Google’s strategy has been to brand its watches with its Pixel name but incorporate Fitbit tracking features and branding on the watch – if you buy a Pixel Watch, you have to use both the Pixel Watch and Fitbit apps to control everything from your phone, and all your fitness data resides with Fitbit (which you now need a Google account to sign into).
Despite the merging of Google and Fitbit, Fitbit continued to release its own branded smartwatches, most recently with the Fitbit Versa 4 and Sense 2 in 2022. They concentrated on GPS activity tracking and, in the case of the Sense, stress monitoring. They were more basic in function than the Pixel Watch and other full-fat smartwatches, but rewarded buyers with longer multi-day battery life and worked with iPhone or Android devices. They were also much cheaper than the Pixel Watch.
With the launch of the Pixel Watch 3, Google has quietly confirmed to tech site Engadget that the Versa 4 and Sense 2 will be the last Fitbit branded smartwatches ever made. When asked if another Fitbit smartwatch would be made, senior director of product management for Pixel Wearables Sandeep Waraich said: “Pixel Watch is our smartwatch part of the portfolio”, and confirmed any potential future Fitbit hardware would be band-based trackers, not smartwatch designs.
“[T]rackers is where users clearly tell us they want something discreet,” Waraich said. “They want longer battery life, they want a simple experience and we are very proud of our Inspire line.”
The latest Fitbit trackers are the Fitbit Charge 6 and the Inspire 3. They both have slim vertical colour displays and recall the thin trackers that made Fitbit famous about a decade ago. They track steps, heart rate, sleep and stress levels. The Charge costs £139 and has GPS for run tracking along with Google Wallet integration, while the Inspire costs £84.99 without these features.
These latest words from Google suggest these trackers could see sequels, but it’s the end of the road for the Fitbit smartwatch.
Google has continued to lock some health data behind a paywall. Fitbit Premium costs £7.99 per month and gives any Fitbit or Pixel Watch customer deeper insight into their activity and sleep. The company also recently announced Premium subscribers would get access to fitness content from equipment maker Peloton, but many Fitbit fans are irked that Google is pushing the Premium subscription when once upon a time all Fitbit data was available for free after purchasing the device.
Google has also killed off fan-favourite app features such as leaderboards where you can see your friends’ and family’s step counts.
The decline of the Fitbit brand is a shame for tech competition. Google is clearly folding the hardware division down and keeping the valuable Fitbit brand for software on Google branded smartwatches. This merger is confusing for consumers, and we hope that Google continues to support devices such as the Charge 6, Inspire 3, Versa 4 and Sense 2, which are all only one or two years old. It’s not known how long older models will be supported for, either.