Goodbye Fitbit Ultra, Hello Fitbit One

Posted by Kirby Turner on January 14, 2015

On November 15, 2011, I started using my Fitbit Ultra, and after only 1157 days I have finally switched to the Fitbit One.

The Ultra has been an outstanding device, and it’s darn tough too. Mine has bits of plastic missing and the casing has separated on one side. And yet the thing continues working. The only problem is the button, which stopped working two days ago. That’s why I decided to upgrade. Still, the Ultra has been one of the best little devices I’ve ever owned.

Together the Ultra and I have taken 7,625,047 steps, climbed the equivalent of 22,711 floors, walked 3,401.97 miles, and burned 5,035,126. My Ultra was with me on my Long Trail thru hike as well as countless other hikes. It’s been with me to New York, San Francisco, Paris, Amsterdam, Montreal, and many other places. It’s the last thing I pull out of my pocket each night before bed, and the first thing I put back in my pocket after waking up. In all that time I’ve left my Ultra behind for fewer than 5 days. But as of this afternoon I’m no longer using my Ultra. I’m now using my new Fitbit One.

I’m excited to use the One. It certainly has features not available on the Ultra, most notably the ability to sync wirelessly over Bluetooth. The Ultra requires plugging in to sync, and often times I would go 6 or 7 days without syncing because it wasn’t convenient for me to plug in. But with the One and the option to sync via my iPhone, I will be syncing more frequently.

The One is smaller than the Ultra, and I have to say I’m really digging the smaller size. The display on the One is better than the Ultra too, but then again the display on my Ultra looked good when it was new. My Ultra has been through a lot and the wear and tear is showing on it. That might be why the One’s display looks much better to me right now.

I do have a couple of minor issues with the One. First, the wireless sync might mean I forget to charge my One as frequently as I did the Ultra. Time will tell if this is a valid concern or not for me. The other issue is that I rarely clipped my Ultra onto myself, but I did do it from time to time…mostly in the morning if I walked around the house in my boxers. I would clip the Ultra to my boxers until I put on pjs, shorts, or pants. The One comes with a clip, but since I rarely need the clip I’m not planning to use it. But there will still be those rare early mornings when I wish I could clip my One to my boxers. Maybe I’ll keep the clip on my nightstand next to my bed so it’s easy to grab when I do need it.

Hmmm, so it seems I don’t really have any issues with the One…at least not yet. And based on my experience with the Ultra, I don’t expect to have any issues with the One either. I’m hoping the One is as good, if not better, than the Ultra. Time will tell. I’ll try to remember to write a follow up about my One in, say, 1157 days.


Posted in personal. Tagged in fitness.


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