[Quick Impressions] Who Has Gotten Band 2?

[Captnkirk54]

My first day with the Band 2. First I will say I did not have the 1 when I started looking for a fitness band the 1 was just to clunky and I went with a Fitbit Surge. I have a windows phone HTC 8xt on sprint so one of the reasons I choose the Surge was that they showed connectivity with windows phones. At first The surge would connect to my phone but it would not give alerts as the HTC was an 8.1 phone. Supposedly it works better on some of the W10 phones but I don't know. After a couple of updates to the surge I was unable to connect the phone at all. The Band 2 on the other hand has synced and not missed an alert that I can tell. I did adjust the vibration to high as I'm out side and working a lot and need just a bit more. Medium worked fine inside but I am on call at work and can't afford to miss calls so it's high for me. I had ordered a large but with the issues in shipping a medium size band arrived. It fits midway in the clasp and the largest setting is loose enough for my normal wear pattern for a watch. So I'm happy for that mix up. The form is much better than the 1 I looked at originally and better than the Surge. The material is more durable looking and flexibility is good. The screen is bright and color's are vibrant as opposed to the gray scale on the surge. The only nit I have at this point would be that I would prefer the buttons on the top but I can find no way to change orientation of the screen. This means I have to use my thumb a lot as I wear it with the screen on the outside of my wrist. I'm still playing with some of the settings deciding how I will leave it set up. The rotate on feature for the watch is nice fitbit used it also but I'm not 100% sure i'll keep it. So with just a couple hours of use I'm pleased. Now I need to find how to transfer all that data from my surge into the MS health app.

 

[Nate Silver]

Now I need to find how to transfer all that data from my surge into the MS health app.

Umm, not going to happen as far as I know. The only way to get data into the Health app as it stands right now, is through the Band. I believe the closest you can get is to transfer data from both FitBit and Band into a 3rd party app, such as HealthVault, or Strava, something like that.

 

[Captnkirk54]

Nate that look right so far I'll just use Myfitnesspal to look at the long term trends. MS needs to add a scale with bmi like the fibit units. The hardware part is working great so far steps and stairs seem accurate, alerts from the phone are working. I really love that feature .The Surge I had, never did alerts to my windows phone and my wife has issues with her android phone not always working.

 

[ace_dxb]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I'm considering buying one soon!

 

[insight3fl]

I really like the rotate "Watch on " feature. I only whish it had an auto brightness setting as it is too dim in the sun outside and too bright at night in bed before I put the sleep mode on which turns it off.

 

[bathugeo]

Re: [Real Users] My Band 2 Review

My band arrived a few hours ago.

Setting it up was really easy. It paired with the Microsoft Health app straight away, did an update and was ready to go.

For some reason it showed that I had already used 900 calories that day, but I suppose that might be an allowance for the day.

It is easy to attach to your wrist if you wear it on the inside. Just press down on the band with your wrist and use your other hand to adjust the strap. It's hard to decide how tight to have it. My watch slides around a quite bit but I guess that's not so good for the sensors on the Band. So it's not quite as comfortable as a watch but that's not because of bulk but due to tightness. Fortunately, you can adjust it more easily than a watch for different activities. Loose for sitting down, tighter for running. I wouldn't wear it on my right hand for playing squash though as it does constrain your movement slightly. It's also noticeable if you touch type as the screen knocks against the desk but not terribly.

Contrary to what almost every reviewer has said, I don't find it bulky on my write at all, in fact it's a lot smaller than it looks in all those close-up pictures. The only problem I've found it that it doesn't get on with shirt cuffs very well, especially if they're double cuffs. You've either got to undo the cuff or push them up your arm. Perhaps that's not a problem in California where nobody wears shirts!

The software is great so far but now we get on to the real disappointment. I was really looking forward to being able to track my run without having to carry a phone with me. When you start a run it asks you if you want to wait for GPS or continue. Annoyingly if you say continue it says it still can't find the GPS and asks you again if you want to continue. I carried on and did my run. 22 minutes later, the band vibrated to tell me it had locked onto GPS! Yes, that's 22 minutes not 2 minutes, much less 2 seconds. I was running on the Long Walk in Windsor (UK) so there was no excuse of tall buildings or even trees to block the signal. I'm prepared to see if it gets better in the future but if it's like that normally I suppose it will have to go back, which would be a shame because otherwise it's great.

 

[anon(8555314)]

Re: [Real Users] My Band 2 Review

My band arrived a few hours ago.

Setting it up was really easy. It paired with the Microsoft Health app straight away, did an update and was ready to go.

