Fitbit has announced its first smartwatch with Amazon’s Alexa virtual assistant built in, alongside a new subscription service for personalised fitness programmes and well-being tools.
The fitness tech firm’s new Versa 2 smartwatch contains a microphone that allows users to issue voice commands to Alexa to start workouts, help find a local gym and control smart home devices from their wrist, though this functionality will not be available in South Africa.
The R3 999 smartwatch has been unveiled alongside Fitbit Premium, the company’s new subscription-based membership programme, which offers those who sign up greater detail on their health and fitness data, including sleep insights and personalised workouts.
Fitbit co-founder James Park said the Premium service — which will cost $10/month and is available inside the Fitbit app — is the company’s “most personal 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,” he said. “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.”
The subscription service will include nine health and fitness programmes at launch, ranging from those aimed at improving sleep to increasing activity and managing nutrition, with more promised before the end of the year.
Spotify app
Fitbit said the service will also include content from well-being firm Headspace, workout classes from Daily Burn, and yoga sessions from Yoga Studio by Gaiam.
The Versa 2 smartwatch also includes the Spotify app to control music and a new Amoled display that supports an “always-on” mode and improved battery life, which can last more than five days.
“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,” Park said.
“Building on the success of our original best-selling 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.”
The fitness company also announced a new Bluetooth smart scale — the Aria Air — which can be linked the Fitbit app and used to calculate body mass index (BMI) and help provide more accurate health and fitness data within the app.
