If you have a few drinks and forget how to math, the Apple Watch does the work for you. Apple Watch Series 5 review: Battery life. I was a bit skeptical about the accuracy of these body fat percent readings, though to my surprise my first attempt matched the results I received on some of the best smart scales I tested recently. (It’s important to note that neither of these readings are as accurate as professional measurements.) Except scales just tell me the number — I’m not as obsessed with fat as I was when I was in college, but something about seeing my body rendered on my phone definitely stung. The Halo app suggests you don't scan yourself more than every two weeks, and the slider Tablet Stands won’t show you what your form looks like with less than 12% body fat.

Amazon says Halo sleep tracking can identify different stages of sleep and assign a sleep score based on the quality of your shuteye. When she's not testing out the latest devices, you can find her running around the streets of Los Angeles, putting in morning miles or searching for the best tacos. Which, for the most part, skewed negative. I’ve only muted my Halo band when I wanted to save battery life. Although many of the best fitness trackers promote acute health awareness, this Amazon Halo review reckons with whether you can know your body too well.

In case you didn't feel your smartphone knew enough about you, the Halo app uses your handset's cameras to render 3D scans of your body and determine your body fat percentage. Amazon Halo review: Verdict. When you’re using an app, the always-on display dims and blurs the background to show you the time when it’s inactive. I’m a new transplant to Los Angeles, where dozens of urban hiking trails are just a few miles from my doorstep.

It introduced an always-on display and compass to the company's flagship wearable. When you exercise at a given intensity for a given duration, Halo will reward you with activity points. The classic aluminum version is still the one most people will buy. She has also worked on Tom's Guide, Macworld, PCWorld and the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The difference is even more stark with brighter watch faces like Meridian, which has an almost entirely white background that dims to black when you lower your wrist. The four pillars of Amazon Halo — activity, sleep, tone and body — all have actionable tools that cater to your motivations. Amazon Halo review: Activity tracking. For now, it’s still a trade-off. I think I might have actually yawned when Apple announced that one of the headlining features in the Apple Watch Series 5 is a built-in compass.

Ever wondered how you sound to others? The mics on the Amazon Halo band listens to your voice, and the app will analyze trends based on the varying tones of your communication. You self-report your periods to start, and then the watches can start accurately predicting when the next one will begin. Both when I tested the live analysis feature and reviewed my tone highlights from the day, Halo often used adjectives like stressed, irritated, disappointed and anxious to describe the sound of my speech.

Halo provides timestamps for these ‘notable moments,’ which meant I could reflect on conversations I had throughout the day and take inventory of reasons I sounded irritated. Against. Amazon Halo review.

My favorite features included the Cycle Tracking app for logging period flow and symptoms (more on that in a minute), the Calculator app, which saves relationships with a built-in tip calculator, the Noise app for monitoring decibel levels and the launch of an independent Watch App Store. You score more points for higher exercise intensity levels, though. Amazon Halo will chart your temperature, along with movement and heart rate, to help you keep tabs on what factors might be impacting your zzzs.

That alone is well worth $4 per month, in my opinion. I plan to keep it as a complication during my period and then swapping it out for another app in between. (Thankfully, the complication icon is subtle, if you’d rather the always-on display didn’t announce the app’s presence to the world.) And that’s not even half of the improvements Apple delivered in this release. The Apple Watch Series 5 was once our favorite smartwatch. While you usually need to go to a doctor (or use one of the best smart scales) to figure out your body fat percentage, Amazon has figured out a way to measure it using AI. After six months, the full suite of labs, which number more than 100, costs $3.99 per month.

Amazon Halo review: Design. Halo sleep tracking picked up on when I woke up in the middle of the night better than most fitness trackers I’ve tested. Our Verdict. I’ve come to terms with my appearance, but I can’t help but worry that the intrusive nature of these scans could cause harm than good.

Rival smartwatches from Samsung, Fitbit and Garmin offer multi-day battery life, but those watches also aren’t as fully featured as the Series 5. Even more, it tracks your body temperature using a sensor similar to the one in the Fitbit Sense . This means that app developers don’t have to create iOS apps first and then make watch extensions, which should make watch apps more useful and specific. When you're checking out, you can choose your size and one of three colors: Black/Onyx, Blush/Rose Gold and Winter/Silver. I can hardly get a day out of the band when the mics are on for tone analysis; Iresorted to charging it up before bed each night alongside my Apple Watch so that it could track my sleep.

