Battery Life

Obviously, I had concerns about a Bluetooth device which is always connected and what the battery life would look like, as well as what kind of drain it would put on my phone. However, a recent firmware upgrade gives the Up24 a battery life of about 14 days (the Up has about 9 days). In addition to the extra battery life for the device, I haven’t noticed a faster drain on my phone’s battery.

Bluetooth advantage of the Jawbone Up24

After using the Up, which has to be physically plugged into the phone to sync data, I quickly saw the attraction of the Up24’s constant connection.

• I can get push notifications during the day showing my progress. I have it set to notify me every 2000 steps. It helps me be a bit more motivated when I can tell I’m getting close to my goal, or knowing that I have a ways to go. With the Up, I didn’t know the status until I plugged the band into my phone.
• Instead of using the different button techniques to switch modes on the device (for example, press the button twice and then hold on the 3rd press for a power nap), I can use the app on my phone to put my device into the power nap, sleep, or workout mode. It’s especially nice for the power nap feature which requires more button pushing. Yeah, it isn’t that hard to use the device button to switch modes, but the app takes guess/memory work out of it.
• Any time you open the app it syncs the data so you’re getting a fresh update. I especially like being able to fairly instantly be able to tell how many steps I’ve taken and how far away from my goal I am. Without the Bluetooth connection, you have to remove the cap and hope you don’t misplace it, connect the device to your phone, and launch the app to get an update.
• In the morning, when I take my device out of sleep mode, I instantly get a push notification letting me know how much sleep I received.
• You can also set a reminder to go off at a specific time of day. When the alert triggers, the band vibrates, and you get a push notification on your phone. It’s pretty handy.

Final Verdict

I’ve had the Jawbone Up24 for over a month now, and I definitely feel like it’s worth the extra money. The biggest advantage is being able to quickly look at my activity without having to remove the band. It’s really helped to get me up and moving.

There is a new Jawbone device (Up3) that became available earlier this year. It offers morning heart rate monitoring currently, but because of its sensors and planned software updates in the future, it is supposed to be able to monitor your heart rate throughout the day as well as hydration levels and so on. The full functionality isn’t planned to be in force until 2016. I’m a bit dubious about the comfort of the device based on photos I’ve seen.

For now, I’d say get the Up24.

As a side note, I want to applaud Jawbone’s customer service. When the firmware update became available to double the device’s battery life per charge, I had problems getting my device to upgrade. I emailed their support address and received a response requesting my phone number. A rep phoned me the next day to try to troubleshoot. We did a couple of things, and they decided the band needed to be replaced. When it looked like the shipment date was cutting it too close to our departure overseas, the rep received approval for 48-hour shipping. They included a postage-paid mailer for me to use to return the original band. Major kudos!

Are you using a similar fitness tracker to monitor your activity and sleep? Do you feel like they help you?

Then I began traveling long term.

I take some medications chronically, so I’ve had to refill them as we’ve traveled. For the most part, it’s been extremely simple. I only had issues in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand with getting my medications without a prescription.

The costs of these medicines have been amazing. In the US, a 30-day supply of my antihypertensive (for high blood pressure) cost $170 before insurance. My insurance copay was $50. In most of the countries we’ve visited, this same pill has cost as low as $10 for a 2-month supply.

When looking at getting medications, a fellow traveler figured out she could fly to Mexico and back and get a year’s supply of her medications more cheaply than buying them in the US.

One of the times we were in Thailand, my body decided to get rid of a rather large fragment left over from blasting my kidney stone with a laser. I was able to walk into a pharmacy and walk out with the antibiotic I knew I needed, a medication to help increase urine flow, and a narcotic to reduce the pain. All without a prescription.

In addition to medications that can be quite expensive in the US, there are some treatments, such as medicinal CBD oil, that have shown amazing promise but are often not approved for legal use in a country or in most regions.

I’ve shared before how I spent the night in an emergency room in Australia, received medication, had blood draws, had a couple of minor procedures, was cared for primarily by the doctor, and also was treated by a specialist all for $220 USD.

Thailand has so many visitors to the country specially for medical tourism that they have a website and division dedicated to it.

Then there are the stories like the man who discovered his hip replacement surgery would cost about $78,000 in the US, but he could travel to Belgium, have the procedure, rehab, cover the flights, etc., for $13,000. That’s a huge difference.

What about quality of care? Well, you might be surprised to discover that many countries are rated much higher than the US for medical care. The son of one of our friends needed surgery in Hong Kong, and she found the conditions and quality to be even better than those in the UK.

I’ve heard from many people who have had procedures done overseas, and they all share similar positive stories.

So, if you needed another excuse to travel. . .

What has your experience been with health care in foreign countries?

Why did I choose the Jawbone UP?

Sleep tracking

When I was a much larger person, I dealt with obstructive sleep apnea. After losing a lot of weight, I no longer have need for a CPAP machine. However, I know that even a slight fluctuation upward in my weight can bring back symptoms. Because of this, and the fact that I frequently deal with insomnia thanks to writer’s brain, one of the things that has really intrigued me about these devices is their ability to monitor your sleep and give you feedback.

The Jawbone UP is rated fairly highly for its accuracy, and the app software really stood out for me. Every review I read pointed to the Jawbone info being more useful.

I love the amount of information I get in just one screen. Some of the devices don’t track the time it took you to fall asleep. That’s information I want. One could use this info to help figure out if certain foods are interfering with falling asleep, for example. Falling asleep can be one of my biggest challenges, so it’s very useful for me to be able to track this time and be able to compare it across several days.

Idleness

You are able to set up a reminder to get you moving if you’ve been sitting too long. I have mine set for one hour. If the band hasn’t detected much activity within the time you set, it will vibrate to remind you to get off your tush. As I spend a good amount of time on my rear end while using the computer, I find this feature to be pretty valuable. Only a few trackers offered this function.

