Can Fitbit Track Steps Without Phone? Read It Before!

How Fitbit Tracks Your Steps?

Given there are far too many Fitbit trackers available in market to generalize them we feel it’s better to talk what unites them: All of them can track distance, heart rate, calories burned, sleep time, and steps. Now before anyone questions us we are well aware that older Fitbit models couldn’t do what we’ve mentioned but right now are focus is on what you can buy today. Keep that in mind.

So regardless of what you buy or have Fitbit needs accelerometer and gyroscope (isn’t a need but having one can better the efficiency of system) to count your steps, and it make sense why.

Accelerometers are sensors that detect acceleration and movement. Gyroscopes, on the other hand, measure the orientation and rotation of the device. Both of them combines work to measure the tiniest change in motion of device.

And motions contains everything!

From the steps you take to go from one point to another to the fall your Fitbit tracker could’ve from place of height. By the way these two are also essential component of initial phase of sleep tracking as well as Fall Detection system (A feature still not known to Fitbit engineers – sadly).

“So Can I Track My Steps Without Phone On Fitbit?”

If we’ve learned anything from above is that it doesn’t matter if you’ve the phone with you or not. As long as your Fitbit tracker have accelerometer you can measure the steps without the phone easily. You don’t need to carry it with you everywhere!

However it is important to keep in mind that for your Fitbit tracker to measure your steps accurately your hands need to be in motion. You can’t just walk like robot with your hand sticking out like a frozen stick and expect Fitbit to work magic. That’s just not going to happen.

Even if you intend to keep your arms in pocket its fine as long as your arms are moving. Because if you’re taking that away be ready for Fitbit to show you grand total of 0 steps on the way back.

You Can Also Track Steps Without Fitbit

Now that we know you can track steps without having your phone on you let’s take a look on different case: What if you forget your Fitbit tracker at home, but have your phone on you? Do you think your Fitbit will be able to record your steps now?

If you’re saying NO let me tell you this: You can still record your steps on your Fitbit application, even without your Fitbit tracker, and no we haven’t discovered witchcraft. It’s just plain and simple innovation. Ir in this case a Fitbit feature called MobileTrack.

What Is MobileTrack & How It Works!

You can think of MobileTrack as Fitbit feature which allows you to use your smartphone as the proxy tracking monitor. So even if your Fitbit tracker will be sitting at home but you’d have enabled the MobileTrack from Fitbit application, your steps would be recorded and later synced to your Fitbit dashboard.

But how? How is that possible?

Well, the reason it is possible is through the sensors that your smartphones have and how Fitbit manipulate them to count your steps, distance, and calories burned and send the data to itself.

Although, it is little out of scope to talk about distance and calories burned here, there is something you should know. Using MobileTrack both of these metric (distance and calories burned) are more of estimation, and it is because Fitbit calculates distance using stride length and steps (stride length can be changed in settings – you should look into it if you use Fitbit on treadmills).

Whereas for Calories Burned your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is taken into account. A stat compromised of height, weight, age, and sex you provided. In either case accuracy is of issue and thus shouldn’t be taken too seriously.

Set Up MobileTrack Under 1 Min!

The best thing about MobileTrack is you don’t need to own a Fitbit device to use it. You can just have your smartphone and it’s enough to give you access to Fitbit rich utopia.

To get started, download the Fitbit app and tap Join Fitbit. When asked which tracker you’re setting up, choose Just the app and follow the MobileTrack instructions.

If you already have a Fitbit account:

• Log into the Fitbit app and tap the Today tab   your profile picture.
• Tap the option to set up a new device, and follow the MobileTrack instructions.

Keep in mind MobileTrack works with devices which have the sensors needed by the Fitbit. Which means if you are using iPhone 4 then you won’t be able to connect your Fitbit and MobileTrack. The same principal applies to Android phones, you must have a mobile phone with required sensors.

Before You Leave Your Phone At Home…

Just knowing how much steps you marched on isn’t enough sometimes. So usually what happens is that you want to look at distance you covered. Or calories you burned. Both of them requires separate set of sensors to give you solid ground to work on, and while in case of Calories Burned you would be able to get good enough data (just good enough not accurate) just by having Fitbit. The same can’t be said about Distance Covered.

Before the age of Fitbit Versa 3 and Fitbit Ionic the GPS capacity was limited to Fitbit trackers. There was no device that had it within itself. All of them had to use connected GPS using the Bluetooth through a smartphone.

So, if unfortunately you happen to be owner of one of those trackers or smartwatches then it is necessary for you to have your phone with you at all times. If you won’t then fate of Distance Covered falls with stride length and step counter and this brings uncertainty to results and surely you won’t want that, right?