Similar to activity labs, sleep labs provide calming sounds, bedtime reminders and meditation routines for improving for your rest. I’m not surprised that it took so long for a Calculator app to arrive on the watch, given that the iPad still doesn’t have a native version, but I might never use my iPhone’s calculator again. To get started with period-tracking, you’ll need to input your information in the iOS Health app, including details like the first day of your last period, length of your cycle and typical period length. Be sure to check out our Apple Watch deals page to see the latest discounts on Apple's smartwatches, as well as the best Apple Watch bands to find the right straps for you.

You can also add details about ovulation test results, cervical mucus quality and basal body temperature in the iPhone Health app, and allow Cycle Tracking to predict your fertile window if you want to use the app to plan or prevent pregnancy. The Series 5 is no longer available to buy new. When inactive, the display shows you a dimmer version of all the information on your watch face. The band costs $99.99, and includes 6 months of Halo membership (usually $3.99 per month.). Apple Watch Series 5 review: watchOS 6. In fact, I kind of like it.

Amazon Halo review: Labs. I’m still in the early stages of using the Apple Watch’s Cycle Tracking app, so I haven’t tested out its predictions or notifications, but I appreciate the level of detail I’m able to enter when it comes to period flow, symptoms and spotting. I would even forget I had it on. The Apple Watch Series 5 was once our favorite smartwatch.

I liked how Halo automatically tracked my long walks, although for most other exercises I had to manually input my activity type and duration. After a Privacy International study showed that popular period-tracking apps might be leaking information about your personal health and sexual activity to companies like Facebook, Apple’s on-device, hands-off approach to health data makes its version of this feature even more compelling. Amazon Halo is a both a $99 activity tracker and $3.99 per month service that provides a holistic catalog of health metrics and ‘labs’ for helping you reach wellness goals. I’ve used similar features from Fitbit (see our Fitbit Versa Review) and Garmin, and the functionality is the same. Apple introduced a new titanium finish, which is lightweight to slip on and looks stylish in person, and brought back the white ceramic edition, which is a premium watch with a price tag ($1,299) to match.

There are 8fit classes that are just 2 minutes, two-week yoga journeys from Openfit, and month-long walking initiatives form the Mayo Clinic, too, for example. The only difference is the time elapsed, which refreshes every second instead of counting milliseconds. You didn't need a Series 5 to gain some of the best new Apple Watch features. As one of the many, many women for whom society has trained to obsess over weight and appearance, I deeply understand the cause for concern. This seemed accurate given the incessant work and personal pressures I’ve been dealing with.

One side of the water-resistant sensor unit features and LED indicator light, two microphones and a single button. It should be noted that certain watch bands will interfere with the Series 5’s built-in magnetometer. I didn’t want to enjoy Amazon Halo. For an extra $100, you can splurge on a cellular-enabled watch (which also requires a monthly data plan from your wireless carrier for an additional cost). The larger 44-mm watch costs $429 (£429), and $520 (£520) with LTE.

And if you decide to pick one up for yourself, be sure to check out our complete Apple Watch Guide for getting the most out of your smartwatch. Although I’m not rushing it off my wrist either. I wish I could do this before I start a workout, rather be expected to log it after. Although Amazon assures voice analysis is processed entirely on the user's smartphone and deleted after, there’s something spine-tingling about this level of intimacy with AI. I started P.volve’s famed 30 Day Lengthen and Tone program, and while following along from my iPhone screen isn’t ideal, I appreciate Halo sending me a reminder at the same time every afternoon to get the hour-long class in.

The Apple Watch Series 5’s always-on display doesn’t seem to be much of a battery drain — at least not as much as the Series 3’s cellular connectivity was when that watch debuted. Apple Watch Series 5: Price and availability. Amazon Halo is available for purchase as of this writing. One of my activity labs notifies me at 6 p.m. every day to do my workout, while my meditation lab reminds me to check in with myself at 10 p.m. and my bedtime notification let’s me know I should wind down at 11:30 pm.

