In its catalog, Withings sells a connected scale at a price of €399.95. A hell of a lot for a product that doesn’t always show good news. Called Body Scan, it allows you to obtain a complete map of your body. Is this really useful?
For many, weight is a real obsession – especially after the holiday season, full of excesses which tend to increase the number shown on the scale. However, weight is not a very meaningful data if we do not take into account other essential factors. For example, at equivalent height and age, an athlete will be heavier than a person who has less regular physical activity, the fat mass being lighter than the muscle mass. This is precisely where a company like Withings, specializing in health, intervenes by offering a scale called Body Scan and priced at €399.95. Its goal ? Go further than simple weight data.
The Body Scan doesn’t lie about its name: it really is a complete scan of your body’s composition. Thanks to it, you will of course know your weight, but also your fat mass percentage, your muscle mass percentage and even your visceral fat. You’ll even get a six-lead EKG and nerve health score. So much data that you can then find in the dedicated application, with even a segmentation of your body (arms, legs, torso) and other health-related indicators. It’s really complete. Logical at such a price.
The Withings Body Scan is good for getting an idea of your body’s composition
When I received the Withings Body Scan, I weighed 79.1 kg, of which 11.7 kg was fat and 64 kg was muscle. On December 30, I was at 78.7 kg, including 9.4 kg of fat and 65.8 kg of muscle. In the meantime, I weighed myself every day in December, with the same protocol: waking up and fasting, around 8:30 a.m. I should point out that I do a lot of sport (5 to 6 times a week), with a fairly strict diet (low in lipids, moderate in carbohydrates, rich in protein). In one month, my program bore fruit: my weight has stabilized around 79 kilos, but my muscle mass is greater. My last weighing confirms this trend: 79.3 kg including 9.6 kg of fat and 66.1 kg of muscle. In the mirror, I see it.
However, by weighing myself every day, I realized that the Body Scan scale was not surgically precise in order to see my progress from day to day. This is quite logical since the composition of our body constantly evolves depending on what we eat or even on our activity. However, I noticed some rather incredible differences at times: thus, between December 10 and 11, I would have gained 2.3 kilograms of fat. I don’t really believe it, unless I devoured a Big Mac and a portion of fries at each meal between the two measures (I didn’t do that). Over the course of a month, the weight of fat in my body fluctuated between 8.1 and 11.7 kg.
The lack of precision of the Body Scan on this data linked to the composition is confirmed when we repeat several weighings in a row. While the weight measurement holds up well (more or less 50 grams), those of the fat and muscle masses are spread out much more. Proof that it is not of impeccable reliability on repetition in a short interval. Now, the differences are not huge either, which still allows us to get an idea of what our body contains. We don’t need hyper precision to smile or reassure ourselves. Just like there is no point in weighing yourself every day.
I still wanted to compare the Body Scan with the hyper-advanced scale accessible by appointment at my gym (which costs several tens of thousands of euros according to the manager of the establishment).
Here are the results of the weigh-ins carried out on December 26 :
| Withings Body Scan | InBody Scale | |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 79.3 kg | 80.4 kg |
| Fat mass | 9.7kg | 10.9 kg |
| Lean mass | 69.5 kg | 69.5 kg |
The results are not that far off. The appointment at the gym costs €35 but allows you to obtain an InBody score (out of 100) and advice from a coach to improve it. The tips are quite invaluable to progress effectively.
A connected scale for €400, what does it look like?
In addition to the battery of integrated sensors, Withings justifies the price of the Body Scan with a pretty design – for a scale – and high-end finishes. Be careful, to use it, you don’t just have to climb on it. It is also necessary to grab the handle connected to the scale by a braided cable (you can hang it on the wall if you don’t want to have to bend down). A weigh-in lasts a little less than two minutes, including 30 seconds dedicated to the electrocardiogram alone. This may seem a bit long, but that’s how long it takes to display all the information on the color screen. Please note that certain data is only accessible after several weighings, essential for the Body Scan to know you a little better (example: vascular age).
The Body Scan can transmit what it collects via Bluetooth and/or WiFi (be careful, it only accepts 2.4 GHz networks and is very capricious on this point). The application also makes efforts to explain as best as possible what each indicator corresponds to (even if the interface is similar to a gas factory, there are so many numbers and letters). In terms of autonomy, it is given for approximately one year, knowing that you can easily recharge the Body Scan via the USB-C port.
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