The Bad Can’t read your heart rate with the band on; screen is not always on, and terrible in bright daylight; not water-resistant.
The Bottom Line A new wristband and new firmware improve the Pulse and make it a true fitness band, but it's not a big leap forward over last year.
What's new: O2 reading, and a watchband
If you own one of last year's Withings Pulse pedometers, here's the great news: a simple firmware update and one of the new wristbands, which will only cost you $10 via Withings, gets you everything the Pulse O2 offers.
The Pulse as fitness tracker
The Withings Pulse is still one of the best pure pedometers out there, if you care about accurate readings, easy syncing, and a detailed, data-rich app. The Pulse has its own LED display that shows steps taken, distance traveled, elevation climbed, estimated calories burned. It also tells the time, and can track sleep and read heart rate
What makes a good fitness tracker on your wrist? A comfortable fit, obviously, but also the appropriate type of easy-to-use functions, no-nonsense wireless syncing with a good app, and a very readable display. The Withings Pulse, previously one of CNET's top fitness trackers, is small, can read your heart rate, and has a great Withings app and ecosystem that connects to other health gadgets. All it needed was a stylish wristband to pop into.
Now it has one, along with a new firmware update enabling blood oxygen reading and a redesigned app, and the whole package has been renamed Withings Pulse O2. So why was I less excited about it? Maybe because the landscape's changing so fast. But for its price, this Pulse still has a lot to offer. And now that the Fitbit Force is no longer on the market and the future of the Nike FuelBand is unclear, the Withings Pulse O2 is one of the best tracker-bands with a screen on the market...if you can live with some of its design flaws.
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