Sunday race
In this weekly columnAndroid Central Wearables Editor Michael Hicks talks about the world of wearables, apps, and fitness tech related to running and health, in his quest to get faster and fitter.
Google has pleased runners like me with the Pixel Watch 3, and aside from a couple of bugs and a lack of features, it’s done an excellent job. But my enthusiasm was immediately tempered by news of another nail in the coffin for the Fitbit brand, one that limits who will actually be able to take advantage of these new running tools.
Until now, running on a Pixel Watch has been a very basic experience: you'd turn on GPS, see some stats on your wrist during the run, and get a simple summary afterwards.
The Fitbit OS is a bit better, though I found certain features, like interval creation, to be unnecessarily complicated. Also, its daily recommendations and Premium workouts always seemed more geared toward indoor workouts to me.
He Pixel 3 watch changes things up, adding tools like user-created workouts, AI-generated runs based on your daily preparation, a cardio load score that takes into account weeks of training data and your target load, insights into running form, and a morning briefing that sums up everything you need to know before a run.
Google even claims it improved heart rate accuracy while running by reducing “light artifacts” caused by rapid arm movement. According to our review tests, Pixel Watch 2 He was not left behind in this area.
That is not all I would like to get out of one running watchTo be clear, the Pixel Watch 3 doesn’t let you beat past times. You can’t download GPX maps offline, and Google hasn’t yet fully leveraged Google Maps for things like tracks or Back to Start. There’s also no Garmin Coach equivalent for long-term training plans. But that’s a small thing, and Wear OS 5 is on the right track.
I'm more disappointed that Google hasn't followed Samsung's lead with the Galaxy Watch 7 and put dual-band GPS on the Pixel Watch 3. I've had bad luck with GPS-only tracking on the Fitbit Charge 6While the Watch 3's antenna should be much better, I can't fault it until I test the accuracy for myself, but I feel like it was a bit of a wasted opportunity.
So what is the real What's the problem? The future of Fitbit smartwatches apparently hinges on the Pixel Watch, and it remains unclear whether Google intends to bring these Fitbit skills to the… Fitbit brand watches (and I wouldn't bet on it).
Cherlynn Low from Engadget I interviewed Sandeep Waraich, Senior Director of Product Management at Pixel Wearables, at the Event created by Google 2024 Earlier this week, Waraich gave him some unfortunate news.
Low asked Waraich about other Fitbit-branded smartwatches; he responded that “Pixel Watch is our smartwatch part of the portfolio” and that any Fitbit that comes out in the future will offer a minimalist experience. He says Fitbit users want “a simple experience” and pointed to the Fitbit Inspire 3 as an example.
He clarified that Fitbit Sense 2 and Versa 4 It will still be available, but we may not see the Sense 3 or Versa 5 for a long time, if ever.
Android Central reached out to Fitbit to ask if these new running features could be added to older Sense and Versa watches, and to confirm the above news. A spokesperson responded by saying that Google is “very committed to Fitbit” and “the customers who use and rely on those products and technology.” However, they didn’t comment on whether we’d see these new running features on their Fitbit in the near future, which doesn’t leave me with much hope.
Rest in peace Fitbit as an independent entity
I've written in the past about Fitbit's problems as a brand, so I'll keep this brief. Fitbit used to be a top-selling wearable brand, but It fell from 7th to 10th place in total sales in 2022, according to Counterpoint, and now rarely appears outside the “Other” category in industry reports.
Google cut the territories where it sold Fitbit devices for half the price by the end of 2023. A few months later, Fitbit executives, including founders James Park and Eric Friedman, left Google Under unclear circumstances. Fitbit has since presumably fallen under the Google wearables umbrella, with no one defending Fitbit as a separate entity.
The last Fitbit-branded device, released before the executive exodus, was the respectable Fitbit Charge 6It was essentially a new boxed version. Load 5 With new Google apps and a Google-created algorithm to improve heart rate, we were expecting the new Sense and Versa watches to be next; instead, we'll probably see a small Fitbit Inspire 4 wristband next year.
The problem is this: Fitbit's decision to focus on inexpensive fitness trackers makes very little economic sense. Let's look at this. Canalys Report 2024 This shows that smartwatches dominate overall sales of basic wristbands. In 2020, fitness trackers and smartwatches accounted for 46% and 37% of the market, respectively; today, basic wristbands only account for 17%, compared to 37% for smartwatches. By 2028, analysts predict that they will be 12% and 48%, respectively.
Ditching your Fitbit smartwatches for the Pixel 3 watch And Fitbit’s tiny bands seem… short-sighted. They leave out many Fitbit iOS power users, as well as Android-based athletes who want a lightweight sports watch that will last a week, not a 24-hour Pixel Watch or a tiny-screened Inspire with no built-in GPS.
Although the Fitbit Charge 6 is the The best fitness tracker Even though it's available today, many people overlook it due to the relatively high price and subscription. Jitesh Ubrani, research manager for wearables at IDC, says Fitbit has struggled to compete with “low-cost, value-oriented brands like Xiaomi, Amazfit, or Huawei.” Why spend $160 + $10 a month when you can pay $40 for a Xiaomi smart bracelet 9?
In light of that, I had always expected Fitbit to double down. fitness smart watchesstreamlining its fitness software and health sensors on the Sense and Versa lines, then porting those features to the Pixel Watch for Android power users who don't care as much about battery life.
Instead, at this rate, Fitbit will become more niche than ever as it pivots toward the fitness band format that most people are starting to abandon in favor of smartwatches or smart rings.
Brands like Garmin, Coros, and Polar still cater to runners, but they focus much more on training guidance than health data. The Pixel Watch 3 takes the reverse approach, and I’m really excited to put it through its paces. However, Fitbit’s hardware could have struck a balance between fitness and health, as well as intelligence and efficiency. That’s not going to happen now.
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