Amazon Halo review: Sleep tracking. The watch app’s tip calculator is a god-send, particularly because you can adjust the percentage and calculate how much each person owes for a group dinner. But I realized just how useful the Compass app could be when I wore the watch on a 2-mile hike through Runyon Canyon. Compared to past Apple Watches, which delivered then-groundbreaking features like GPS and water-resistance (Series 2), cellular connectivity (Series 3) and medical-grade health features (Series 4), the Series 5 is an incremental upgrade.

Amazon Halo review: Battery life. The Apple Watch hasn’t seen a major redesign in, well, ever. + Barely-there fit and feel + Excellent companion app + Tone analysis can be fascinating. I’ve used almost every other smartwatch on the market, and most of them have always-on displays.

As a standalone activity tracker, Amazon Halo won’t wow you, but it covers the basics. Voice analysis and body fat percent scans are features I might consider living without. Of course, you can keep the microphones off, but you’d skip a rather central feature of this fitness tracker.

It introduced an always-on display and compass to the company's flagship wearable. Amazon Halo review: Body fat scans. When you wear the Halo band to bed, the app can provide sleep analysis that, on paper, rivals Fitbit's sleep tracking software. - Tone analysis is also creepy, and zaps battery - Body fat scans raise concerns.

Apple Watch Series 5 review: Verdict. The display’s ambient light sensor can detect how bright your environment is and adjust itself accordingly, so the display is never too bright or too dark. The Amazon Halo app is also how you capture 3D scans of your body which, using AI, determine your body fat percent and show you with a slider what you might look like with less fat. It even seemed more accurate than Apple Watch sleep tracking when it came to identifying how long it took me to fall asleep each night.

It also benefits from the latest watchOS 7 software update, which introduces sleep tracking and new watch faces. The Watch App Store is perhaps the most obvious game-changer, because you no longer need to install watch apps from your iPhone. When Halo is happy with these factors, the app will instruct you to rotate like a spray tan booth might.

Our Verdict. I can still see all of that when the display dims. Amazon Halo review: Tone analysis. It sounds a bit silly, that the Apple Watch can now tell you the time all the time, but it's updates like this that have cemented the Apple Watch's leading position in our ranking of the best smartwatches right now.

For the most part my Halo readings for these metrics echoed my Apple Watch ones. Amazon says the Halo can last up to seven days on a single change and up to two days with the mic on, but I found the band fell short of these claims. Although it’s an in-brand Amazon device, Alexa is surprisingly absent. Of course, the new Apple Watch Series 6 now holds that title, with the Apple Watch SE not far behind in features (check out our Apple Watch 6 vs. Apple Watch Series 5 review: Design.

And Apple is now allowing you to customize the watch finish and band before you buy, instead of having to take whatever comes in the box and then picking out the strap you actually want. Amazon Halo will tell you more about your health than you might ever want to know, so long as an AI-assisted understanding of your overall well-being doesn’t creep you out. I’ve resigned myself to charging my Apple Watch daily. Amazon Halo will tell you more about your health than you might ever want to know, so long as an AI-assisted understanding of your overall well-being doesn’t creep you out. Now when you glance down at your wrist, no matter what position it's in, you can see the time, and whatever other information you've configured.

This applies to all but the Workout app, which still displays all of your metrics even when you’re not actively looking at the watch. In previous years, the Apple Watch's face remained dark until you raised your wrist. Against. Apple has promised their latest watch will be their best yet, with a brighter screen, thinner display borders and faster charging.

But after testing this display-less fitness band, it’s not nearly as bad as I expected it would be. Only users 18 or older can use the Halo band's body scan feature, too, although I advise that anyone who struggles with body dysmorphia or related body-image insecurities avoid Halo. But Compass isn’t the only app that takes advantage of the watch’s built-in magnetometer. But Apple set the bar for smartwatches almost impossibly high — even for itself.

Read on for our full Apple Watch Series 5 review. In terms of fitness, Halo’s paid lab service offers access to guided exercise videos from a variety of well-known workout providers, like Orangethoery and P.volve. Maps consistently showed me which trail I was on and how far into the park I was, which helped me realize when I needed to cut the hike short and head back. I didn’t find myself making mindful changes to my voice, but instead trying to alleviate causes of my audible negativity.

