Versa offers just a bit more.