Fitbit / Apple Watch with OSCAR

[B1Sailor]

I want to solicit user experiences with Fitbit and Apple Watch comparing their Sleep Data to OSCAR sleep data. I am thinking of posting in the other Product Review area but wanted more of a conversation here.
 
I like the Fitbit App very much. I don’t like Fitbit devices that much even though I have been using various models for 7 years now. When they converted to no real buttons, after the user experience has been bad. I have had regular watches for decades and they continue to work. Fitbit lifetime is about 2 years. I think Apple is very attractive but have not accepted the cost.

Fitbit does not integrate with Health Vaults for Apple or Google. But neither does my CPAP. Ug.


@Brazen responded in “Sleep Quality” thread recently had just bought a Fitibit about a month ago and had a bad experience with the Fitbit showing he was in REM. WOW.

That prompted me to start this thread.

I have only had the Heart Monitoring versions. Went through 3 models of the Fitbit HR tracker and then jumped to the Fitbit Sense series. I have found they lack accuracy at times but only a little off for Pulse and now SpO2. I have had it think I was starting to sleep if very inactive. But never to the point of diagnosing sleep stages.

I have compared Pulse using 2 models of the Kardia EKG and 3 models of an SpO2 monitor with one being the CONTEC CMS50F. When they disagree, it would be nice if I had something to show which was more accurate at the time. Maybe I will connect everything I have and have a heart monitoring palooza. 
?

Comparing to OSCAR, I have not had much success. I believe Fitbit checks about 100 times a second so it would be on par with CPAP monitoring. But Fitbit event reports are pretty high level so no details that come close to OSCAR. It is hard to line up results on charts from both for some exact minute like exactly 2 am. Fitbit report time from 10:20 pm to 8:00 am with just 10 horizontal graph points. So guessing where 2 am was on its chart is difficult.  

With that said, I think I have talked myself out of a product review related to sleep. 

I had had false sleep events but not like Brazen’s experience of projecting a sleep phase. It appears to know it is probably a false even because the charts do not look the same for a regular sleep report.

I have had the Fitbit Charge, Charge 2, Charge HR, and now Sense. I have been using the Fitbit app for 7 years and I think it is the best general health tracking app. I use iBiker app for exercise specific tracking and it is better for that. Also the Polar app. But that does not track 24/7 and sleep. 

My wish list:
1. Apple would improve their apps for health monitoring
2. Fitbit would improve their devices for durability and functional flexibility.
3. Fitbit would re-join the Health Vault groups. Apple has one, Google has one and Microsoft I believe shut theirs down. 

Any of those 3 would greatly impact my next purchase.

[Uzupan]

I’ve never had a Fitbit, I thought about buying one but after finding out, I had to pay a monthly service fee to access the data that I wanted I decided against it. I bought a Garman Fenix watch, and I kept it for about a week, the only reason why is because I found out you cannot change the battery in the watch. I also have the new Apple ultra watch and their recordings of my oxygen and my sleep data match pretty close to the Garmin Fenix. Also, looking at my oxygen levels compared to my sleep study about three weeks ago they seem to be right in the same range. The Apple Watch Ultra is not medically approved, but it’s pretty close. Also, I have just run the Apple Watch Ultra for three days, that is 72 hours without a charge. I run my oxygen and my tracking all the time and I do the sleep data overnight and I currently have 22% on the wash left now, I do not have cellular connected to it at this time but it is connected to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and I do use my Apple Watch to read texts that may come in if my phone is not handy and I do respond sometimes to texts using the Apple Watch Ultra. It may not be compatible with Oscar, but it gives me information that I can use to watch my sleep in my oxygen.

[B1Sailor]

I have never paid a monthly fee for Fitbit. That is just for additional coaching and information. Fitbit syncs to your smart phone almost constantly. Has a setting for frequency and on demand. And your data is in the app all the time. 

@Uzupan - I was looking for relation to OSCAR data. So you stated you have only compared your SpO2 to your sleep study? 
You are not trying to compare sleep events with OSCAR? Does Apple record Sleep events? Or does it require a 3rd party app?

[Uzupan]

The Apple Ultra also shows the levels of sleep such as REM, Deep, Core sleep as well as awake time. It seemed to match the Garmin Fenix and I can’t really compare to the sleep study report because I did not sleep as well in the sleep center as I do at home.

[taylorgtr]

It's a very good question - the CPAP (I'm using an Airsense11) does a great job of monitoring breathing.....but is missing some of the other data that we get during a sleep study (e.g, PulseOx, Sleep stages). It would be fairly invasive to set up the same telemetry that is used during a sleep study, like a chest strap for HR, and wrist monitor for POx....but the latest watches from Apple, Garmin and Fitbit do a lot more than they used to.

