The Fitbit brand name was originally owned by Fitbit, Inc., founded by James Park and Eric Freidman. The company was acquired by Google in January 2021 and was absorbed into the company's hardware division.[1]
In 2019, Fitbit was the fifth largest wearable technology company in shipments.[2][3] The company has sold more than 120 million devices and has 29 million users in over 100 countries.[4][5]
Fitbit LLC was founded as Healthy Metrics Research, Inc. in San Francisco, California, on March 26, 2007, by James Park (CEO) and Eric Friedman (CTO). In October 2007, it changed its name to Fitbit, Inc.[5][7]
In January 2015, the company successfully defended against a trademark lawsuit from Fitbug.[8] On March 5, 2015, Fitbit acquired fitness coaching app developer Fitstar for $17.8 million.[9][10] In June 2015, the company became a public company via an initial public offering, raising $732 million.[11][12][13][14] In May 2016, Fitbit acquired a wearable payment platform from smart credit card company Coin.[15][16] In October 2016, CEO James Park announced that the company was undergoing a major transformation from what he called a "consumer electronics company" to a "digital healthcare company".[17] On December 6, 2016, Fitbit acquired assets from Pebble for $23 million.[18][19][20][21][22] On January 10, 2017, Fitbit acquired Romania-based smartwatch startup Vector Watch SRL.[23][24]
On February 13, 2018, Fitbit acquired Twine Health.[25] In February 2018, Fitbit announced a partnership with Adidas to release an Adidas-branded Fitbit Ionic; it was released on March 19, 2018.[26] In August 2018, Blue Cross Blue Shield Association announced a partnership with Fitbit in which BCBS will include Fitbit's wearables and fitness trackers in its Blue365 program.[27]
Acquisition by Google
In January 2021, Fitbit was acquired by Google and absorbed into its hardware division.[4][28][29] The acquisition was scrutinized by regulators concerned over Google's access to personal data in both the United States and Europe.[30][31][32] James Park stayed on as a vice president and general manager of Fitbit after Google's acquisition.[33]
In August 2022, Google rebranded their Fitbit devices as "Fitbit by Google" on Fitbit's website and the Google Store.[34] On March 18, 2024, Google changed its Fitbit branding to Google Fitbit, removing the arrow icon and using Google Sans as the wordmark.[35]
In January 2024, it was reported that co-founders James Park and Eric Friedman were leaving the company following a reorganization of Google's hardware teams.[33]
Fitbit Flex, with the functioning unit removed from the replaceable wristband
The first product released was the Fitbit Tracker, which was released in 2009.[36][37]
In 2012, Fitbit began offering activity trackers, along with a website and a mobile app for iOS, Android and Windows 10 Mobile[38] This allows the trackers to sync to devices such as mobile phones via Bluetooth, or to a Bluetooth-equipped computer running Windows or MacOS.[38] Users have the ability to log their food, activities, and weight, to track over time and set daily and weekly goals for themselves for steps, calories burned and consumed, and distance walked. The app also offers a community page where users can challenge themselves and compete against other users.[39] The social element anticipates an increase in motivation, and finds that users take an average of 700 more steps per day when they have friends on the app.[39] Users can also choose to share their progress pictures and achievement badges.
