Garmin mixes activity tracking and smart notifications in a fitness band that bridges the gap between step counter and smartwatch.

Sleek; smooth no button design; Touch screen; Smart Notifications; Vibration alerts; Water resistant to 50 meters (5 ATM; Move reminder

OLED display is difficult to see in direct sunlight; Only one alarm; and no way to add more

Very comfortable, battery life decent, but I am on my second one in less than a year due to the screen dying or freezing up. Though it is supposed to be water resistant, it cannot handle a very small amount of sweat. Going to another brand now.....

Fitness bands are now a well established part of the tech canon, and they're aimed at a specific kind of person – does this sound like you? You're someone who, halfway through the decade, decided to get moving. Naturally, you want to log these new bursts of momentum – else what's the point, right?

I was very happy to get this Vivosmart. It was working quite well, pushing me to walk more often during the day and waking me up in the morning with sharp vibrations. I also very much liked the fact that it is waterproof so I don't have to take it off all the time and the OLED screen which turns on...

Nice and tidy piece of kit, not too obtrusive. It has some good features built in and shows notifications from your phone. The device also gives a little buzz if you've been stationary for too long to remind you to move.

Great bit of kit if only it lasted! I've had a Vivosmart for ten months now and my third has just died. This time instead of the 'lines of death' it has just turned off and refuses to come back to life!

Garmin's Vivosmart activity tracker counts steps, measures sleep, reminds you to move, and sends notifications, including text messages, to your wrist. Its midrange price point makes it an attractive option.

Discreet design; Contains remote controls for music; Vibration alarms and "move" alerts available; Supports push notifications; Measures miles, steps, calories burned, active time, and sleep; Informative, touch-capacitive display; Comfortable; Waterproof

Fixed form factor; Can't interact with notifications (e.g; can't reply to incoming text messages from the bracelet); Steps and mileage seemed slightly inflated in tests

Garmin, a company predominately known for its GPS-enabled devices, is entering new territory with its latest and perhaps smartest device yet. In early 2014, the company released the Vivofit , an activity tracker with one year of battery life.

The Vivosmart can accurately track your daily activities and display notifications from your smartphone; It can connect with third-party apps like MyFitnessPal and wireless heart-rate monitors; It's also waterproof and has personalized activity goals

Notifications can be difficult to read and aren't interactive; Sleep tracking isn't automatic, Garmin's mobile app is dated, and the touchscreen is sometimes unresponsive; Select smart features aren't available for iOS users

For people who are serious about moving more, and looking to distance themselves from their smartphones, the Garmin Vivosmart is a solid device for its $169 price. Whereas the Samsung Gear Fit takes a backseat to fitness tracking, the Vivosmart easily and accurately tracks steps, distance and...

Smartphone notifications; Comfortable; water-resistant design; Tracks steps; calories; distance; active time and sleep

Clumsy clasp; Bland app design; Cannot interact with smartphone notifications

The Garmin app needs improvement in sleep and limited workout information. Sleep is only a graph. Prefer Up app by Jawbone for sleep and logging in workouts. My fitness app also needs a lot of help as well. Premium app for My fitness is expensive. Twice as much as Jawbone.

Comfortable; Quality Construction; Water Resistant

Garmin/ app awful