When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Spec-off: Microsoft Band vs Apple Watch vs Samsung Gear Fit vs Fitbit Surge

With yesterday's announcement of Microsoft's brand new fitness Band we thought it was time to see how it stacks up against its competition. We compared it to the Samsung Gear Fit, probably one of its closest competitors.

But we also took a look at the Fitbit Surge and the Apple Watch, both upcoming products that do some of the same things the Microsoft Band does. Check out the full spec sheet below.

Microsoft Band Apple Watch Samsung Gear Fit Fitbit Surge
Design Band Square Watch Band Square Watch
Removable Band No Yes Yes No
Screen 1.4" TFT 1.5/1.65" 1.84” Super AMOLED 1.25" Monochrome LCD
Resolution 320 x 106 px ? 432 x 128 px ?
Battery 2x 100 mAh Li-ion ? 210 mAh Li-ion Li-ion
Battery Life 2 days 3-4 days, up to 5 up to 7 days
Charging Charging dock Charging dock Charging dock Proprietary cable
Charge time ? ? 1-2 hours
Connectivity Bluetooth 4.0 Bluetooth 4.0 Bluetooth 4.0 Bluetooth 4.0
GPS Yes No No Yes
Water resistance IP 54 ? IP 67 IP 68 ( 5 ATM)
Notifications Calls, Text, Social, Rich* Calls, Text, Social, Rich* Calls, Text, Social, Rich* Calls, Text
Actionable No Yes Yes Music controls
Voice Cortana Siri No No
Haptic feedback Yes Yes No Yes
Heart tracker Yes Yes Yes Yes
Accelerometer Yes Yes Yes Yes
Gyro Yes No Yes Yes
Skin temp Yes No No No
UV Yes No No No
Galvanic Yes No No No
Compatibility Windows, iOS, Android iOS Galaxy Android** Windows, iOS, Android
Price $199 starts at $349 $149 $249

So what do you think? Does Microsoft's Band stack up against the competition based on these specs and its cross-platform support or is the device destined to be a failure?

*Rich notifications are defined as those not listed above, including but not limited to notifications from third party apps, email, calendars, etc.

** A limited number of Samsung Galaxy devices, all running Android.

Report a problem with article
Next Article

Microsoft Health: the company's new fitness and health platform

Nestle shopping with Pepper
Previous Article

Nestlé to use humanoid robot salesmen in Japan

Join the conversation!

Login or Sign Up to read and post a comment.

61 Comments - Add comment