Well let’s get one thing straight here; I have a lot of pus to make about the Fitbit Aria Air. It’s a Bluetooth connected smart scale, I mean, that’s such a bizarre concept that you just have to joke about it,
Good thing it’s pretty damn cool as well.
Standing room only
At its core, the FitBit Aria Air is, indeed, a bathroom scale. It tells you how much you weigh if you stand on it and, in this cannot be faulted.
OK, review over. We can all go home now.
Terrible jokes aside, the Aria Air does a lot more than just tell you how much you weigh, but I do have to stress that that’s what it’s for. Similarly to my FitBit Versa 2 review, this is a device that is built for a singular purpose, and everything else is just gravy.
What does the Aria Air bring that a $12 scale from KMart doesn’t? Well, lots.
The not so heavy stuff
The lowdown on the Aria Air is that it’s a stylish black bathroom scale with a minimalist design and a nice display. Syncing to your Fitbit, the Aria Air keeps track of your weight and/or weight loss goals, as wel as some handy info like BMI.
It runs on AAA batteries, and I haven’t had to change them yet so I’m confident in saying it’s pretty energy efficient. I also have to reiterate how sleek it is; as a fan of black tech and dark mode, this thing is my jam.
In for a penny, in for 450g
Now, I’m a naturalised Kiwi, but I have grown more than adjusted to your strange methods of measurement. If you haven’t, however, there is a handy option to change the units of measurement underneath the Aria Air. Hate the metric system, or are American? Well stone and pounds are there for you. The rest of us will stick with kilograms, which were not invented by drunk raccoons on a weekend in Ibiza.
No, it doesn’t make sense, but neither do st and lb.
Weight off your mind
As someone who never really understood BMI (it sounds like an indie rock band to me), I was pleased when the Aria Air told me I was pretty healthy for my weight and height. Sure, you can calculate this yourself, but I’m a busy guy with a lot to do. I don’t have the time to calculate things, I want to jump on the scale and then out the door.
Admittedly, the Bluetooth pairing was more of a mission than I expected. This is partially because, when I first began reviewing the scale, the Aria Air wasn’t actually an option in the Fitbit app. Strange but, after a number of attempts to pretend it was an Aria or an Aria 2, I updated the app and suddenly life made sense again.
I never said I was intelligent.
Other than that, my usage has been smooth sailing, I accidentally weighed myself four times at once a few times, due to shifting slightly or deciding my hoodie was making the scale think I was fat. This is all user error, though, and the Aria Air stoically continued to, you know, weigh me.
Weighing your options
If you’re looking for a better bathroom scale that syncs to your wearables for a reasonable price, well, you’re out of luck. I actually don’t think any others exist, or should bother to try. Fitbit is, as I have said, the top of their niche. For fitness and health tracking, this is the best you’re going to get, and it’s not going to break the bank.
Look, I know that a smart scale sounds like some kind of ostentatious luxury. But it’s about valuing what you want to. People told me I was crazy when I got the first Kindle, but that thing was worth it. Sure, you could get a twelve-year-old Ford, but if you’re into driving you should probably splurge on the Dodge, right?
If you care about your weight, and like the idea of syncing your fitness across devices, then I recommend the Fitbit Aria Air.
And hey, if worst comes to worst, you’ll still have a beautiful scale to impress guests with. And really, is that not what humankind has dreamed of since first we started living in communities?
… Hey, I’m asking you a question.