I think all three can work - the question is which is most accurate? I've yet to find a head-to-head scientific bake-off, but all have published reports on their accuracy.

https://www.garmin.com/en-US/blog/health...y-results/

https://crescent.co/blog/apple-watch-sle...s-watchos9

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6908975/


I think it comes down to which device and reporting you like best.

[B1Sailor]

I have a Fitbit. I love their App but not the hardware. I have thought several times about getting an iWatch. Trying to learn the iWatch features, I found this:

While Apple now includes sleep tracking as part of watchOS, there’s still room for improvement, and plenty of third-party apps are offering more sleep tracking features than Apple provides.
The latest version of the popular NapBot sleep tracking app includes a particularly interesting feature: sleep apnea detection. Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder that means your breathing pauses or becomes very shallow more frequently than other people, and it can seriously disrupt your sleep – which means you’ll be more tired the next day.

NapBot can detect apnea via the respiratory rate measurement on your watch, which is enabled whenever the sleep focus mode is on. It also monitors environmental audio so you can see if external factors are contributing to poor sleep, and as you’d expect it provides the usual analysis of your sleep states.

The core app is free but you can also unlock a Pro subscription for $0.99 / £0.99 a month or $9.99 / £9.99 annually. That gives you two extra features: Sleep History and Sleep Trends, both of which enable you to see the big picture of your sleep habits and the effects of any lifestyle changes.

TechRadar Best iWatch Apps


The SpO2 tracking is now supposed to be Free on the iWatch 6 with Apple’s Oxygen app.

Anyone have NapBot?

[DFWdude]

I received a Fitbit watch for Christmas 2021, so have had it for almost a year now. I view my sleep results every morning.

My sleep apnea specialist doctor says the "watches" are not very accurate concerning sleep stages. And I agree. After a morning wakeup, I can lay still in bed, fully awake -- often for 1/2 hour or more -- and the Fitbit will continue to track this time as "Light" sleep.

I've concluded that I can take the data received as a general assessment of my sleep quality only. I ask myself each morning how the night went, whether I feel refreshed, etc. Only then do I look at the Fitbit app to see how it compares.

In general, Fitbit usually confirms whether I compiled enough Deep Sleep, and sometimes whether I spent significant time in REM sleep just before waking. But that's about it.

[RNeil]

I also got a Fitbit Christmas 2021. I like it. I have tried a few cheep imitation Fitbits that I got on eBay, but was not satisfied. I have a small wrist and I don't like big watches, like the Apple and other smart watches.

I don't expect the Fitbit to be as accurate as a real medical device. But I have noted a correlation between Fitbit data and quality of sleep. I also have a link between Fitbit and my Medicare supplement. You can call it spying, but I get $10 a month if I exceed 500 steps a day, 16 days a month. That's 5 hundred. It means I have to get out of bed.

[DaveL]

Thanks B1Sailor!
I didnt know about Natbot. I'll take a look. edit: There's an annual fee. No interest for me.

I've used fitbit (long ago; burnt my arm! recalled/returned.), Microsoft, Garmain and iWatch 6. There were changes after OS 9 that improved the features. I'm still using an App that I paid for.

My iWatch does several things I like. With the APP it reports sleep cycles, O-two and even noise. It does ECG. It does what I want. It's the best of the devices I've had over a long time (means I haven't had a fitbit watch). I used several Garmin watches. Why Apple? I have an iPad, iMac and used them a long time. I don't like the price either. Would I buy another....yes if this one failed.

Biggest criticism? I'm old. I'm farsighted. I need reading glasses. Most of the devices I can't read or use in the night. That's a fatal flaw for me. And it's how I moved from Garmin/Fitbit (band...used one night) to iWatch.

DaveL
Toronto

[mesenteria]

This is a bit late, but my Samsung Galaxy 4 watch does a very good job of detecting my AFib, my SPO2, my BP, and my sleep cycles.  In fact, and I only have knowledge of and experience with the Galaxy over the past seven years (Samsung Gear prior to 2019), I am required to recalibrate my BP function every three weeks with a proper cuff.  After being warned for four days, the function becomes unusable until I relent and redo the calibration.

These devices haven't a hope of matching the Holter Monitor and other specialized devices for assessing what happens in our bodies.  I take the BP and HR measures at face value because they match my cuff readout to within 3%, and even SPO2 is close enough.  But you need at least six leads properly placed to detect AFib vs, SVT's, PACs, and flutter.