Fitbit today announced Fitbit Versa 2, the successor to its most popular smartwatch, available September 15 for $200. Versa 2 features Alexa, an AMOLED display, and a five-day battery life. The company also unveiled its Fitbit Premium subscription service, coming this fall for $10 per month, and its Fitbit Aria Air smart scale, launching in October for $50.
Fitbit’s stock hit a record low this month after disappointing sales of its newly launched cheapest smartwatch Versa Lite. The company is now trying to dig itself out of that hole.
Fitbit Versa 2
Versa 2 has a swimproof design, new sleep features, and a Spotify app for paid subscribers. The Spotify app lets you control playback on the go, change playlists, like songs, and switch music output. Versa 2 can also store and play over 300 songs from your personal music library, download Pandora stations, and add Deezer playlists.
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Versa 2 focuses a lot on sleep:
- Receive a nightly score in the Fitbit app based on heart rate (sleeping and resting), restlessness, time awake, and Sleep Stages.
- Simultaneously disable your screen display and silence notifications overnight, during a workout, or for a meeting.
- Coming soon to all Fitbit smartwatches, smart wake uses machine learning to wake you during an optimal time of your sleep cycle while in light or REM sleep. Estimated Oxygen Variation Graph provides users with an estimate of the variability of oxygen levels in their bloodstream.
Most importantly though, Versa 2 has an on-device microphone. This is the first time Fitbit is offering an assistant on one of its devices, and the company has chosen Amazon Alexa. With Alexa built-in, Versa 2 lets you start a Fitbit Exercise, find the nearest gym, and ask general questions. On the Versa 2, Alexa responds to voice commands with on-screen text responses. Press a button, speak into the microphone, and Alexa will silently reply. You can set alarms and timers, check the local weather and news, and even control your smart home devices, right from your wrist.
Bye-bye Fitbit Versa
“At Fitbit, we believe that health belongs to everyone and that people should not be priced out of having access to devices and features that can help them improve their health. That’s why we’ve designed Versa 2 to be a premium, full-featured and easy-to-use smartwatch at an accessible price point,” Fitbit CEO James Park said in a statement. “Building on the success of our original bestselling Versa smartwatch, we believe the added value and innovation in Versa 2 with new features like Alexa, a Spotify app, and advanced in-app and on-device sleep features, will bring more users into the smartwatch category, allowing them to unlock the benefits of better health.”
Versa 2 is also powered by a faster processor compared to Versa, features a larger AMOLED display, and is water resistant up to 50 meters. Best of all, battery life has gone from four days (Versa) to five days (Versa 2).
As you might expect, Versa 2 is replacing the original Versa. Now $200 will get you more features. If you’re outside the U.S., here’s the international pricing:
Fitbit’s wearable lineup is still excessive though. Fitbit Pay is included on the Versa 2, so you would think Fitbit would have killed the Versa Special Edition. But no, Versa 2 Special Edition will sell for $230 with different accessories. The Versa Lite will continue to exist at $160, as will the Ionic at $270. Consumer confusion won’t help sales.
Fitbit Premium
Fitbit Premium is a paid subscription service that lives in the Fitbit app. It will use your data, insights from over 10 years of Fitbit data, and academic and medical expertise to “deliver Fitbit’s most personalized experience yet.” That means helping you move more, sleep better, and eat well. Fitbit Premium consists of customized programs, advanced sleep features, personal insights, thousands of workouts, new challenges, health reports, and so on.
At launch, Premium will offer nine guided health and fitness programs: Intro to Healthy Habits, Get More Zzz’s, Habits for Restful Sleep, Get Active, Beginner Running, Run Training, Understand Calories, Kick Your Sugar Habit, and Kick Your Salt Habit. These programs include actionable coaching, daily tips and tricks, structured workout plans, relaxation tools, recipe suggestions, and educational content.
Fitbit Premium will start rolling out in September for $9.99 per month or $80 per year. It will be available in English across 17 countries this fall. In 2020, it will expand to additional languages, including Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish. All Fitbit users will be eligible for a one-week free trial, and Fitbit Versa 2 Special Edition owners will get a 90-day free trial.
Next year, Fitbit promises to launch a personal coaching service for an additional cost, with a limited pilot targeted to roll out later this year. The service will offer one-on-one help, expert answers, accountability, and encouragement from Fitbit’s team of certified health and wellness coaches.
“With Fitbit Premium, we’re excited to deliver our most personalized experience yet. It will evolve with you and get smarter over time, delivering the support and guidance you need to help you achieve your health goals,” Park said in a statement. “The launch of Premium also marks an important milestone as we expand our business beyond devices and deliver new and innovative ways to engage our more than 27 million active users while also attracting new users to the Fitbit platform.”
Fitbit Aria Air
The Fitbit Aria Air expands the Fitbit Aria product family with a low-cost Bluetooth scale. Aria Air can weigh you and sync with the Fitbit app to calculate your BMI. Adding weight data to the Fitbit app can help visualize trends over time, alongside your activity, exercise, sleep, heart rate, and nutrition.
Aria Air supports the following features to help you manage your weight:
- Set a healthy weight goal in the Fitbit app, log your food, and view weight trends alongside calories in and out to stick to a plan based on personal goals.
- Integrate with Fitbit Premium, featuring personalized insights and guided programs, including a two-week program to help you understand the importance of keeping an appropriate calorie range for your weight goal.
- Sync weight data with popular brand apps so you can see all your exercise, food logging, and weight data in one place on the Fitbit app.
- Access the Community section of the Fitbit app to connect with friends, family, and fellow Fitbit users for healthy eating and weight management tips, support groups, and motivation.
Aria Air will be available in black and white in mid-October 2019 for $50. If you’re outside the U.S., here’s the international pricing:
“Whether someone is looking to manage their weight, improve their fitness level, or manage a chronic condition, we’ve had a significant impact on the lives of millions of people,” Park said in a statement. “In fact, 73% of Fitbit users who set a weight loss goal reduced their weight after six months of tracking it, demonstrating the power of the Fitbit platform to help users reach their goals.”