Older watches, particularly the Series 3 and Series 4, could last much longer than that, but I never wore them to track my sleep and so I charged them every night. A compass isn’t really necessary on these trails, because I can usually see L.A. landmarks like the Hollywood sign to orient myself. Does an AI-assisted understanding of your overall well-being creep you out? At least nothing is recorded for playback — I’m relieved I didn’t have to listen to my own speech samples. Most of what I love about using the Series 5 is the, watchOS 6, which was available as an over-the-air upgrade for the Series 3 and 4, too.

Apple Watch 5 comparison for more on that.) The Series 6 builds on the Series 5's success with a brighter always-on display and blood oxygen monitoring. Apple is opening the Compass API to third-party apps, and is also using it in its own Maps app to enable a feature that shows you which direction you’re facing. I know I wouldn’t have been able to use it responsibly in my late teenage years.

At least it changes back up with Amazon’s proprietary charger in just 90 minutes. It just didn’t thrill me the way the FDA-cleared ECG app did when the Series 4 was announced last year. Size: 44mm / 40mm Display: 977 sq mm / 759 sq mm Thickness: 10.7mm Processor: 64-bit dual-core S5 processor Capacity: 32GB Display: LTPO OLED Always-On Retina display with Force Touch, 1000 nits brightness Bluetooth: 5.0 WiFi: 802.11b/g/n 2.4GHz.

If I can see Griffith Observatory to the east and the ocean to the west, I’m set. This feature is incredibly useful while running, because I no longer have to fully raise my wrist to see my pace or the time. These tools are sourced from third-party services and take the form of videos or soundscapes, for example.

But that just means you can always see the time — that’s it. Apple Watch Series 5 review: Compass. By Kate Kozuch 28 January 2021.

I usually wear my Apple Watch from the time I wake up to work out in the morning ‘til the time I take it off to go to bed — usually around 16 hours a day. Your goal is to earn 150 activity points each week, with the risk of losing points for extended periods of time without movement. Apple Watch Series 5 review: Display. So too did using the Halo app’s slider tool to see what my body would look like with more or less body fat.

Apple Watch Series 5 review. The Series 5 doesn’t simply show you what time it is. Even in bright morning daylight, I had no problem seeing my stats on the darkened display.

Tom's Guide Verdict. When I turned the microphones off, the Halo band lasted somewhere between 5 and 6 days, which isn’t very impressive for a fitness tracker without a display or other battery-draining features. Its tone analysis feature seemed creepy and I dreaded the idea of a 3D body fat scan shaming me for the weight I’ve gained in my mid-area. I don’t think I could ever wear the Amazon Halo without also wearing a smartwatch, but it’s comfortable, lightweight and sits flush enough to my skin to not bother me on my opposite wrist.

While you can choose which labs you want to use, you can’t selectively subscribe to individual labs. The Series 5 looks identical to the Series 4 in every single way. Elsewhere, its standout features include the heart health diagnostic tools that we found essential in our Apple Watch Series 4 review — including the ECG app. Barely-there fit and feel Excellent companion app Tone analysis can be fascinating. Some are as simple as holding yourself accountable for a bedtime.

This was incredibly useful after I parked at the base of Runyon Canyon Park and had to figure out which trail to take. The Amazon Halo fitness band looks like a fabric-swathed Fitbit Charge 4 that lost its screen, or like an extra long Apple Watch nylon sport loop band. Even if these body scan images are confined to your phone and are deleted once processed.

I usually use the Infograph Modular watch face, which has six complications along with the time, so I have access to my most-used apps (Workout and Messages) as well as bits of information like the weather and battery percentage. The Apple Watch Series 5 has been eclipsed by the Series 6, but it’s still packed with useful features and was once the best smartwatch you could buy. Amazon Halo’s holistic approach to health tracking has its appeal. Price: $99 Battery life: 7 days (1-2 days with tone analysis) Water resistance: 5 ATM Weight: 0.83 ounces Microphones: 2. Always-on display Useful compass watchOS 7 brings sleep tracking. Its sensors are housed in an arced, stainless steel unit beneath the fabric.

