Fitbit Surge now in stock at REI online store

By Dan Thorp-Lancaster
published

After initially being offered up to a select few preorder customers, and then making an appearance on Amazon, it looks like you can officially grab a Fitbit Surge of your own from at least one more store. The Surge appears to be in stock from the outdoor-enthusiast store REI (at least online) for a cool $250.

The Surge was originally slated to land in stores in early 2015, but it looks like you may be able to snatch one up for yourself or a loved one just in time for the holidays.

If you want to pick one of the fitness devices up, be sure to check out our unboxing of the device, then hit up that source link below to grab one from REI's online store. Also let us know if you start seeing them in any REI retail locations in your neck of the woods.

Source: REI (opens in new tab)

Dan Thorp-Lancaster
Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl. 

27 Comments
  • Since I now have one of these, I'll be doing a comparison with the Microsoft Band in the next few days... Note that without new firmware, currently the Surge cannot sync with Windows Phone. No ETA on that firmware, but it is in development and should not be too long.
  • Hi Daniel. Is the firmware you're referring to on WP or Fitbit surge?
  • Surge. WP firmware is fine AFAIK, although Windows Phone APIs in general are more limited than on iOS and Android, which is a separate issue regarding notifications/music controls, etc.
  • We are waiting for an update to the windows phone app also.
  • Version 1.5, which I used in the video, should be here by Friday.
  • Hey Daniel, can you track down a Razer Nabu as well and do a breakdown on it?
  • Yeah, will see about that too.
  • Awesome. I sort of want one but I have my Band. Your review might make or break getting one of these as well.
  • My wife is holding out for the Fitbit Charge HR.
  • I got my wife the Charge HR, got an email from Fitbit a few weeks ago to get it early. SHe likes it a lot, but we turned off the 24/7 HR function, as the lights were annoying at night. So she just turns it on for workouts. But, she likes it a lot. And I just ordered my Surge from REI, even had some dividend dollars to use!
  • Off topic since I don't know where to post this but... Seems like low end phones like 520 are getting Denim in India. Idk where is Harish... :(
  • Don't think so. Just checked. And for tips like that, u can email them. There's an option in the Browse section for tipping them.
  • Band looks much better
  • Yeah, in terms of looks, Band is cooler looking. The color display is pretty killer.
  • I saw both the surge and the charge hr at target yesterday,I thought it was already widely available
  • Nope. Even Best Buy has it on display, but stock is very limited. Amazon had a few on Sunday (where I got mine) but mass production won't hit until early 2015.
  • On comparison, can you please note if Surge display Average pace and if it does have Auto pause feature in Run mode. Thanks.
  • Can you swim in it? I want the Band but not being waterproof killed that...maybe version 2.0!
  • No you cannot...that literally took typing in Bing "Is the Fitbit Surge waterproof" to find the answer directly from Fitbit: http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/About-Fitbit-Surge
  • I got the surge on 12/06 but I sent it back for a full refund yesterday! The strap was causing severe irritation! My wrist was basically 'burnt' by the strap! Also, the surge doesn't hold a candle to the Microsoft Band, which I've been wearing since day 1. The band is SO much better! In style, comfort and functionality!
  • Just curious, but why did you buy the Surge if you already have a Microsoft Band? Also, I thought the Surge band didn't cause any irritation. 
  • I've been a Fitbit fan for many years. I've been using one form or other of their monitors for a long time. I was wondering if the Surge was going to be my new favorite. I liked the look of the form factor of the Surge. The reality just didn't pan out! Also, the display is very underwhelming after using the Band. I wore both while I evaluated the Surge. They both displayed roughly the same stats. I had to take the Surge off when I couldn't stand the irritation any more. My wrist was red and tender! Haven't felt any irritation from the Band and the only time I take it off is to shower and charge it. The Band is a superior device for me. My love affair with Fitbit is over.
  • I'd like to see a small review of smart band/smart watch compatible with Windows Phone.   I think there are just Fitbit and MS Band, or I'm worng?   Thanks
  • Misfit Shine is as well...(for some WP's anyway)
  • This is the band I plan to get.  I've used fitbit for years and I don't see a reason to change out at this point.
  • I bought the Fitbit Surge yesterday at Target and returned it within 6 hours. I tried using it with my iPhone 6 Plus (which pretty much sits in a drawer because I love my Icon...despite VZW). It is so buggy and lacks so many features that I couldn't deal with it even though I really wanted to like it. You would think these things would work with iOS at least, but alas, it was a terrible experience. My expectation is that the experience would be even WORSE when paired with a WP device as that is often the norm with these 3rd party device makers. It truly felt like I paid $250 to be a beta tester and I refuse to pay full price for a product that feels like it shouldn't have been released to the public. Here's the specific issues I experienced in my 6 hours with the Surge: There are no calendar notifications (smartwatches have calendar notifications...durrrr) There is no date / time on call or text notifications...e.g. text messages have no audit of when they were received (this indicates no attention to basic details) You cannot remove any call or text notifications or even the indicator for notifications (the notification icon persists forever...REALLY?) You have to reset the watch (powercycle) to remove notifications There were no instructions included on how to powercycle the watch. I had to find the button sequence online. Why couldn't it just be a simple "hold X for Y seconds" like everything else? When I got a call, I received a notification and a buzz indicating an incoming call. If the same phone number calls me again...no notification or buzz. This means you get one and ONLY one notification per contact / number that calls you....until you powercycle the watch to reset the notifications. Touchscreen response was lost at one point with only the hardware buttons working and once again...powercycling fixed the issue. The battery drained to 50% within 4 hours of usage (no GPS tracking, no workouts, just notification testing and constant powercycling to figure out why it was so buggy). 5 days my A$$! Only 5 watchfaces at this time and only ONE shows date and time. Some of the watch faces shown on the promotional materials online DON'T EXIST YET! It would've been nice to know that there are some vaporware watchfaces. Stayed on the phone with Fitbit support for 2 hours to see if it was just me, but apparently these issues are widespread and there is no fix other than to wait for a firmware upgrade....yeah right. iOS 8.1.2 on the iPhone 6 Plus is a major bust with the Fitbit Surge. I'd imagine my Icon wouldn't even be worth fiddling around with once the firmware is released to support WP.    So, that's why I returned the Fitbit Surge and went back to my trusty Microsoft Band.   TLDR: At this time the Surge just isn't up to par with the Microsoft Band on features, software completeness, and stability. It does beat the Band on comfort though!
  • I think you have the link to the unboxing to the wrong one, it goes to the charge unboxing instead of the surge, otherwise exciting news, but still in love with my microsoft band!