Google Fit review

The new version of Google Fit finally lets you add activities manually, over 100 in fact, and comes with Android Wear support, but still has difficulties recording all your movements and lacks many features besides, even a basic calorie counter, making it seem a rushed, unfinished application.

Pros

Automated activity detection: Google Fit kicks in on its own once you start moving, recording your steps and being able to differentiate between walking, running, and cycling. For activity detection to work, though, you must enable Location Reporting & History on your device, or in other words, let Google know where you are all the time.

Integrates with other fitness apps: Google Fit's main appeal is that it can take in fitness data from all the major fitness apps for Android and compile it into one place. If you use multiple fitness apps, or keep switching between them, Google offers you a quick solution for compiling your fitness data in one app.

Pleasing design and easy to follow graphs: The minimalistic, streamlined design makes it easy for you to view your fitness data, compare it to your goals, and check your progress on a chart. This app doesn't force complicated graphs, but presents color-coded ones nicely.

Cons

Fails to record all steps: In our tests, the app failed to record the steps we've taken about the house while carrying our smartphone in our breast pocket; even when walking outdoors with the device in our hand, it did not record all steps.

Missing features: While Google clearly adopted a bare-bones design concept for this app, basic features such as a calories burner, home screen widget, or achievements to keep you motivated are sorely missed.

False tracking: Sometimes, if you're in a bus or other fast-moving vehicle, the app records your movement as time spent biking. The problem is that you can't delete any of these false records.

Bottom Line

Deceptively plain, Google Fit can be a useful fitness app for enthusiasts, because of its ability to consolidate fitness data from multiple apps. That said, it feels like an underdeveloped app that has not yet reached maturity and, until more features are added and the tracking issues are solved, you can't rely on it as your primary fitness tracker. Try it, but don't expect it to replace MyFitnessPal or other established fitness apps.

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