Replacing the Withings Steel Strap with a NATO Band
However, one thing that bugged me was the silicone band that shipped with the watch. The texture made the watch look cheap, despite the attractive face. Also, something about the band’s texture gave me chills.
Not wanting to return the watch I decided to replace the silicone band with a nylon NATO band. It’s been one of the better moves I’ve made. The watch has received a huge number of questions and complements.
Withings Steel Smartwatch
An attractive smartwatch that you never have to charge
The Steel has all the activity tracking of a smartwatch without the annoying notifications or need to charge the battery every day.So, how do you upgrade your Withings Steel watch strap? Here’s everything you’ll need to upgrade your watch game. Note: If you do this with the Steel HR then the heart rate monitor will not work correctly.
- Withings Steel Smartwatch (Sometimes cheaper on Amazon)
- A Spring Bar Tool
- Spring Bars
- An 18 or 20mm NATO Band
This is how the watch looks out of the box. It’s got an attractive face, but I’m just not a fan of the Silicone band that it came with. No worries, it will only take a couple minutes to replace.
All the Withings watches use quick release bands. This means that the release is built into the band itself and there are no spring bars.
To remove the band look for the silver knob near where the watch connects with the band. You should be able to use your finger nail to slide it back.
The bands should slip right off.
Despite the watch using quick release watch strap, you’ll still be able to use spring bars. Take out your spring bars and use the spring bar tool to insert them into the watch.
If you’ve never used a spring bar tool before checkout this video. Essentially, you want to fit one end of the spring into the watch and use the spring bar tool to hold back the other and place it into the watch.
The last step it to take your NATO band of choice and thread it through the spring bars. Here’s the Withings Steel with the new NATO next to my Timex Weekender.
Withings Steel Smartwatch
An attractive smartwatch that you never have to charge
The Steel has all the activity tracking of a smartwatch without the annoying notifications or need to charge the battery every day.5 replies
Are you still a fan of your smartwatch? I’ve been looking at the Withings Move Chic, but am not a fan of their watch bands.
The only thing I don’t like about my Withings is that the notches are really faint. I wish the face was a little more like my Timex Weekender, which is incredibly easy to read. It looks like the Move Chic has raised notches, which should help.
Other than that it’s been great. It accurately tracks my steps and does a fair job of sleep tracking. It does exactly what I want it to do. I still haven’t had to change the battery.
The only thing I’m unsure of is if the Move needs the back of the watch to be open like the Steel HR does. I think the answer is no, but it may be worth emailing Withings support first.