Misfit Phase

There’s more to this smart-looking watch than meets the eye

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While Misfit is an established name in activity tracking devices – thanks to to its Shine 2 and Ray fitness bands – the Phase is something of a departure. It’s the company’s first smartwatch, a hybrid device for those of us who prefer traditional timepiece styling.

Built around standard run, swim and cycle-tracking skills, it sacrifices an integrated heart rate sensor and GPS for a clean, uncluttered design. The Phase is also smarter than it looks, with activity tracking joined by an array of smartphone-syncing notifications and phone controls.

Design

Most fitness-focused smartwatches are either bland or overly brash, but the Misfit Phase is rather different. To the outside world, it looks just like a traditional watch, with a brushed metal body paired with a supple leather strap, with just two side-mounted buttons detracting from its traditional watch-like looks.

The Phase doesn’t have an LCD or a touchscreen either. Instead, a 41mm watch face provides a clean, classic look that disguises this smartwatch’s hidden talents.

For example, press the top button on the Phase’s right edge, and its hands will move to indicate your progress towards your daily step goal. In this instance, the watch’s face becomes a 0-100% dial, with 6 o’clock indicating 50% of your target activity.

While it’s a stunning bit of kit, the grey-bodied, deep blue-faced model we tested did have a design flaw – it’s not the easiest to read at night. Although the watch’s hands are silver and bright, its dial is dull and dark, making it hard to tell the time in the hours of darkness.