Weighing in used to be a pretty basic affair: shuffle unwillingly on to a platform like some sort of farm animal and watch a mechanically-powered needle point where it would.
No longer. As part of a gaggle "digital lifestyle" firms, spurred on by the mobile internet boom, Fitbit has turned it into an act that feels more like a step into a future where an array of gadgets will keep constant watch on our health.
At the moment, though, the Fitbit Aria is a set of bathroom scales for the technologically-advanced weight watcher.
The swish, Apple-influenced minimalist design will look good in almost any modern bathroom. I tested the black version which tended to accumulate visible footprints and dust, but a white model is also available. As you'd expect for a gadget you're going to be standing on the scales are pleasingly sturdy, while the blue digital readout is bright and easy to read.
As well as your weight in new or old money, the Fitbit Aria will have a go at calculating your body fat percentage by passing a tiny elecrical current through your bare feet. Without a proper body fat test to compare it to, I have no idea how accurate the scales are in absolute terms, and I found they varied by as much as 2 per cent on any given day depending on the time, what I was wearing, how hydrated I was and presumably other factors.
The scales connect to your home Wifi network and upload your weight and body fat per centage to an online profile (which you can set to private). On visiting the user-friendly Fitbit website you are confronted with a host of graphs showing the progress, or lack thereof, of you fitness regime.
Setting them up should have been a breeze, but for some reason the scales struggled to connect to my Wifi network, until after 45 minutes of frustration I positioned them about six inches away from the router. After that they worked without fail and never lost touch again.
This "smart", connected element at the centre of Fitbit's pitch. Tracking your progress easily online, including via the firm's smartphone app, it says, will keep owners motivated. So although your body fat per centage might vary on a short time scale and not be very accurate in absolute terms, over time you do get an idea of the trend, which is what matters to most people.
Your profile can also integrate data from Fitbit's wireless activity tracker, which we recently reviewed, which aims to monitor your exercise and sleep patterns.
Over the month or so I have been using the scales I have found some truth in Fitbit's claims. Seeing a graph heading in the right direction is genuinely pleasing, and slip ups are harder to self-justify when presented visually. But at £99, it's expensive for a set of bathroom scales, so I can only recommend the Fitbit Aria to fitness fans, and they lose points for that irritating set up glitch.
Setting them up should have been a breeze, but for some reason the scales struggled to connect to my Wifi network, until after 45 minutes of frustration I positioned them about six inches away from the router. After that they worked without fail and never lost touch again.
This "smart", connected element at the centre of Fitbit's pitch. Tracking your progress easily online, including via the firm's smartphone app, it says, will keep owners motivated. So although your body fat per centage might vary on a short time scale and not be very accurate in absolute terms, over time you do get an idea of the trend, which is what matters to most people.
Your profile can also integrate data from Fitbit's wireless activity tracker, which we recently reviewed, which aims to monitor your exercise and sleep patterns.
Over the month or so I have been using the scales I have found some truth in Fitbit's claims. Seeing a graph heading in the right direction is genuinely pleasing, and slip ups are harder to self-justify when presented visually. But at £99, it's expensive for a set of bathroom scales, so I can only recommend the Fitbit Aria to fitness fans, and they lose points for that irritating set up glitch.
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