Sleep trackers are common and the most useful gadgets today. They are not just limited to your wrist but are also known as your Sleep Tracking Mat. A ton of sleep trackers are available in the market today. This article will discuss whether you should choose Withings Sleep Tracking Mat over the Fitbit Sense series.
Withings Sleep review
There was a time when consumer sleep tracking mats were absurdly expensive, but as time went by, the sleep tracking mats became more affordable with more updated features. Withings Sleep Tracking Mat is one of the best-performing sleep trackers.
The design is effortless. It is a 25-by-7.5-inch device that you plug into an outlet and slip under your mattress at the chest level. The fabric and the color (grey) are still the same as before, except for the name Withings instead of Nokia. The benefit here is that you can track your Sleep by lying on your mattress instead of wearing any uncomfortable device.
You must pair your phone over Bluetooth and connect the device to Wi-Fi. The physical product and many of its features have not changed much since its first launch. The things that have changed are the metrics and their overall accuracy. One coolest feature is the smart home integration via IFTTT for creating automated scenarios like turning off the light, turning on the light, or turning up the thermostat according to your sleep scenario.
Withings now monitors your breathing disturbances, tracks your heart rate, and detects snoring. It can generate a PDF Sleep Diary that gives you a bird’s eye view of your sleeping patterns over time. In addition, it has a higher-end version of the Sleep called the Withings Sleep Analyzer that provides medical-grade sleep apnea detection.
The sleep diary feature is beneficial and comes with a month of a clear view of your sleeping patterns. The report will find the average heart rate during Sleep, average sleep durations for weekends and weekdays, efficiency, latency, bedtime, wake-up times, and stats related to breathing and snoring. You also get a visual representation of the time spent in bed, time spent asleep, and extended times out of bed. You can get this data from several sleep trackers, but even well-known options like Fitbit or the Oura Ring don’t let you easily view your patterns, let alone provide you averages in one place.
Overall, the Withings Sleep Tracking mattress is an amazingly affordable option for anyone who does not want to wear devices during their Sleep. The reports are easy to comprehend, and the device provides good features for under $100.
Fitbit Sense review
Fitbit Sense is one of the most health-focused wearables to date. It has a bright, clear display, comfortable infinity band strap, and stainless steel case, giving the watch a premium look. The Infinity Band strap is soft silicon with no hard buckles or catches. It’s extremely comfortable, and you barely feel the watch while wearing it. There’s a wide array of watch faces, including the newly released SpO2 face.
The standout feature of this device is the electrodermal activity (EDA) sensor for stress monitoring. It applies small, undetectable electrical charges to your skin to determine how they interact with your body’s sweat level. The method is pretty simple. All you have to do is to place your hand over the display; it will take 2 minutes to record. It will provide a small graph showing your heart rate data for the scan and the EDA responses you experienced.
There are various other tools for managing stress within the Fitbit app; it’s worth mentioning that most of these require a subscription to Fitbit Premium. Although, the Sense comes with a free trial of the premium for six months. Redefine your routine with your personalized daily readiness score to know whether you are ready
to work out or should focus on recovery. The device also has a great workout option, is suitable for heart rate zone training, and has onboard GPS and Strava support.
The Sense can measure your skin temperature at night and helps you monitor the trends over time. After observing three nights, the Fitbit app will establish an average temperature for your skin and show you how it fluctuates as you sleep. The device tracks blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) as you sleep, which helps monitor signs of conditions like sleep apnea and patterns of the sleeping cycle. The sensor needs to be activated manually in your device settings, which might cause the battery to drain a little faster.
Overall, the Fitbit Sense is an excellent smartwatch for people who want to keep the best possible track of their day-to-day activities and best for people who wish to manage their stress and mental well-being. But if you do not want a monthly subscription to avail of the most valuable features and do not want a wearable device, then you can opt for Withings Sleep Tracking Mat.