For some reason it showed that I had already used 900 calories that day, but I suppose that might be an allowance for the day.

It is easy to attach to your wrist if you wear it on the inside. Just press down on the band with your wrist and use your other hand to adjust the strap. It's hard to decide how tight to have it. My watch slides around a quite bit but I guess that's not so good for the sensors on the Band. So it's not quite as comfortable as a watch but that's not because of bulk but due to tightness. Fortunately, you can adjust it more easily than a watch for different activities. Loose for sitting down, tighter for running. I wouldn't wear it on my right hand for playing squash though as it does constrain your movement slightly. It's also noticeable if you touch type as the screen knocks against the desk but not terribly.

Contrary to what almost every reviewer has said, I don't find it bulky on my write at all, in fact it's a lot smaller than it looks in all those close-up pictures. The only problem I've found it that it doesn't get on with shirt cuffs very well, especially if they're double cuffs. You've either got to undo the cuff or push them up your arm. Perhaps that's not a problem in California where nobody wears shirts!

The software is great so far but now we get on to the real disappointment. I was really looking forward to being able to track my run without having to carry a phone with me. When you start a run it asks you if you want to wait for GPS or continue. Annoyingly if you say continue it says it still can't find the GPS and asks you again if you want to continue. I carried on and did my run. 22 minutes later, the band vibrated to tell me it had locked onto GPS! Yes, that's 22 minutes not 2 minutes, much less 2 seconds. I was running on the Long Walk in Windsor (UK) so there was no excuse of tall buildings or even trees to block the signal. I'm prepared to see if it gets better in the future but if it's like that normally I suppose it will have to go back, which would be a shame because otherwise it's great.

If you go without a lock, you are going to miss a lot of GPS tracking. That sucks the first time you miss a huge chunk of your work out, but if you know the limitations, the workaround is fairly simple. I'd suggest starting your GPS activity 2-5 min before you are actually ready to start. Once you get a HR lock, you can finish your pre-workout preparation and hit start when you are ready to go. It is unfortunate that it works this way, and hopefully MS will improve it on a future firmware update.

 

[tboy2000]

Screen works with leather gloves too so no need to take off your gloves in winter to use your band. Great!

 

[Peter England]

I received my band 2 today in the UK. I had been looking forward to replacing my Fitbit Charge with it and I'm glad I did, so far after only a few hours use.

My observations ...

I wear my watches on my left wrist and it feels very comfortable there. It's face out and I can type at my computer no problem.

I don't find the buckle too large but it feels like cheap metal if it is indeed metal. So I've put some sellotape over it until we get some protecters in the UK.

Had to fiddle with my notifications on the iPhone so I didn't get too many coming through.

At night I wear it on my right wrist for comfort in bed and I can see why some people might find the buckle below uncomfortable sitting at their desk.. The buckle is more towards that side of the wrist that rests on the table when it is at its tightest setting.

Resting heart rate seems within the margins for my age, will be testing how well it copes on my 6 mile walk to work tomorrow.

All in all I like it, but I do wish MS would add a vertical clock for outies! That's my one complaint right now, oh and the fact that dismissing notifications on band should dismiss them on the phone and vice versa.

 

[jtwoodfield]

I received my Band 2 yesterday and it will probably go back at start of next week. It has virtually no added functionality to my Band 1 but I find it gross, tasteless and less comfortable. Nasty plastic which sticks to my skin. Harder to fix the clasp. Badly designed charging connection. The screen is better but as there is little to read not a big deal. ?200 is way over the top for a cheaply made device.

 

[madusmacus]

I belive the current firmware has broken the Automatic light sensor so auto brightness is broken - I sent a tweet to @microsofband
"@microsoftband I just got MS Band 2 - Is the Automatic Brightness (Ambient Light Sensor) broken in the current firmware :?( 2.0.3812.0 26 R"

Update1: I wrote a program and proved the sensors working fine - there must be a bug in the usage of the sensor data - so im happy

 

[bathugeo]

It now locks much quicker, usually within seconds, even without the phone. I may have been too hasty. The band had only been out of the box a couple of hours and I suspect it needs a recent fix to lock onto gps more quickly.

 

[madusmacus]

So far the battery has lasted me 49hours from 100% to 9% charge
no gps - tilt clock - windows central app - ap news app -

I m happy with that especialy as its a honeymoon period

 

[LeiChat]

I'm finding it considerably more comfortable than the original Band.

Agreed.

 

[anon(20944)]

It now locks much quicker, usually within seconds, even without the phone. I may have been too hasty. The band had only been out of the box a couple of hours and I suspect it needs a recent fix to lock onto gps more quickly.

