New Fitbit Alta brings personalisation options and reminder alerts

“Fitbit Alta will turn heads as our most fashionable device yet”. There’s no heart rate monitoring, but one of the Alta’s big advancements is Fitbit’s new SmartTracker, which can automatically recognize when exercise has begun, what type it is, and start tracking the details.

As all of the others in the Fitbit family, Alta determines when you’re working out and records the data in the app. Instead, it features a stainless steel or leather band that comes in a variety of colors. Elastomer and leather bands should be available in early April, but Fitbit has yet to specify a local timeframe for its metallic option.

Not yet. The Fitbit Alta is not capable of showing you Gmail notifications or WhatsApp messages at this moment but, you can use 3rd party apps such as bitTicker if you have and Android phone. Perhaps the sleek and shiny Alta will spread the trend to more fashion forward figures.

SmartTrack automatic exercise recognition provides a smarter, easier way to track workouts and see how exercise fits into daily activity, giving users credit toward their weekly goals.

Alta also includes the new feature Reminders to Move, which encourages the user to get active throughout the day. The luxe stainless steel band is available in silver for $99.95 with a gold color option coming later in the year.

The Alta tracks steps and hours slept. Sure, it could be slimmer – I can’t wait for a fitness tracker that’s literally the same form factor as a rubber Livestrong bracelet – but it’s par for the course among its competitors. There is a vibration feature that will give you a poke on your wrist when you receive a notification.

Unlike some of the device’s older models, the new Fitbit does not have a elastomer (or rubber) wristband.

Our first impression for the Alta is that it does look good.

The Fitbit Alta features a fair bit of hardware in the little tracker, including an OLED “tap display” and a battery which will last up to 5 days. It’s a more full-featured and redesigned tracker compared to the minimal Flex, and significantly, is priced at a premium (Flex costs $100).

Fitbit Alta is available for presale in the United States today for $129 from Fitbit.com and major retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, Nordstrom and many others.

The Alta will be available in North America at $130 from March, the company said.