Goodbye Microsoft Band 2, hello Fitbit Surge

6 months ago, I had been given a Microsoft band 2 as a loving birthday present. I thought it was a great device which had so many great features. But unfortunately the wear and tear of the device eventually let it down.

The microsoft band 2 is definitely a sought after device with lots of great features such as… GPS, UV sensor, a multitude of reminders and a fantastic alarm clock. After setting the device up, I would go for so many walks. And speak to others around me about how fantastic this device was. One of my friends had a fitbit and we would always compare our sleep and steps which was just great.

I could control my music straight from my wrist, and rarely would I have to pull out my phone from my pocket. The first device I had lasted around 3 months. And thereafter, it would die on my, the only way to wake it up would be to charge it.

I recorded all my workouts at my Crossfit gym, sleep, steps and even when I went for a run. The GPS was great. I was happy with the results from my workouts and at this point. And I thought there was no other device quite like it.

Two months later, the band started tearing at a very noticeable point. Luckily, I had it insured so I walked down to Argos and got yet another. My large version started getting loose on my wrist at the tightest setting anyway so it was a good chance to go to a medium. I could fit this one all the way too, but it was more comfortable to use.

At this point, Summer had arrived and I started using the UV reminder. Every 30 minutes it would remind me to cover up with Sun cream and would recommend the UV protection of my Sun cream. This device could literally do everything you needed it to and no other device can quite compare.

A month or two down the line, the band starts tearing yet again. I replaced it with another medium thinking nothing of it. Carrying on with recording my workouts, steps and sleep. This one then only lasted a month and a bit, until it started to tear.

I read online that if you have it on the tightest lock, then it’s more likely to tear which was happening to mine. I then thought that if my band goes to the tightest setting, then I could probably happily switch to a small.

This was my next and final band, it lasted longer than my previous one, and I was hopeful until just a couple of weeks ago I could see a tear. This time, it was on the opposite side of the band (near the Windows logo). I kept a close eye on it and could see that it wasn’t tearing any more. I was happy to keep it going until come Friday (14/10/2016), it stopped reading my pulse.

This was the last straw for me, and I just couldn’t find myself to carry on using it. If I knew there was another band device coming (such as the 3), then I would have probably replaced it for another band and then upon release of the new version, I would the replace it for that one.

I had read that Microsoft reinforced parts of the band which were most likely to tear, but I didn’t want to risk it any more. So, that weekend, I replaced it for the Fitbit Surge. I could have gone with the Garmin, but I think the Fitbit ecosystem is the next best ecosystem to get in to.

The fact that you can earn badges and challenge friends is a bonus (I can even challenge my fiancé 😁).

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Let me know what you think in the comments, what has your experience been? Have you replaced it? If so, what did you replace it with?