this post was submitted on 29 Oct 2023
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Are there any fitness trackers that don't have a screen and are supported by some OS apps?

I remember researching this some time ago, and there was some abandoned by it's company fitness tracker that people tried to reverse engineer to work with an OS app.

I would like it to have no screen as I already have a mechanical watch, and I dont like to have two things doing the same thing.

Cheers

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (1 children)

There's a hackable smart watch. It's got a screen and might not be usable for you for any productivity. Completely open source, as it seems. Called bangle.js 2, not too expensive so you might give it a shot?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

That looks very neat. If ever get a smart watch will definitely try this out. Thanks.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

MiBand runs with Gadgedbridge (Android) which is 100% Free Software. The firmware isn't, though.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

What do you mean firmware isn't?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

The firmware on the watch itself isn't open source. For privacy reasons that is probably of no concern. The watch only talks via bluetooth to the phone. And Gadgetbridge on the phone is free software. It only stores the data on the phone and doesn't send it to any cloud. I only have the old MiBand 4. The fitness tracking functions are a bit basic, I don't really know how how far they have improved since. But probably more something you'd expect from a $40 device and not a $100+ smart watch.

Gadgetbridge (in case you have an Android phone) is compatible with a few more devices:

One caveat: The MiBands need to be paired once with the official App. It's a bit cumbersome and complicated. You can delete the App after you've done it once. But you should look at the Gadgetbridge wiki and see if you're comfortable doing that complicated process.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I have a friend with a fitness tracking ring that he kickstarted. I'm not sure of the features it has or if it's still being made. I know it is limited compared to a normal tracker.

And there are fitbits with a smaller or minimal screen I think.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

I don't know what his is specifically, but I think a bunch more have come out in recent years. Worth doing your own research to compare features.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Anyone has any idea why you can't buy Mi Band 1S anywhere nowadays? Like literally nowhere - almost. There is this store: https://geecr.com/product/mi-band-1s

But it seems kinda scammy?

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago

No idea about devices but OpenTracks is a nice FOSS sport tracker app. It should support some external monitoring thingys too.