Wearability

Some of the reviews of different devices included problems with clasps functioning, the band not being big enough, etc. I didn’t encounter any reviews of issues with this device. I have large wrists, so this was a concern. The band fits my wrist quite comfortably and stays on easily. As you can see in the photo above, I even have room to spare, but it doesn’t slide around when I’m moving my arms.

You can’t wear it when you go swimming, but the only devices I found that were waterproof didn’t have all the functionality or were more than twice as expensive as the Jawbone. The other downside with those trackers was how they measured the intensity of a swimming activity—they just don’t track swimming well. In view of that, I’m fine with removing it to go for a swim.

I wanted to get the red band, but I found this one in Costco for a lot cheaper. Budget wins over fashion for me these days.

Power Nap Alarm

I don’t know if it’s my age or a drastically slowed-down lifestyle, but I’m finally able to take naps. The problem is I need a specific amount of time or I feel like crap for the rest of the day. If I get too much, I have a hard time falling asleep that night.

The Jawbone can be switched to a power nap mode that works within a customizable timeframe. By monitoring your sleep, the wristband will vibrate to wake you up at the optimal point within the range you set. There are plenty of studies that have confirmed the health, memory, and performance benefits of taking power naps. This device really adds some value since it’s using your sleep cycle to determine when to wake you.

Smart Alarm

This is another feature that wasn’t common among the trackers. You can set the time you need to be awakened along with a window of time before that. The band will wake you at the optimum point in your sleep cycle which helps you feel a bit more refreshed when you awake. It’s also nice for people who are sharing a room and/or a bed since the band vibrates rather than emitting an annoying noise that will bug the other person/people around you (most trackers offered the vibration alarm, but not the smart alarm to figure out when is best to wake you).

A more holistic approach

With the Jawbone app, you can take photos or input information about your meals, snacks, and drinks to help keep track of calories and nutrition. When you do this, the app combines your sleep, activity, and nutrition info to come up with tips to help you improve your health, your sleep, etc.

When you check the app on your phone, you’ll find tips that are based on the information it’s been tracking for you or just general tips on small things you can do that can make a big difference in your efforts.

Jawbone UP Review

After doing extensive research and deciding on the Jawbone UP, I had to make a decision between getting the UP or the UP24. The latter connects with your phone via Bluetooth. The UP has to be physically plugged into your phone to sync information. I really wanted the UP24 so that information was more instant, and I could interface automatically with the band.

There is a about a $50 price difference between the two devices, and I had been considering if that extra money was worth it. That is until I walked into Costco and saw that they had the UP on sale for $49. The price difference now changed to $80. I had purchased my Costco membership via a Living Social deal, and as part of that deal I was given a $20 Costco Cash card. I was now looking at spending $29 versus $129.

This is what we call a no-brainer.

It’s very easy to connect the band to a phone. The larger silver-colored cap is removed, and there is a plug that you insert into the headphone port of your phone. Once you launch the application, it automatically syncs with the band and updates your info. You leave them connected if you’re changing any of the alarms so that it can program the band accordingly.

Charging is pretty easy. The device comes with a small cord that connects your band to your computer via a USB port. The battery needs recharging around every 9-10 days, and you can easily see how much charge it has via the app. There are optional chargers you can buy if you wish to utilize a different system for charging.

I don’t usually wear anything on my hands or wrists when I sleep, so I was a bit concerned the band would be a little annoying at nighttime, but it really wasn’t. It’s very comfortable. It also has enough of a low profile that it doesn’t really bother me when I’m typing on the keyboard. I don’t wear a watch when I’m on my laptop because of the interference, but the Jawbone is no problem.

I’ve done a variety of activities while wearing the device, and it’s been a breeze. I like not having to remember to grab a pedometer or use an app on my phone, esp since I don’t have an unlimited data plan, to track my activities. It has really helped motivate me to get moving more as well. I find I get competitive with myself and start looking at moving more, parking farther away from the store, etc., so that the lines on the activity graph are longer.

A lot of little things can add up to some big benefits.

The sleep tracker has been very helpful. I can tell I’m likely not having apnea issues because the graph shows me deep sleep, light sleep, and awake periods. I used to be a bit concerned because I wake up 2-3 times a night, and I wondered how much that was affecting my sleep and if I was waking more than I realized. However, I can tell how many times I wake up during the night and that I reenter deep sleep fairly rapidly. I felt like my periods of wakefulness were really long, but I discovered I’m only awake for a total of around 25-29 minutes. So now I don’t worry about that stuff.

I’ve also made some changes to what I eat later at night based on the information I’ve been able to analyze. The sleep tracker and power nap alarm have been worth it alone.

The app is able to connect with other fitness and health apps easily.

Final Word

I definitely recommend this device. I had compared the FitBit, Nike Fuel, Garmin Vivofit and Vivosmart, Misfit Shrine, as well as some others during my research before deciding on the Jawbone UP, and I definitely think I picked the right one.

I was quite interested in the Garmin Vivosmart, but it was hard to justify the price tag. It is sure packed with some cool features, though. I think it will appeal a bit more to techies, gadget lovers, and people who feel the need to be extra connected (it will show you text messages and emails from your phone, who is calling you, and stuff like that). In addition to the much higher price tag and really not wanting the extra bells and whistles, it also lacks the power nap functionality and didn’t offer the level of information the Jawbone does.

I hope my Jawbone UP review helps you figure out which tracker to go with if you’ve been contemplating making a purchase. I spent a LOT of time researching them before selecting the Jawbone. Hopefully, I’ve saved you some time and money.

Do you use a activity tracker? Which features are your favorite?