I like how the Halo app provides plenty of related reading material and actionable data, too. By Caitlin McGarry 24 August 2021. Tom's Guide Verdict. Thinking back to a time I got lost hiking in Sedona as a teen in the pre-smartphone area, this feature would’ve been a life-saver. (Not literally for me — I clearly survived — but for someone else.) Amazon Halo review: Price and availability. But it’s also kind of. a lot.

You need good lightning, the proper phone angle and limited clothing. Rival smartwatches may have had always-on displays first, but they lag far behind the Apple Watch in almost every other way. Every Amazon Halo purchase comes with a six-month trial of the complementary Halo membership, which includes labs from known Headspace, Orangetheory, P.volve and Aaptiv, as well as medical authorities like the American Heart Association and Mayo Clinic.

Halo won’t proactively suggest things like meditation and breathing exercises like the Fitbit Sense, but I’ve taken advantage of the relaxation-centric labs. If you’re even marginally excited by the Black Mirror-ization of wearables like I am, Amazon Halo just might be up your alley. If I wasn’t so fascinated with my tone reports, I might be more wary of the feature. If you do have your eye on an Apple Watch, it might be worth waiting, as Apple has announced the release of the Apple Watch Series 7. Depending on your goals, I could see positive use cases for both, but some boundaries should remain between our bodies and our technology. After a full 14-hour day of putting the new watch through rigorous testing, which included installing apps, testing out Maps and Compass, logging my cycle, asking Siri various questions, and tracking a 3.75-mile run and a 2-mile hike as separate workouts, I was down to 10 percent.

Of all the fitness trackers I’ve seen, the Halo is the most nondescript; it's almost a throwback to early Fitbits and wearables that lacked displays. Scantily clad scans, a slider rending your figure’s “what ifs” and eerily-on-point voice probes toe too close to that line for my comfort. You can see your heart rate, steps and calories burned. And I almost never use my watch that intensively.

It’s not quite as easy as advertised, though. Plus the large library third-party labs introduce a “choose your own adventure” element to improving your overall wellness. Basically, any band with a magnet in it will throw off the compass’s ability to perform, so if you’re heading out for an adventure, leave the Milanese Loop or Modern Buckle at home.

Caitlin is a Senior editor for Gizmodo. Instead, the Series 6 starts at $399 (£399) for the smaller aluminum 40-millimeter model with GPS. Only when I had dinner with an old friend and filmed some voiceovers for this review did words like amused, interested and focus appear. Apple Watch Series 5 review: Cycle Tracking. Its affordable entry point, discreet design, data accuracy and thorough companion app make Halo one of the most surprising wearables we’ve seen this year.

Halo implements a points system that’s like Fitbit’s Activity Zone Minutes, but less intense. Apple isn’t reinventing the wheel with Cycle Tracking, but the fact that women can now track periods on the best smartwatch on the market, in addition to all of the other features that make it great, is a welcome change. There was a lot to love about watchOS 6. If you or anyone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, the Alsana anonymous helpline is available for 24/7 support. Then you can start logging your period in the Cycle Tracking app on the watch, and even add the app as a complication on the watch face for easier access. To save battery, you can turn the always-on part off (just open the watch’s Settings app and toggle it off under Display & Brightness).

You can see how you sound to others, plus how well you sleep and how many activity points you’re banking, in the connected Halo app. Tone analysis is also creepy, and zaps battery Body fat scans raise concerns. - 18-hour battery life. 18-hour battery life. Instead, the band’s built-in mics listen to how you speak and gauge the emotions you convey based on your tone. The Apple Watch Series 5 was the first Apple Watch to sport an always-on display — and what a difference it made.

Each lab encourages you to designate a time to be notified of that lab. Apple’s version of an always-on display is a little extra. I can see this feature being even more essential when camping or hiking in more remote areas. + Always-on display + Useful compass + watchOS 7 brings sleep tracking.

It didn’t take long for this feature to receive criticism for potentially exasperating body dysmorphia. I wish I could squeak by on two days, just in case I forget to put it on its charging stand, but now it’s become a routine: plug in my iPhone to charge and put the watch on its magnetic charging cable just before bed.