In 2017, the company released its Fitbit Ionic smartwatch,[40] and in 2018, it released a redesigned, lower-priced version of the smartwatch called the Versa.[41][42]
The Fitbit Charge 3, a wristband health and fitness tracker introduced in October 2018, was the first device to feature an oxygen saturation (SPO2) sensor; however, as of January 2019, it was non-functional and Fitbit did not provide an implementation timeline.[43]
The Fitbit Charge 3 comes with two different-sized bands: small and large. The small is around between 5.5–7.1 inches (14–18cm) and the large is 7.1–8.7 inches (18–22cm). Additionally, the screen is larger than the Charge 2 by approximately 40%. Fitbit Charge 3 comes in two color combos: a Rose-Gold case with a Blue Grey band and a “Graphite Aluminum” screen case with a Black band.[44]
On December 17, 2018, Fitbit released the Fitbit OS 3.0, which included an extended dashboard, quick logging for weight and water intake, and goal-based exercise mode. The new extended on-device dashboard (Fitbit Today) would include more data regarding sleep, water intake and weight.[45]
There are three versions of the Fitbit Versa, standard, Special, and Lite.[46]
In December 2018, Fitbit added an API and open source tools to allow developers to better build apps for its smartwatch products.[47]
On January 2, 2019, the company announced the release of the Fitbit Charge 3 in India.[48][49]
On June 3, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the company announced Fitbit Flow, a ventilator in response to the shortages of ventilators in medical centers and hospitals around the world which are needed to treat critically ill patients.[50][51] Despite getting emergency approval from the Food and Drug Administration,[52] the company does not consider Fitbit Flow as a drop-in replacement for traditional ventilators. Instead, the product is meant as an alternative when more the expensive option of traditional ventilators is not available. Therefore, the company intended for Fitbit Flow to be used only during the COVID-19 pandemic.[53]
In August 2020, Fitbit also announced new smartwatches, the Versa 3, the Inspire 2, and the Fitbit Sense, which includes new health metrics and analysis such as stress sensing, oxygen saturation, and skin temperature. The Sense also promises to show changes in skin temperature to catch signs of sickness.[54]
In August 2021, Fitbit also announced new smartwatches Fitbit Charge 5 tracker, which is water resistant to a greater degree but not waterproof. It can be submerged in water up to a depth of 50 meters.[citation needed] One of the essential properties that a fitness tracker must have is the water resistance feature. With the waterproof characteristic, you can take your tracker with you in heavy rain or to a swimming pool.[55]
Certain Sense, Versa, Ionic, and Charge products support Fitbit Pay, which is a digital wallet that uses near field communication to make payments at point of sale. Google has stated their intention to eventually discontinue this payment method in most regions on July 29, 2024 and fully replace it with Google Wallet & Google Pay. Fitbit Pay will remain active Taiwan, Japan, and Saudi Arabia past the set discontinuation date for an unspecified length of time.[56][57][58]
In August 2022, Fitbit announced new smartwatches, the Versa 4, the Inspire 3, and the Sense 2, featuring incremental improvements mainly in fitness tracking features and battery life over the last iterations.[59]
Dedicated Fitbit retail stand stocked with different Fitbit Flex trackers
Awards
In 2008, Fitbit was named the runner-up at TechCrunch50,[61] and in 2009, it was named both the "Innovation honoree" and "best in the Health & Wellness category" at CES.[62] In 2016, Fitbit ranked 37th of 50 for most innovative companies for that year.[63] Also in 2016, Fitbit was ranked #46 on the Deloitte Fast 500 North America list.[64]
Accuracy
A small 2015 study had participants wear multiple devices on their wrists and hips while performing different walking/running speeds on a treadmill. Fitbit devices that are worn on the hip accurately measured steps taken within 1 step of 100% accuracy. Devices were worn on the wrist, however, were off by an average of 11 steps per minute. When measuring the number of calories burned, Fitbit devices worn on the hip underestimated by an average of 6%, while devices worn on the wrist overestimated calories burned by 21%. Authors concluded that both the Fitbit One and Fitbit Flex devices reliably measured step counts and energy expenditure, with hip-based Fitbit devices being more accurate than wrist-based devices.[65]
A 2019 study found that the Fitbit Charge 2 accurately measures the average heart rate of healthy adults during sleep, and that it is most accurate for medium range of heart rate. However, the same study found that Fitbit Charge 2 relative to EEG, overestimated sleep efficiency by about 4%, but there was no difference in measured total sleep time.[66]
A 2019 review found that Fitbit devices, which utilize the sleep-staging feature, show a better performance than non-sleep-staging models, especially in differentiating wake from sleep.[67]
Recalls
On February 20, 2014, Fitbit worked with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to recall the Fitbit Force because some users experienced allergic reactions to the materials used in the product. On March 12, 2014, the CPSC made the recall official. At that time, there were 9,900 reports of skin irritation and 250 reports of blistering.[68]
In April 2017, a woman claimed her Flex 2 device malfunctioned and caught fire, causing second-degree burns on her arm.[69] Following an investigation, Fitbit was adamant that the exploding tracker was caused by external forces, and assured customers that it was not aware of any other complaints and that they could wear their own Fitbits without concern.[70]
On March 2, 2022, Fitbit issued a voluntary recall of its Ionic smartwatches after reports of overheating batteries which caused skin burns for some owners[quantify].[71] At the time of the recall, there were 78 reports of skin burns.[72]
Privacy concerns
Public data-sharing by default
