I wish Google would open up Fitbit to other smartwatches.

Every time a new Wear OS watch is announced, I’m intrigued. I’ve been using this platform for almost 10 years now, and I love trying out new watches to see what they offer in terms of features, comfort, battery life, etc. For example, the OnePlus Watch 2 really caught my eye with its excellent dual-OS and dual-processor capable battery life.

But there’s one thing that’s stopping you from switching to OnePlus’ latest model or Samsung’s excellent Galaxy Watch 6 series. It’s a Fitbit. You see, I’ve been using Fitbit trackers for over 10 years now. All my stats, all my patterns, my ups and downs, my best days and my worst days are there. I’m familiar with the platform and know what historical data looks like, so I know how to interpret data for any given day. So I’ll stick with the Pixel Watch 2. That’s because it offers the best features of Fitbit inside a Wear OS watch. But if you ask me. What happens when Fitbit is no longer exclusive to the Pixel Watch?

I would like to be able to use Fitbit with other Wear OS smartwatches. Google believes it can be achieved in two ways:

• We make the Fitbit app available for download on all Wear OS watches, and once installed, it runs like a system app with all battery-friendly background permissions.
• Alternatively, opening Fitbit’s API would free third-party watch makers like OnePlus, TicWatch, and others from having to develop their own half-finished health and fitness solutions for smartwatches.

Because, let’s be honest, users like me don’t need any more health platforms that barely communicate with each other. Yes, we know that Health Connect exists, but each healthcare provider can restrict what is exported from or imported into the app, which limits the usefulness of the service. For example, he cannot sync menstruation from Oura to Fitbit and vice versa. This is historical data that is important to me and my body and cannot be left behind if I migrate.

When things are this confusing, it’s worth noting that Google Fit exists, but it doesn’t make sense to rely on Health Connect to sync stats across multiple services. You also can’t rely on it if you choose to switch platforms every 1-2 years. So instead of bouncing back and forth between different health platforms, I’d like to stick with the Pixel Watch 2 and its Fitbit stats.

This conviction is reinforced every time I or I act. Android permissions Colleagues are testing other health platforms. OnePlus’ watch can track a lot of data, but the OHealth app is very basic compared to his Fitbit app. Meanwhile, Samsung Health still lags behind Fitbit’s sleep tracking and algorithms. Let’s not talk about other solutions like Mobvoi or Xiaomi.

Garmin and Apple’s apps are only compatible with their respective watches, but other than that, I’ve yet to come across a health platform that I’d rather use than Fitbit.

Google is currently pushing smartwatch makers to fragment their medical platforms instead of consolidating them. The company owns his Fitbit and could easily decide to make Fitbit his de facto health tracking software on Android.

Instead, smartwatch makers looking to ship new Wear OS watches have a big hurdle to clear. They have to build a companion app from scratch and a health service from scratch. It’s not easy.

Collecting data on different types of exercise, studying sleep stages, understanding heart rate zones, all of this comes naturally to hardware companies. To offer exercise and health tracking in the OHealth app, OnePlus needed to establish three health labs, hire more than 100 people, establish partnerships with universities, and build several in-house algorithms. there was. With this being a barrier to entry, it’s no wonder Fossil has exited the smartwatch business.

If Google could quickly offer Fitbit’s algorithms and expertise along with Wear OS, it would reduce the investment watchmakers need to make new watches. You’ll also be collecting more user data than you would if you kept the algorithm only for the Pixel Watch lineup. And as we all know, data is money.

And to anyone wondering about exclusivity and competition, I say this. If Samsung making Android phones isn’t a threat to Pixel phones, I don’t see why making Fitbit available on the Galaxy Watch 6 is a threat to the Pixel Watch.

Look, I don’t know if this would actually happen, but it makes sense to me. So I’m putting this wish out there now and hoping that it will come true someday. Then I’d say, “Oh, look, Google said you should do that!”

Until then, we hope that at some point in the future you can switch to a OnePlus Watch or Galaxy Watch without losing access to your Fitbit data. A Fitbit tracker, on the other hand, eliminates the need for double listing.