Aura Strap 2
Boost your Apple Watch with Aura Strap 2, the ultimate health tracker offering precise body composition analysis to help you reach your fitness goals.
Boost your Apple Watch with Aura Strap 2, the ultimate health tracker offering precise body composition analysis to help you reach your fitness goals.
The Aura Strap 2 is a smart, sleek add-on for your Apple Watch, turning it into a portable body composition tracker. While similar insights can be found in smart scales, the Strap offers the convenience of real-time readings on your wrist. The sensors track hydration, fat percentage, muscle mass, and other key metrics that health-conscious users and athletes might appreciate.
The results are pretty consistent with smart scales like the Garmin Index S2, making it a handy tool for people who are serious about fitness or dieting. However, while the Strap itself is a solid deal, the optional Aura Plus subscription—which gives you extra insights and fitness plans—might not be necessary for everyone. But you get six months of Aura Plus free with your purchase.
For casual users, the Aura Strap 2 will be a solid addition to their fitness toolkit. Athletes, biohackers, and serious dieters may find long-term value in the data it provides, especially for tracking trends over time.
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Aura Strap 2 is a major upgrade from the original, boasting a slimmer design, faster data transfer, and improved accuracy. The sensors now collect 20 times more data points, which Aura claims delivers near clinical-grade accuracy. Also, with Bluetooth replacing the old subsonic audio transfer method, your readings reach your Apple Watch faster and more reliably. The Strap itself is also now 20% thinner and features an LED indicator to confirm it's working.
The material has been updated from a velcro-like strap to a silicone loop, and multiple sizes are included in the box for a better fit.
Setting up the Aura Strap 2 is straightforward, though swapping the strap size requires you to use the included tool to access the battery compartment. Once you’ve got the right fit, download the companion app, set your fitness goals, and you’re ready to start taking readings.
Taking a measurement isn’t as simple as strapping it on and pressing a button. You’ll need to make sure your hands don’t touch each other or your body during the 20-second reading. You’ll also need to keep the electrodes in contact with the fleshy part of your palm. There’s a slight learning curve, but the watch app offers real-time guidance to help you out.
The readings are delivered through Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA), where a small electrical impulse is sent through your body. The result? Data on your hydration, fat, and muscle composition. It’s quick, and the app does a solid job of displaying your results with easy-to-read visuals.
Aura Strap 2 promises accuracy within 95% of a DEXA scan, the gold standard for body composition analysis. In my experience, it matched up pretty well with readings from other devices like the Garmin Index S2 smart scale and a Tanita RD953 scale.
However, results can vary depending on where the device sends the electrical impulse. Aura measures from wrist to wrist, while devices like Garmin and Tanita measure from foot to foot, potentially accounting for any differences in readings.
While I noticed slight variations, especially with hydration and fat percentage, the trends were consistent enough to be useful.
The app is your command center, where you can track your progress over time. Aura Plus subscribers get more in-depth analysis, fitness recommendations, and workout plans. The app also features a "Biogram" that visually tracks your body composition and hydration trends, helping you see how your metrics change over time.
The Biogram is particularly interesting. It plots your progress in quadrants, showing how you compare to others and how far you are from your target goals. It's a cool tool, especially if you like to geek out over data.
While Aura Strap 2 isn’t exactly designed for athletes looking for real-time hydration alerts during a workout, it’s still a decent tool for tracking longer-term trends. If you’re prepping for a race or tapering your workouts, you can use it to monitor hydration and body composition changes.
For those interested in tracking hydration, fat, and muscle on the go, the Aura Strap 2 is a worthy Apple Watch add-on. It’s more convenient than smart scales and offers insights you won’t get from your Apple Watch alone.
The free six-month trial of Aura Plus is a nice touch, but whether the subscription service is worth it long-term depends on how much you value the additional guidance it provides.
Buy for $159