To set up and use Fitbit devices, users must create an account with Fitbit and agree to data collection, transfer and privacy rules.[73] Starting in June 2011, Fitbit was criticized for its website's default activity-sharing settings, which made users' manually-entered physical activities available for public viewing.[74] All users had the option to make their physical activity information private, but some users were unaware that the information was public by default.[74] One specific issue, which technology blogs made fun of, was that some users were including details about their sex lives in their daily exercise logs, and this information was, by default, publicly available.[74] Fitbit responded to criticism by making all such data private by default and requesting that search engines remove indexed user profile pages from their databases.[75]
Google's acquisition
Fitbit's acquisition by Alphabet has resulted in concern that Fitbit user data could be combined with other Google services data or sold for purposes such as targeted advertising.[76] There are also concerns that user data could be sold to health insurance companies.[77] In response, Fitbit stated in 2019 that user data would not be used or sold for advertising by Google, citing that trustworthiness was "paramount" to the company, and that the sale would not change their historic commitment to user privacy and security.[78][79]
Use in court cases
The company's devices have also been used in criminal investigations.[80][81][82]
On March 10, 2015, a woman allegedly fabricated a story in which an intruder appeared in her employer's home she was staying at and raped her. She told police that a man had assaulted her around midnight. Police found a Fitbit lying on the floor when they arrived at the scene. Prosecutors used the Fitbit as evidence and data to determine what had occurred. The Fitbit revealed that the woman was active throughout the night, and the Fitbit surveillance analysis demonstrated the woman had not gone to bed as she stated to the police, proving that the woman had lied to the police.[83][84][85][86]
In 2017, a Fitbit device played a role in solving a murder.[87] Victim Connie Dabate was murdered by her husband Richard Dabate. Initially, Richard framed the situation, telling police and law enforcement officials that an intruder had broken into their home and fatally shot his wife.[87] However, Connie's Fitbit tracker showed that she was at the gym at the time Richard told police his wife was shot. Using Connie's Fitbit and analyzing her movements, analysts were able to create a timeline that proved Richard had created a false story.[88]
In 2018, a Fitbit device played a role in solving another murder. Anthony Aiello murdered his stepdaughter Karen Navarra while visiting her home and her body was found five days later. Data from her Fitbit fitness tracker showed that her heart rate spiked when Aiello visited her and stopped five minutes before he left. Aiello was arrested in September 2018 on murder charges and was booked into the Santa Clara County Jail.[89][90]
A wearable computer, also known as a body-borne computer, is a computing device worn on the body. The definition of 'wearable computer' may be narrow or broad, extending to smartphones or even ordinary wristwatches.
Fullpower is a Santa Cruz, California-based privately held developer of cloud-based IoT and wearable product technology used for activity tracking and sleep monitoring. Fullpower specializes in wireless technology, microelectromechanical systems, and nanotechnology. The company holds over 125 patents for its intellectual property, which it licenses to manufacturers.
Wearable technology is any technology that is designed to be used while worn. Common types of wearable technology include smartwatches and smartglasses. Wearable electronic devices are often close to or on the surface of the skin, where they detect, analyze, and transmit information such as vital signs, and/or ambient data and which allow in some cases immediate biofeedback to the wearer.
Withings is a French consumer electronics company headquartered in Issy-les-Moulineaux, France. It also has offices in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, and Hong Kong, and distributes its products worldwide. Withings is known for design and innovation in connected devices, such as the first Wi-Fi scale on the market, an FDA-cleared blood pressure monitor, a smart sleep system, and a line of automatic activity tracking watches. It also provides B2B services for healthcare providers and researchers.
A smartwatch is a portable and wearable computer device in a form of a watch; modern smartwatches provide a local touchscreen interface for daily use, while an associated smartphone app provides management and telemetry, such as long-term biomonitoring. While early models could perform basic tasks such as calculations, digital time telling, translations, and game-playing, smartwatches released since 2015 have more general functionality closer to smartphones, including mobile apps, a mobile operating system, and WiFi/Bluetooth connectivity. Some smartwatches function as portable media players, with FM radio and playback of digital audio and video files via a Bluetooth headset. Some models, called watch phones, have mobile cellular functionality such as making telephone calls.
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An activity tracker involves the practice of measuring and collecting data on an individual's physical and psychological activity to keep track and maintain documentation regarding their health and wellness. Used for many groups even animals as seen in collar-mounted activity trackers for dogs. A lot of the data is collected through wearable technology such as wristbands which sync with mobile apps through Apple and Samsung. As daily technologies such as phones and computers have been innovated, it paved the way for such wearable tracking technologies to be advanced. There are a variety of stakeholders involved in the usage of activity tracking through wearable technology and mobile health apps, knowing how much they track ranging from fitness, mood, sleep, water intake, medicine usage, sexual activity, menstruation, and potential diseases raises the concern on privacy given a lot of data is collected and analyzed. Through many studies that have been reviewed, data on the various demographics and goals these technologies are used provide more insight into their purposes.
