The
Nike+ FuelBand is a beautiful and deadly device, which aims to measure your daily exercise with a variety of brutal statistics - and so inspire you to greater endeavours of physicality and not sitting around.
Worn on your wrist, it is a matte-black, soft-to-the-touch and pleasantly weighted piece of techno jewellery with a single raised button, which when pressed reveals a hidden 70s-style LED display that lights up your daily progress (or the time) in a line of 20 red-to-green lights, and connects to your PC and Mac via a USB adapter while syncing to your phone with Bluetooth.
As with the best and most timelessly designed devices, the Fuel Band is simultaneously retro and futuristic, functional and ridiculous. Even if it does look a bit like a charity wristband it's one of the coolest things you can wear above your hand.
According to Nike, the FuelBand has a "sports-tested accelerometer," which is little more than a very smart pedometer. As you move throughout the day, the band keeps count. When you press the button on the bracelet to cycle through the data, the band displays a little row of colored lights below the info. The lights start out red—just one or two at first. The more you move, the more lights are added, inching along and turning orange, then yellow, then green. When you hit your "fuel" goal, the full row of lights illuminate, red to green, and "GOAL" appears above. It's helpful in terms of checking in on your progress, and similar to the Fitbit Ultra's "flower" display, which grows the more active you are.
For an even better sense of your burn, you'll want to sync the band via Bluetooth to the free Nike+ Fuel app, so hopefully you have an iPhone. There aren't apps for any other platform yet. Syncing worked smoothly when I tested it, it only syncs the current day. If you haven't uploaded information from the band via the USB port in a few days, it won't appear on your app until you do.
The battery holds a charge for three days easily. However, the only time you can check the battery level is when it's connected to your computer and charging. So there's no way to tell if it's halfway or low.
The
Nike+ FuelBand also water resistant, works in the shower (though not when swimming) and comes with extra 'links' to resize to your needs.
So no, unlike other Sports Watches you won't look like Dick Tracy while wearing it. But trust us - The
Nike+ FuelBand is a good thing.