Withings Body Scan review

There are sensible scales, after which there are sensible scales. The Withings Physique Scan is a sensible scale. 

Loads of scales lately hook up with Bluetooth or Wi-Fi to share your outcomes with an app. Some can even measure your physique composition, perhaps test your coronary heart fee. 

The Physique Scan does all that, after which some: it measures visceral fats, not simply subcutaneous; it offers a segmental evaluation of the place your fats and muscle sit in your physique; it will probably take an ECG studying and report your ‘vascular age’; it should even measure how wholesome your nerves are. 

This a one-stop check-in in your physique, about as shut as any of us will ever get to a personal physician giving us a look-over each morning.  

It’s additionally costly, particularly in the event you embody the (refreshingly non-compulsory) Withings Well being+ app subscription, and possibly overkill for many of us. In case you simply need to know the way a lot you weigh, or whether or not you’re gaining muscle, cheaper scales will do the job simply as effectively. However in the event you’re critical about well being monitoring, the Physique Scan has you lined. 

Design & construct 

• Sturdy, heavy design 
• Glass-topped 
• Distinctive pull-string deal with 

At first look, the Physique Scan appears to be like similar to different Withings scales just like the Physique Comp or Physique Cardio, with a easy sq. designed topped by striped glass and a small show. If something, the most important change is that this time round it’s solely obtainable in black, with no white model. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Like earlier Withings scales it has a reassuring weight and heft – you received’t knock it across the flooring simply by mistake – and each appears to be like and feels premium. 

Whereas Withings recommends utilizing it on onerous flooring, I really discover that it really works wonderful and weighs precisely on my bed room carpet – although observe that this can be a fairly brief pile, so thicker carpets or rugs might pose an issue. 

The show is positioned on the high of the dimensions, and is massive, brilliant, and straightforward to learn – even by way of bleary pre-coffee eyes – with vibrant animations and clear graphics. 

Essentially the most uncommon side of the Scan’s bodily design is the deal with. Sure, deal with: there’s a skinny plastic grip that’s hooked up to the bottom by a wire, which you pull as much as waist peak to take measurements. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

That is strictly non-compulsory, however Withings says it improves accuracy of the physique composition readings, and is what permits each the phase evaluation and ECG, so you’re lacking out in the event you don’t use it. 

My one concern is that with solely a skinny wire connecting the deal with to the bottom, this does really feel like a attainable level of failure, particularly if the dimensions is in attain of inquisitive pets or youngsters. 

Battery is straightforward too – the dimensions is topped up over USB-C, identical to most telephones, and will final a full 12 months on one cost. 

Software program & setup 

• Easy setup – with some Wi-Fi fussiness 
• Each metric included in free app 
• Non-compulsory subscription to Well being+ 

Organising the Withings Physique Scan is straightforward sufficient. In case you don’t have already got a Withings account you’ll must create one, and in any other case it’s principally only a matter of turning the dimensions on, opening the app, and going from there. 

It takes a couple of minutes to work by way of the straightforward steps, and I solely hit one hurdle: it’s a bit fussy about Wi-Fi throughout setup, and whereas it steered I might skip this and arrange over Bluetooth, that merely didn’t work. 

I resolved the issue by transferring the dimensions proper subsequent to my router through the setup course of, after which transferring it again the place I needed it long-term – like many sensible residence merchandise, it merely wants a stronger Wi-Fi sign first time spherical, however thankfully isn’t so explicit day-to-day. 

That is price preventing by way of, as a result of Wi-Fi help is a key (and simply missed) function right here. Bluetooth scales require you to maintain your telephone close by and infrequently with the app open with the intention to sync knowledge, however this may add your measurements to the cloud robotically, prepared so that you can obtain onto your telephone the subsequent time you open the app – every time that’s. 

