Fitbit rolled out an update to its smartwatches designed to give users a clearer snapshot of their personal performance, as well as a transition to new third-party apps and developer tools.
Fitbit OS 3.0 Fitbit Ion, Fitbit Ion: The Adidas Edition Versa Fitbit smartwatch expands graphs of sleep and performance, logs weight and water intake offers, allowing users to respond more quickly to personal data, Fitbit said. Of the 10 new mass-brand apps, four are immediately available: Disease Predictor Ashur Health; Running Coach Couch’s Distance and Calorie Counter Hits 5k; Genius Wrist, a set of four devices applied to structure for training; and Coaching for Swimming Programmer MySwimPro.
Fitbit this year acquired health coaching platform Twine Health and launched Fitbit Care, a connected health platform that combines coaching and virtual care to help people improve their health and manage chronic conditions, increasing competition in the health and wellness space force.
The company also updated the wearable with the Sp02 sensor to detect changes in oxygen levels in the blood, which could indicate problems like sleep apnea and asthma, and introduced the latest Charge 3, the latest with enhanced sleep tracking fitness tracker. Six other smartwatch apps will launch in early 2019: Charity Miles, FitBark, Fitbit AMP in Gold, MINDBODY, Noonlight and TRX. When an emergency is detected, Noonlight automatically triggers an alert for help, prompting the operator to check that the user is okay.
The San Francisco-based consumer wearables company said the new year will also bring new female fitness tracking features, new APIs and open-source developer tools to smartwatches.
“We’re working with some of the most popular health and fitness brands to develop apps that leverage Fitbit data to deliver unique experiences and provide more valuable and personal insights to help our users lead healthier lifestyles,” Chief Marketing Officer Officer Tim Rosa said. in a statement.
It remains to be seen whether Fitbit will venture into the medical space. Its biggest competitor in this space is Apple, which has been at the forefront with its first-of-its-kind ECG monitor embedded in the Apple Watch and various apps. Apple is also rumored to be developing non-invasive blood sugar tracking sensors and chips to interpret health-related data collected on wearables and other devices. And with Zimmer, it’s exploring the impact of the Apple Watch app mymobility on supporting patients prior to and following knee and hip replacement surgeries.
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