Misfit has released a major update to their marquee fitness tracker. The Shine has always been one of the most svelte and fashionable trackers, constructed of colored aluminum and compatible with a range of accessories. It has been over two years since the original was released and Misfit has finally revisited it with the Shine 2, improving on the original in just about every way. First, what’s the same. It is still a disk-shaped aluminum, waterproof, wear anywhere, 6 month battery life fitness tracker. While the new version continues to be constructed of aluminum (although it is offered in fewer colors…for now), it is even thinner. To help shave off some of those millimeters, the physical button of the original has been replaced with a more responsive, capacitive touch surface. The LEDs have also been modified; the white-only lights of the original have been replaced with a ring of 12 multicolor LEDs on the Shine 2. The multicolor LEDs should allow users to better understand what the wearable is trying to communicate to them. Misfit has also updated the motion tracking hardware, adding a magnetometer to provide more accurate readings than the 3-axis accelerometer was capable of alone. It should also be noted that the Shine 2 is compatible with the company’s Link app, which allows you to use the device to control lights, music, or your phone’s camera. We took a look at it when we reviewed the Misfit Flash.
Perhaps the most notable addition to the Shine 2, though, is vibration. Like a lot of other fitness trackers, the Shine 2 can be configured to nudge you when it is time to move around. But Misfit has gone a step further and has enabled the wearable to behave as a connected device. The Shine 2 can vibrate to alert you to notifications and phone calls coming into your phone. For a device with a 6 month battery, this is an incredible feature! The wearable can also be used as a silent alarm clock, vibrating to wake you up.
The Shine 2 is on sale now for $99.00 and is available in black and (the ever trendy) rose gold. If none of these changes spark your interest, you can save some money and pick up the original version for $69.99. Misfit promises that accessories should be arriving soon and will include a new pendant, leather bands, and EkoCycle™ Field Bands.
The improvements to the Shine 2 strike us as being very purposeful, with every change and and addition solving a specific shortcoming. We are impressed with the changes that Misfit has made and think it will solve a lot of the issues we found with their entry level Flash. With the improvements to tracking and the addition of mobile connectivity, we believe that the Shine 2 is a compelling fitness tracker that will give Fitbit a lot of competition headed into the Holidays.
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