This is a review of the BellaBeat Leaf by What Therapy writer which she had purchased herself. This is an independent review.
I have a confession to make: I am a magpie when it comes to shiny things.
So, when the opportunity came to own an exercise tracker that not only would keep an eye on my health but would also look like a piece of jewelry that could be worn in multiple ways I thought this is the perfect tracker for me.
I tossed my old black faithful but ugly wristband tracker aside and waited for my new shiny one…
The BellaBeat Leaf is indeed a beautiful tracker. It can be worn as a necklace or a bracelet, and most handy of all, it can clip onto clothing which is how I most often wear it. It comes in two styles: silver and rose gold and the waitlists show that there is a great deal of interest in owning something not only useful but pleasing to the eye. Looks aside though, is it any good as a tracker or do I have to rummage at the bottom of my drawer for my old one?
The Leaf promises to track sleep patterns, your daily steps as well as keep an eye on your ovulation and period patterns, and offers breathing exercises to help you relax. You can set goals and alarms (including one for your daily reminder to take a contraceptive pill) and log your monthly period to help get yourself organized and in charge of your body.
I received my Leaf in July and have been wearing it faithfully everyday to see how accurate its promises are and I would say it has been 90% successful. The alarms and targets are accurate; however, there are times when the sleep tracker has been a bit off (still tuning into my algorithms) and when I travelled to London in August the time difference mucked it up and my Leaf suffered with jetlag.
However I have to bear in mind this is a brand new piece of technology and will have teething problems. I have to say the support staff have been unfailingly polite, friendly, and successful in immediately fixing my glitches and are continuously evolving the Leaf’s technology via the Leaf app so they are not resting on their laurels.
I do feel they genuinely want people who use the Leaf to be thoroughly happy with it, which I find refreshing in this consumer age. An example of this is quite a few Leaf users (myself included) requested that it track different types of exercises – not just walking – and in October they are promising to deliver on this.
They are also now providing a screwdriver to replace the battery (a battery lasts six months which ironically is on average how long a person wears a tracker before getting bored of it!) and as there was a delay in production with the first two batches (they were overwhelmed with demand) customers are being compensated with a free necklace.
The breathing exercises are great if you feel like being guided on a mini relaxation session. I have begun to use it before I meditate and it is a nice complement.
So, if you fancy a fancy tracker just for women (sorry boys!) whose substance is quickly catching up with its style (it’s just won an award at an innovative design awards ceremony for best new invention and design) give the Bellabeat Leaf a go. I think my old tracker will be in the bottom of my drawer for a good long while…
(photos courtesy of Joanna)
