Smart Scale Pioneer Withings has been making Wi-Fi-connected scales for over a decade. As the Body Comp name suggests, Withings’ latest scale offers a breakdown of your body composition, adding vascular age, visceral fat and neurological health to the usual list of measurements. The Body Comp ($210) scale comes with a one-year subscription to Withings’ new Health+ fitness service, which adds practical advice to all the data and offers plans that include exercise and meal recommendations to coax you into healthier habits.
Having upgraded from the excellent Withings Body+ ($100), I was curious to see if the Body Comp and Health+ subscriptions were worth the extra cost. After using these scales for a few weeks, I’m not convinced the new measurements are necessary, and I’m disappointed by the fledgling subscription fitness service.
Smarter or redundant?
Photography: Withings
Available in black or white, the Withings Body Comp Scale features a familiar durable design with a glass top, round metal centerpiece and a small display that shows stats. It’s easy to set up and includes four AAA batteries (enough battery life for 15 months if you weigh yourself once a day).
One thing I like about the Body Comp is that the scale connects directly to Wi-Fi, so your phone doesn’t have to be nearby to upload your latest measurements. The Health Mate app is good, especially if you’re using other Withings devices, such as the ScanWatch (8/10, WIRED recommends) or the Sleep Mat. But you can also export measurements to Apple Health, Google Fit, Fitbit, Strava, and a few other apps.
The Health Mate app displays a graph of your weight over time, enables you to set goals, and provides advice on the go. We’ll cover what Health+ adds later. While you’ll need to dig into the app to see long-term trends and get the most value from your Body Comp scale, you can customize the scale display to show the stats you want.
Jump on the scale with bare feet (preferably bare feet) to get an accurate measurement. The scale supports up to eight users and can usually correctly identify you by weight (which is fine for my family, but two people of similar weight may need specific measurements). The sensors in Body Comp scales can be a bit erratic. Place your feet in the center, completely still, to trigger a set of measurements. You have to be there for a few seconds, which can be annoying on cold mornings.
By default, Body Comp displays your weight, weight trend (up or down since last measurement), fat mass, muscle mass, visceral fat, heart rate, pulse wave velocity, vascular age and neurological health score, as well as weather and air quality. It also measures BMI (body mass index), body water percentage, and bone mass, and can display your step count (if you have a linked tracker). You can customize the display for each user.
