Setup was painless, with the Fitbit app doing all the legwork. I also tried a brown leather band (separately sold) for general outings to gauge its fashionable qualities, which did garner some mixed responses. While a large band came in the box, a shorter one is also included inside, ensuring that wrists of various sizes can wear this watch. The rubberized strap is sturdy with a smooth texture inside and grooved one outside, making it comfortable and sporty all at once. Unfortunately, Fitbit didn’t go with standard lugs to enable switching to standard bands of all types, but at least the company offers other types. It doesn’t pop out like it did with the Blaze, so switching bands is arguably easier now because of the latches they use. In this case, the screen is firmly planted. There’s also an NFC chip built-in for mobile payments, but more on that later.
The lightweight aluminum bezel around it adds girth along the top and bottom, as well as thickness underneath to accommodate the optical heart rate sensor and battery inside. It’s also slightly curved-only noticeable when tilting the watch sideways looking at the bottom-and a simple tweak that helps make it more viewable and bounce off glare. The 1.5-inch LCD screen is bright, with nice contrast at a resolution of 348 x 250 pixels. Not surprisingly, health and fitness are still front and centre. The Ionic looks more like a watch, yet sticks to a neutral design that is likely to please most, while disappointing others looking for more stylistic points. The Blaze carried the appearance of a smartwatch, but Fitbit never fully committed to taking it there.
Fitbit’s hybrid approach is still the same with the Ionic, except its purpose and footprint is meant to step beyond what the Blaze could do. The latter’s influence does play a role here, even if its appearance bears little resemblance to what Pebble had previously released under its own branding. Unlike the Blaze, Fitbit’s previous smartwatch-style device, the Ionic comes some time after the company acquired Pebble. Is the new Fitbit Ionic a true smartwatch, or an upscale fitness band that does more than others do? The mix at work here is supposed to keep you busy doing more than just a workout.