The app in query is Withings Well being Mate, which is free and obtainable on each iOS and Android. That is one in every of my favorite health or well being monitoring apps, and helps each Withings product – akin to its wearables and sleep trackers – consolidating all of your knowledge in a single place in the event you personal a couple of little bit of Withings equipment. 

Dominic Preston / Foundry

Contemplating how a lot knowledge is obtainable, the app is clearly laid out and easy to make use of. Immediately’s metrics seem first on the dashboard, and diving into each permits you to see in-depth and historic knowledge too. It does generally take a number of seconds to load the most recent readings, however tapping into one and again out often refreshes issues. 

The app additionally permits you to observe battery ranges and particular person settings for particular gadgets, plus customise your profile, any household profiles, and hook up with the likes of Google Match, Apple Well being, Strava, MyFitnessPal, and extra. 

Comparatively new to Withings is the Well being+ subscription. Subscriptions are all the craze in health monitoring lately, whether or not it’s choices like Fitbit Premium that gatekeep particular metrics to paid subscribers, or the likes of Whoop or Oura that just about lock the whole lot behind a paywall. 

Well being+ had me involved – particularly given the comparatively steep $9.95/£9.95/€9.95 month-to-month payment (or $99.50/£99.50/€99.50 for a 12 months) – however in truth Withings has taken a special tack to its rivals. 

In the intervening time, completely none of your well being and health knowledge is tied to a Well being+ subscription – each single metric the Physique Scan provides is included only for shopping for the dimensions. 

What Well being+ provides as a substitute is a collection of ‘habit-building’ well being and health packages. Most final six weeks, and goal particular components of health, vitamin, and sleep well being, providing you with every day missions and focused recommendation based mostly in your targets. Relying on the Withings tech you personal and this system you’re on, your output could also be recorded robotically or you possibly can manually log sleep knowledge, exercises, or meals. 

It’s refreshing to see a subscription that genuinely is non-compulsory – the whole lot the Physique Scan advertises is included within the buy worth, and Well being+ is barely there as an additional for many who need a every day nudge to assist them construct more healthy habits.  

From my transient pattern of the packages I’m unsure I’d personally pay the asking worth for them, however I like the truth that you’re free to disregard it and stick with it utilizing the dimensions as-is in the event you choose. 

Monitoring & options 

• Common weight and physique composition 
• Superior segmental physique composition too 
• Coronary heart fee, ECG, and ‘pulse wave velocity’ 
• Nerve well being measurements 

So let’s get to the center of what the Physique Scan does – the clue’s within the title. 

For starters, it clearly takes your weight. This bit’s fast, simple, and based mostly in your weight it should additionally neatly determine who’s standing on the dimensions, with help for as much as eight profiles. Impressively, it’s able to studying weight to a precision of 50g (0.1lb) – extra exact than most. 

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Subsequent up is physique composition. It will probably measure how a lot of your physique is made up of fats, muscle, and bone, and offer you indications of wholesome ranges to intention for. 

It will probably additionally go one step additional and measure your visceral fats – that is the fats that sits round your organs, somewhat than the seen subcutaneous fats that makes us all jiggly. Visceral fats is extra harmful, related to graver well being dangers (together with coronary heart issues and diabetes), so it’s an necessary one to look at. The Physique Scan provides you a rating out of 20, the place readings from 1 to five are ‘regular’, and something above that’s probably harmful. 

As talked about earlier, in the event you seize the Physique Scan’s deal with then the corporate says your physique composition readings can be extra correct.  

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This additionally unlocks ‘segmental physique composition’, which exhibits you a easy illustration of your physique, indicating your fats and muscle ranges throughout your torso, and every leg and arm, and telling you ways your figures examine to different Withings customers of the identical age and peak. 

You may select between a feminine, male, or gender-neutral physique kind for the picture (a pleasant contact), although oddly one factor you possibly can’t do is see historic knowledge right here – that means there’s no approach to chart whether or not you’re constructing muscle in your arms, for instance. Maybe Withings is making an attempt to discourage the misguided view that you would be able to ‘spot take away’ fats from particular physique elements, however for muscle improvement the info over time might be useful if added in. 