This seems to be a common problem though I never experienced it. I've never had a GPS lock take more than 10 seconds. It says in the manual to sync your band to your phone before using the GPS to get the latest assisted GPS data. I use Android FWIW.

 

[DeNachtwacht]

So far the battery has lasted me 49hours from 100% to 9% charge
no gps - tilt clock - windows central app - ap news app -

I m happy with that especialy as its a honeymoon period

I am really curious how people can get that much juice out of their Band. Mine is on the charger every night since I've updated my Lumia 925 to Windows 10, and before that I could get 36 to 40 hours maximum. I even have disabled a lot of tiles: Cortana (What does it even do? Cortana works well without the tile), Mail (mails come through notification center, Messages (no need for SMS with whatsapp), Exercise, Alarm & Timer.

So why am I only getting max 24 hours? The only battery consuming thing that I'll do with it is tracking my bicycle trip to work every day (6 kilometers, 17 minute track). But should that be such a huge impact on the battery?

 

[daymouse]

Had the band over a month now and so wanted to add a few thoughts to help people.

Size seems a lot bigger than the first where I was in the middle of the band 1 on a medium on tightest setting for my wrist. I can actually close the band 2 medium completely and feels tight but not as tight as I could get the band 1. However the band 2 small is too small for me!

Build quality seems great, I?ve got not protection on it, wear it screen in and not got any marks on the screen, or the buckle which I?m happy about

Love all the features on it and all seems pretty accurate apart from running on a treadmill although I?ve not had chance to run outside with the gps yet in order to calculate my stride.

Website is even better with so much information especially the vo2 Max which im targeting to get into elite. Got to 51.2 but got a cold and didn?t go to the gym for a week and its now dropped to 49.9 so im determined to get this back up.

The keyboard is amazing and very accurate and use this a lot to reply while on the train etc.

However the most annoying thing it when you go to type and it sits there saying connecting. I can?t find a work around for this and just seems to be random.

New music controls are great so far.

For me the only thing really missing for me is some on board memory for music so can leave phone at home.

 

[elinjons]

I got the Band 2 for my 73rd birthday. When ordering it I found I was between sizes, so I followed Microsoft's advice and bought the larger size, which is now too big as I have lost weight. I have to wear the band pushed well up my arm, where I keep in in place with my old Fitbit. I find the band to be very bulky and big, but the features are impressive. My only exercise is walking, but it is not included in the long list of sports and workout types available. I like counting my steps, and I like getting my email and messages on the go. I find that there is quite a difference between the steps on the two devices, the Fitbit being more generous.
Overall I am happy with my Band2, I just wish I could shorten it to a better fit, and that the buckle was not so chunky - and ugly.

 

[lancguy]

No, Band two fits more loosely than Gen 1. if you could barely make a small fit on the loosest setting with gen 1, a small will fit better with Band 2. With Gen 1 I had 1/3 to 1/4 room to go before it would have been too small. Now when I tighten it for exercise and HR monitoring, I have about 2/3 of the large clasp to spare before it would be too tight.

I disagree with this. I printed out the size guide prior to ordering. On the Band 1 I was a solid small, confirmed with the size guide prior to ordering, and then the actual device. I always had it on the smallest setting. When I ordered the Band 2, it said I was a solid Medium. I ordered a medium, and at first glance, it seemed almost too big even on the tightest setting. But having worn it now for a couple of hours, it's actually really comfortable and doesn't move at all. It picks up my HR just great, though I don't know how accurate it is yet. The design change from the rectangular screen to the curved screen really change the sizing.

 

[lancguy]

Ok, just got my Band 2 tonight. And so far, I have much to like about it over the Band 1. It's much more comfortable. The band itself is much more flexible, and the rectangular screen is now curved. This makes a huge difference in comfort. I am concerned, I feel that I might need a small. I always wore my Band 1 close to the smallest setting and it was a small size. The sizing guide said I needed a medium, so I ordered that with trepidation. At first, it felt too big and loose on my wrist. But later I put it back on and tightened it up. There is still some give, but it didn't move a bit. Not sure if I want to keep the Medium or exchange it for a small. Not thrilled at having to drive an hour to a Microsoft store to do it, but I hope a Microsoft area in BestBuy might do it.

The screen is a huge improvement. It's much larger and sharper, and that curved screen makes an incredible difference over the original. For the cost, I think they could have upped the memory for tiles. It is very comfortable compared to the original. The original was very rigid, and the rectangular screen felt awkward at times. This one had a very flexible band and the screen itself doesn't feel awkward at all. So far I really like it.