Fitbit Air Ditches the Pixel Watch at $99: Review
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- Damien Wilde reviewed the Fitbit Air for 9to5Google and said the device made him ditch his Pixel Watch 4, calling the off-hand decision "potentially life-changing"
- The Fitbit Air is small, lightweight, and screenless — Wilde compares it to old Live Strong bands and says he forgets he's wearing it
- Battery life on the Fitbit Air stretches to roughly one week, and longer for sedentary users, freeing the user from daily charging
- Lacking GPS or a display, the Fitbit Air still auto-tracked an 80-minute football session that was later tagged in Google Health from the author's phone
- The Fitbit Air retails at $99, though Wilde used £100+ in accrued UK Google Store credit to get it for free
- Wilde concedes Google Health "could be a little better" but says he only needs the data to adjust his habits
Why it matters: A $99 screenless band supplanting a flagship smartwatch in daily wear challenges the premium-wearable thesis Google's Pixel Watch line is built on. If fitness users increasingly prioritize passive health tracking over notifications and apps, Fitbit may cannibalize Google's own smartwatch sales rather than complement them.
