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SINGAPORE — Mention the brand Swarovski and immediately these things come to mind: crystals, glamour and Miranda Kerr.

Activity trackers though? Not really. Which was why I was keen on trying out Swarovski's newly launched activity-tracking bracelet — the brand's first foray into the growing wearable-tech market in collaboration with tracker maker Misfit.

For someone who's neither into fitness nor tech, my relationship with activity and fitness trackers has been as expected — fleeting. I gave up on my Jawbone two months into it, because I just couldn't be bothered to charge it on a regular basis. And I rely on my Apple Watch more for daily tasks than checking if I made 10,000 steps a day.

But now I was presented with the chance to put the Swarovski tracker (pretty much a bling-ed out version of the Misfit Shine) through its paces during a 45-minute barre workout session — as the trend swings toward ballet-inspired fitness routines.

First, I was given a choice of one of the five colourways available from the range. I was initially gravitating toward the black slake bracelet, but ended up going for the grey instead, which I thought would work well for both casual days and cocktail evenings.

As I started to set up the activity tracker, I found it pretty easy to work out the functions and interface of the hardware. And I liked that the tracker runs on a single button cell battery that lasts for three to four months, unlike many competing products which require weekly charging.

On the Misfit app, you're allowed to set fitness goals, track your progress as well as sync with other health apps to give you a fuller picture of your health stats. I was also told that with the secondary Misfit Link app, I would be able to control music as well as take selfies with the smart bracelet. Oh and did I mention that you're able to tell time with the crystal face too? Cool.

But I digress. Before we were ushered into the barre class, we were told to set our daily fitness goal to 300 points, half of what's suggested by the app according to my chosen fitness level at the get go.

Literally 10 minutes into the class, I was cursing myself for being so unfit. I struggled through most of the class given that I have a recurring foot and back injury, but I also knew I was nowhere near ballerina-form.

At one point, the instructor even commented on how glad she was to see I was really sweating, and when I looked down saw that the pristine parquet floor was covered in pools of sweat. I comforted myself that at least I was burning lots of calories and still at least looked somewhat glamorous with a huge crystal on my wrist.

After the workout, I checked my bracelet and was told that I had scored the highest in the barre class. Surprise! Needless to say, I paid dearly for underestimating the workout and could barely walk like a normal person for the next three days.

I continued to keep the bracelet on nearly 24/7, especially since it's water resistant for up to 50m, and doubles up as a sleep tracker. I also found myself checking on my daily progress at the end of every day — despite my initial reluctance toward embracing anything related to sports, it was nice to have an indicator of how active I was each day.

A word of caution on the hardware's sensitivity though: I had woken up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and wanted to check the time. When I double tapped the watch to trigger the function, the bracelet ended up setting off my iTunes music app. My partner back in the room was jolted awake when my phone started to blast Beyonce.

Days later, I went to get a massage and the masseuse accidentally triggered iTunes again when she was pressing down on my arm — this time, it was Taylor Swift.

Upping the glam ante

After several days of wearing the crystal face with the black sports band, I decided to try the crystal-studded suede strap.

Although it's not really my style to wear that much bling out in the day, it was a nice change and definitely made for a nice OOTD add-on. I was a little worried about the suede holding up in the rain or when water touches it, but it managed well. 

My only gripe about this strap is that I can't adjust it to fit my wrist snugly. There are only two snap buttons for adjusting the length and after twirling it around my wrist twice, it still sits too loosely for my liking.

I'm one week into wearing the Swarovski Activity Tracking Jewellery and I can say it's starting to grow on me. I've even decided to take it on my upcoming retreat to Sri Lanka since I don't have to charge it.

If you don't want to sacrifice bling while jumping on the wearables trend, this tracker is right up your alley. You'll also be happy to know that Swarovski will be launching a necklace version in the very near future.

The Swarovski Activity Tracking Jewelry retails for S$280 ($206) onwards. The individual Slack bracelets retail at S$150 ($110).

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