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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

AIBU to not buy my child a Fitbit for his birthday?

47 replies

Tootired1 · 25/05/2019 16:11

My son wants a ‘watch that counts steps’ for his 7th birthday. I looked online and the kids Fitbit is £80 but there are cheaper brands that seem to do the same thing for about £20-£25. DH thinks I should buy the £80 one because the reviews are mixed on the cheaper one. DS is a really good lad and not a wanter. This is the only thing he said he might like for his birthday or he said he might have it for Christmas. I really want to get him one but think the Fitbit is overpriced compared to the competition. DH reckons you get what you pay for. What do you think?

OP posts:

IWentAwayIStayedAway · 25/05/2019 17:22

Buy the cheap colour and then buy strap of colour you want. Works out cheaper!!

LordProfFekkoThePenguinPhD · 25/05/2019 17:24

I bought myself my ‘NitBit’ on groupon for about £15! It works fine and does the basics perfectly.

concernedforthefuture · 25/05/2019 17:34

I'd get the proper Fitbit one. It's designed for a child so will a) be more accurate and b) not show irrelevant data like calorie counts and other things that children don't need to worry about.
Or... if you really only want it to count steps, get a basic pedometer for him.

gingerbiscuits · 25/05/2019 17:43

Our 12yr old has a 30 quid one which is brilliant. Can change strap colours etc for a few quid too. Would def not buy an 80 quid one for such a young child but it's personal choice - if you can afford it & aren't bothered if they lose it, then go for it - regardless of what strangers on the internet think!

OopsIHidItAgain · 25/05/2019 17:52

Mi band twenty something quid, can get so many different styles and colours of strap- and had mine 18 months and still wear it everyday!

lljkk · 25/05/2019 18:48

Parnerme is the one £30 DH has (& DS has). DH is pretty fussy about tech but has been happy with this for 3 months now. I don't like the fastening on the Panerme but I don't like the fitbits strap much either tbf.

CrazyCatNerd · 25/05/2019 18:55

DS wanted a Fitbit. I've had three and they all broke. I bought him a £15 version from Amazon and its been going way longer than the Fitbits did - it's great.

lanbro · 25/05/2019 18:58

My 7 yr old has the Garmin Vivofit junior, my parents bought it for her birthday and she loves it, not as pricey as the fitbit

Rockbird · 25/05/2019 19:21

DD1 (11) got a Fitbit Alta for Christmas. She loves it and is much more interested in her activity levels since she got it. She barely takes it off. I didn't see the point of the kids one for a preteen, they'd outgrow it in months.

PrayingandHoping · 25/05/2019 19:27

Have a look on eBay. I bought mine on there. It was brand new but I paid a lot less for it! A lot of people seem to buy them and either never wear them or only for a short period and then get rid!

TurnTheFreakingFrogsGay · 25/05/2019 19:27

A lot of the reviews on the cheap ones are fakes, about two years ago I got emailed shot loads from amazon seller was offering me free products in exchange for reviews.

People leave good reviews for these items even if they are shit and a lot leave five star reviews without even using the item and list it on eBay.

I know this because a few years ago I got offered free stuff myself. Some stuff was good, some absolute tat but you'd see hundreds of positive ones all from other people who got the item free. I stopped doing the reviews because I didn't want to lumped in with the bullshitting fake ones.

Amazon is supposed to have put a stop to this but all that's happened is reviewers ni longer disclose they were given the item for free and it'll show "verified purchase" because the sellers now ask you to buy with your money and they give PayPal refund after leaving a five star review. I get emails every week offering me tat.

If you look at the reviews and you have a lot of people posting photos of the product in the packaging alongside a five star review they are likely fake reviews and I wouldn't touch with a barge pole.

I was sent a cheap Fitbit thing and it was shit. Seller said it was faulty and sent a second that didn't count, then a third, fourth and fifth claiming is been unlucky and hit faulty ones. Nope, it was shit product overinflated to looks better with people bullshitting in their reviews to get more free products.

catlady39 · 25/05/2019 19:30

LETSCOM Fitness Tracker HR,... https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0721SXJH2?ref=ppx poppmob appshare

I've had this for six months so far...all good.

icecreamsundae32 · 25/05/2019 19:56

Garmin vívofit junior are great, different designs available and they collect tokens for doing chores/active minutes. Also tracks their sleep and is waterproof for swimming.

rodentforce · 25/05/2019 20:10

I got my kids and my nephew Fitbit Flex 2 - they were £40 at the time and were good buys because they are waterproof, pretty tough, and they like competing in challenges together (basically our whole family has Fitbits!). They have had them for about 18 months and still enjoy the challenges and get excited about hitting their step targets. I wouldn't have bought them at £80. I'd recommend looking for the Flex 2 on second hand sites. Technically you are meant to be 13 in order to register so make sure to lie when you set up the account if you do get one ... I imagine with the kids' one things are different (the kids' one wasn't invented when I got these).

Teateaandmoretea · 25/05/2019 20:14

As a bizarrely small-wristed family I quite simply couldn't find a cheap one when I bought dd's. I don't know if anything had changed since. The garmin vivofit non adjustable band meant to fit a 4 year old fit me

moreismore · 25/05/2019 20:16

My sister bought her Fitbit and (unbranded) wristband separately on eBay and it was a lot cheaper. Not sure if that’s an option?

CastleCrasher · 25/05/2019 20:23

I've had fitbits for years, always bought the same brand, swore by them, even though they pretty much always failed around the same time as warranty expired (although Fitbit are brilliant at sending replacements!)
Dh bought me a cheap "letsfit" for about £30 at Christmas because the Fitbit isn't compatible with my Huawei. I was cynical, but it's awesome. Wouldn't spend the big money again.

As a side note, if you do buy Fitbit, the non branded straps are brilliant, I've bought some beautiful ones for very little

lljkk · 25/05/2019 20:33

If Fitbits are so great why have to keep buying replacements.

lau888 · 25/05/2019 20:42

We all have Fitbits. If you can afford it, I would buy one - especially as it's the only thing your child has actually requested. You don't need the official straps though; the generic straps work very nicely and allow my kids to mix and match the colours. x

fruitpastille · 25/05/2019 20:49

The Garmin one is good for that age. I got my 10 year old the ace as our seemed a bit more grown up in style. I went with Fitbit as I already use the app and I could just add the ace to the 'family' bit of the app.

BishopofBathandWells · 25/05/2019 21:20

It also depends on how responsible you think your DS is. DSD was bought one for her birthday by her Mum (£120 as I recall) and within a few weeks it was misplaced, never to be found again. She was 9 at the time, and has form for being very lax with expensive items.

sockatoe · 25/05/2019 21:57

Mine wanted a Fitbit or garmin for 7th birthday. I bought a £20 ish "no make". A) it was rubbish, clunky etc B) he was bored of it and it was lost very soon. I suspect if I had got the main brand, it would have been more easily usable and held his attention longer, but the jury's out on if he would have lost it so soon. I certainly have my reservations about sending a 7 yr old to school with almost £100 strapped to their arm.

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