Google completed the purchase of Fitbit in early 2021, more than three and a half years ago. With this move, the tech giant acquired a company with a long career in the world of wearables. In August 2022, the Fitbit Versa 4 and Fitbit Sense 2, Fitbit’s two latest high-end smartwatches, arrived. Google hasn’t released a Fitbit smartwatch since then, but it has introduced three generations of the Pixel Watch.
Given how little activity there has been in Fitbit’s lineup over the past few years, many have been wondering for some time now whether Google is going to release new smartwatches under the Fitbit brand. On the same day of the official presentation of the Pixel Watch 3, Engadget published an article stating that the Fitbit brand would be moving away from high-end smartwatches and Google would focus on the Pixel Watch from now on.
The Fitbit Versa and Fitbit Sense are the company’s most complete smartwatches
The article comes after the Statements made by Sandeep Waraich (Senior Director of Product Management for Pixel Wearables) in an interview with Engadget, stating that the Pixel Watch is the company’s bet on the smartphone part. portfolio product line focused on smartwatches. This would certainly explain why the company has not released any high-end smartwatches under the Fitbit brand since the launch of the Fitbit Versa 4 and Fitbit Sense 2.
Waraich confirmed to Engadget that Fitbit will focus on developing its smartwatches going forward. more minimalist devicesThe Google boss referred to the Fitbit Inspire (the company’s activity bracelet) and stated that this type of accessory is positioned as a very interesting option for those looking for a discreet device with great autonomy.
The specialized media Techradar published an article days later stating that The Pixel Watch 3 ends Fitbit’s journey in the world of smartwatchesThe article notes that there were clues that Google had moved away from Fitbit’s high-end watches, noting that the Versa 4 and Sense 2 lacked music app support (something the Pixel Watch does have).
Following Techradar’s report, Google was quick to deny rumors that it was discontinuing Fitbit products. Ars Technica echoed Google’s statements, although in their article they state that The company has not been able to confirm the arrival of a new Versa or SenseWhat they do say is that they have not discontinued both product lines.
Fitbit Sense 2. Image by Jose García for Xataka
Given the uncertainty surrounding the future of Fitbit smartwatches, we have reached out to Google to try to clarify the situation. The company has sent us the following statement:
“We remain committed to everything Fitbit stands for, and most importantly, to the customers who use and depend on those products and technology. We’d like to highlight that many of the health and fitness features we launched on Pixel Watch 3 were made possible by Fitbit’s innovation and pioneering advancements in fitness. We also recently launched Fitbit Ace LTE, and there will continue to be new Fitbit products and innovations.”
Google’s statements imply that The Versa 4 and Sense 2 will continue to be available and they will have support from the company, so in that sense we should not worry. Google takes the opportunity to highlight the importance of the technology developed by Fitbit and reminds us that many of the functions available in the Pixel Watch 3 have been possible thanks to the technology developed by this company.
Google also makes reference to the Fitbit Ace 3 (a fitness tracker for kids) and states that there will continue to be “new Fitbit products and innovations.” Despite this, They make no mention of possible future new generations of the Versa and Sense (smart watches premium brand), so doubts about whether we will see new high-end smartwatches from Fitbit remain in the air.
Cover image | Jose Garcia (Xataka)