Wear OS is a version of Google's Android operating system designed for smartwatches and other wearables. By pairing with mobile phones running Android version 6.0 "Marshmallow" or newer, or iOS version 10.0 or newer with limited support from Google's pairing application, Wear OS integrates Google Assistant technology and mobile notifications into a smartwatch form factor. Wear OS is closed-source, in contrast to the free and open-source Android.
Misfit, Inc. was an American consumer electronics company founded on 14 October 2011 by Sonny Vu, Sridhar Iyengar and John Sculley, owned by Fossil Group. It specialized in wearable technology that utilizes sensors and home automation products. Misfit's wearable activity trackers and count sleep, calories, and basic steps that can be synced to a mobile app on a compatible smartphone. Vu and Iyengar previously co-founded AgaMatrix, a company that made the iBGStar, the first FDA approved Smartphone medical device.
Google Fit is a health-tracking platform developed by Google for the Android operating system, Wear OS, and iOS. It is a single set of APIs that blends data from multiple apps and devices. Google Fit uses sensors in a user's activity tracker or mobile device to record physical fitness activities, which are measured against the user's fitness goals to provide a comprehensive view of their fitness.
Microsoft Band is a discontinued smart band with smartwatch and activity tracker/fitness tracker features, created and developed by Microsoft. It was announced on October 29, 2014. The Microsoft Band incorporates fitness tracking and health-oriented capabilities and integrated with Windows Phone, iOS, and Android smartphones through a Bluetooth connection. On October 3, 2016, Microsoft stopped sales and development of the line of devices. On May 31, 2019, the Band's companion app was decommissioned, and Microsoft offered a refund for customers who were lifelong active platform users.
Pebble Time is a discontinued smartwatch developed by Pebble Technology and assembled by Foxlink, released on 14 May 2015. This is the first Pebble to introduce a color e-paper display, as well as a microphone, a new charging cable and a new Pebble Time-optimized operating system.
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Mobvoi Information Technology Company Limited is a technological company headquartered in Beijing, China that sells and develops consumer electronics and Chinese voice recognition, natural language processing, and vertical search technology in-house.
A smart ring is a compact wearable electronic device that combines mobile technology with features for convenient on-the-go use. These devices, typically designed to fit on a finger like a traditional ring, offer functionalities like mobile payments, access control, gesture control, and activity tracking. Smart rings can connect to smartphones or other devices, and some can operate independently, communicating with cloud-based systems or performing standalone tasks. While lacking traditional displays, they respond to contextual cues, such as proximity to payment terminals or specific gestures.
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The Pixel Watch is a Wear OS smartwatch designed, developed, and marketed by Google as part of the Google Pixel product line. First previewed in May 2022 during the Google I/O keynote, it features a round dome-shaped display as well as deep integration with Fitbit, which Google acquired in 2021. Two Pixel-branded smartwatches had been in development at Google by July 2016, but were canceled ahead of their release due to hardware chief Rick Osterloh's concerns that they did not fit well with other Pixel devices. Development on a new Pixel-branded watch began shortly after Google's acquisition of Fitbit.
The Pixel Watch 2 is a Wear OS smartwatch designed, developed, and marketed by Google as part of the Google Pixel product line. It serves as the successor to the first-generation Pixel Watch.
↑ "Ventilators and Ventilator Accessories EUAs". fda.gov. Food and Drug Administration. September 11, 2020. Archived from the original on September 12, 2020. Retrieved September 11, 2020. Intended Use The Fitbit Flow is indicated for the continuous mechanical ventilatory support of adult patients. The Fitbit Flow is an accessory to a manual resuscitator and consists of a reusable mechanical actuator and the single-use, disposable tubing assembly. The Fitbit Flow supports conventional Volume Control and Pressure Control modes of ventilation, as well as an 'Assist Control' feature to support breaths triggered by the patient. The Fitbit Flow is intended for use by qualified, trained personnel under the direction of a physician only when an FDA-cleared clinical ventilator is not available during the COVID-19 pandemic.
↑ "Fitbit to Be Acquired by Google". businesswire (Press release). San Francisco: Fitbit, Inc. November 1, 2019. Archived from the original on November 2, 2019. Retrieved May 27, 2022. Consumer trust is paramount to Fitbit.
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