I have to start off by confessing the first thing I tested on the Jawbone UP Move was the sleep feature. Was my midday nap really that long? It felt like only half an hour. I did quickly progress to using the Jawbone UP Move to track my daily activities and motivate me to move more.
Affordable tracking
The UP Move is Jawbone’s budget-friendly wearable. This tiny faceless device, about the size of a small brooch, can be worn on your wrist or clipped onto your clothing. Weighing only 6.8 grams (.23 ounces), it doesn’t weigh you down.
At first, I found the wristband disconcerting since I kept expecting to see a watch face instead of the bevelled surface that resembles a flower. I did use it to track my sleep patterns since the clip doesn’t work in bed – I guess being smothered by a snoring person stops it from tracking stats.
The whole device is encased in medical-grade, hypo-allergenic rubber so it feels soft comfortable against the skin without ever getting sweaty. Inside is the important parts – the lithium battery, sensors and memory that track your steps, activity, and sleep.
No hassle charging
UP Move offers many of the same features as the Jawbone’s UP wristband without the vibrating notifications and smart alarm clock. I was especially happy with the UP Move’s battery situation – it runs off a watch battery that gives six months worth of juice before needing to be re-charged. One less device for me to worry about being dead when I need it the most.
The company has even thrown in a small key to open the back of the UP Move. It’s going to have to be labeled to stay in this house or it may end up in the junk drawer with all the other small bits we don’t want to throw out because we know they are important but can’t remember what they are used for.
UP with App
The UP Move works in tandem with a Smartphone to log and track all gathered. I used my Sony Experia for this downloading the UP App. For the first few days, I found it easier to control the device using the UP app but eventually I was using both the device itself and the App.
To get started I entered my vital stats (gender, height, weight and birthdate) and then my goals. I settled on 11,500 steps per day, 8 hours of sleep and a weight loss of 15 pounds (hey, can’t a girl dream big?).
I really wanted to lie about my weight until the App assured me it would remain private and wouldn’t be broadcast when I shared other goals over my social network. (Kudos to the Jawbone marketing teamfor their handling of this sensitive topic.) Once all this was set up, I did the physical pairing with the UP Move device, which went smoothly without a hitch.
The App itself has three main sections. To the right is the actual applications page where you can switch Sleep mode to Stopwatch mode – the function that lets you track a specific activity that doesn’t involve steps such as yoga, swimming or working out at the gym. You can also set an Activity Alert (a.k.a. get off your butt!) as well as a Reminder. On the left side is the Home page showing who is using the app, the goals sets, trends, messages and other functions including some links to apps that supplement the UP Move. The middle section shows your daily progress with sleep and activities. You can access the Home menu from the uppper left icon and the App page in the upper right hand corner.
Running man icon
At first, I wasn’t getting the correct response from the device until I realized there is an up and down despite its smooth face. At first the flashing LED lights were a bit confusing. They’re activated when you press the indented centre. When it first starts, the LED lights move around the rim and settled at the top signalling the device is synched with the APP and daily progress is being logged.
There are three different modes on the actual device. The little red running man shows for the Awake or Stopwatch mode while the Crescent Moon icon is for Sleep mode. The Awake mode is default setting. Unless you do what I did at the beginning – blindly pushing the buttons trying to bring up a menu and accidentally putting it into sleep mode (which is why the first thing I tracked was my nap.)
To enter Workout mode, press and hold the middle so the light animates around the perimeter and a running man icon blinks. To end the work out press and hold, so the perimeter will light UP and the running man will appear solid. Or you can use the app to set the type of workout and then enter the details after you’ve synced the device.
UP Move also shows you the time in a cool, minimalist way. You get one light that cycles around to the hour and then a second light for the minute hand. I liked having this feature as well since it gave me the feel of having a wristwatch.
Topping the charts
When the UP Move is in Awake mode, you track your steps, synch it to the App and see the trends happening. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw the amount of steps I had taken just doing errands and housework. I had no idea that I was moving that much and this is one of the strongest selling point for the UP Move.
It’s promoting itself as a holistic approach to a healthy lifestyle by tracking stats and delivering insights to motivate you. It did make me feel more positive about my workouts and I wanted do more especially looking at the daily activity and then the trending chart. Initially, I was disappointed at my low progress on a day I swam for an hour. However, this was only because I had forgotten to turn on the Stopwatch to track my non-step activity. My stats improved when I got the hang of the Stopwatch activity. While the UP Move is water resistant, you can’t swim with it or use it in a hot tub, bath or while doing the dishes.
Sharing the progress
The UP Move tracker stores UP to nine months of movement and sleep data. After syncing, your data is stored on the Cloud so you can access it anywhere although your app has most recent data. I know seeing a few months of progress will motivate me so I don’t flat line on the stats. Jawbone has also factored in a social media component making it easy to share on Twitter and Facebook.
I can’t see myself posting daily activities – seriously, who wants to know how much sweat I lost in a day or how many sleep I got? There is such a thing as too much information. I could see myself sharing a milestone though.
I did like sharing the daily insights from the App side. I emailed the one about blinking more to clear away brain fuzz to my daughter when she sent me a text about falling asleep in class. Still trying to decide if the “Gee Mom, thanks” was sarcastic or not.
The UP App also lets you create a team of friends or family to share progress but also challenge each other. I can see a step competition happening with my favourite couch potato in the near future.
Aside from the step goals that I’ve set, my biggest challenge is making sure I don’t put this baby through the washing machine.
The Jawbone UP Move is coming soon to Best Buy. Also on its way is the new release of the Jawbone Up3, the third generation of its slim screen-free wristband. Stay tuned for more information on both!