In order that’s your physique as an entire. Subsequent up, your Physique Scan can take a look at your coronary heart. Essentially the most primary studying right here is simply coronary heart fee, which generally is a good information to shifts in your resting coronary heart fee, particularly in the event you weigh very first thing within the morning. 

Then it will probably take an ECG studying, which signifies whether or not you could have a wholesome sinus rhythm, and might function an early warning system for AFib and another coronary heart situations. 

Lastly, pulse wave velocity (PWV) is a studying that’s particular to Withings, assessing arterial stiffness – apparently a key indicator of cardiac well being, together with blood stress issues. 

Dominic Preston / Foundry

In nations just like the UK the place Withings has been given the suitable medical certification, this comes within the type of a selected velocity. Even nations with out the certification can get a vaguer ‘vascular age’ rating, which tells you in case your cardiovascular system is in line the place it must be in your age. 

Lastly, there’s yet another studying the Physique Scan can ship, and it’s a brand new one to me: nerve well being. Measured by stimulating the sweat glands in your toes (a stunning thought if ever there was one), this nets you a rating out of 100, with a easy binary: above 50 is nice, under 50 is dangerous, and an indication that you could be endure from peripheral neuropathy, which could be attributable to diabetes, some infections, and some different issues. 

Withings warns that it’ll take a full month’s price of readings to get a particular rating, although I’ve discovered it remarkably constant within the week or two I’ve used the Physique Scan. I’ll admit that it’s given me an entire new nervousness I didn’t have earlier than, however my predicted rating of 93 appears somewhat good, so I can most likely relaxation simple. 

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

With that exhaustive checklist of measurements it’s possible you’ll effectively fear that you simply’ll be standing on this scale for an age on a regular basis. In whole it takes rather less than a minute to get a full set of scores, 30 seconds of which is taken up by the ECG.  

It’s customisable for every consumer although, so if there’s something you don’t care about you possibly can merely drop it off and save a while – or conceal sure components so that you simply don’t must, say, see your fats proportion in the event you’d somewhat not. 

Value & availability 

The Physique Scan is pricey. 

It prices £399.95/€399.95 in Europe. It’s not on sale within the US but, however was initially introduced to price $299 – that was in early 2022 nevertheless, and with inflation since (plus that European pricing) a $399 price ticket now appears extra possible. 

That worth does not less than embody an non-compulsory three-month free trial of the Well being+ subscription, which as talked about earlier than is $9.95/£9.95/€9.95 month-to-month, or $99.50/£99.50/€99.50 for a 12 months. 

In a way the value is tough to match to rivals – nothing else available on the market does what this does. 

The query to ask is that if you really want the whole lot this provides. Withings’ personal Physique Comp scale is less expensive at $209/£199/€209, and just about solely misses out on the segmental physique composition and ECG readings. Most individuals can be higher off with this cheaper choice, and even the older Physique Cardio, Physique+, or low-cost and cheerful Physique. 

Rivals together with Eufy or Fitbit provide cheaper alternate options too, although their choices lack lots of the high-end monitoring options discovered right here. Take a look at our rating of the very best sensible scales to search out out extra. 

Verdict 

No different client sensible scale does it fairly just like the Withings Physique Scan.  

In case you can afford it that is an all-singing, all-dancing medical check-up out of your bed room each morning. It’s dependable, fast, and easy-to-use, with an non-compulsory additional subscription that received’t attempt to rip you off. 

The overwhelming majority of individuals merely don’t want this a lot medical tech at residence, and Withings has a spread of cheaper choices with completely different options and worth factors – so in the event you principally care about physique composition readings or vascular age, you may get these for much less. 

The Physique Scan nails what it units out to do although, and in the event you can justify the price it’s onerous to think about coming away disillusioned.