Screenless Fitbit Air surprise from Google revealed

New details have emerged about the screenless Fitbit wristband, which Google gave its first signals at the end of March. According to industry sources, the product in question will be available to users under the name “Fitbit Air”. It is also stated that the device will be offered with a remarkable change in Google’s software strategy in the field of health and fitness. The official name of the product first seen on Stephen Curry’s wrist seems to be “Google Fitbit Air”.

The Fitbit brand previously used the name “Air” on the affordable Aria Air smart scale that it introduced in 2019. While this product is still on sale, it is stated that the same naming choice has a different meaning in the new bracelet. At this point, it is thought that the term “Air” refers to the thin and light structure of the device. Thanks to the adoption of the screen-free design, the bracelet is aimed to be worn easily all day long. This approach reveals the intention to offer a similar usage experience, especially with screen-free fitness trackers such as Whoop.

While the Fitbit brand is maintained on the device side, a more prominent Google branding draws attention on the software and services front. It is stated that the name of the Fitbit Premium subscription, which currently offers paid features, will be changed to “Google Health”. In addition, the artificial intelligence-supported “personal health coach” feature, which is currently in the testing process, is planned to be offered under the name “Google Health Coach”. It is understood that this service, which was only referred to as “Coach” during the testing process, will be placed within a broader framework with the new naming.

Google is changing its brand approach in healthcare

This choice by Google reflects its desire to position health and wellness features directly under the main brand. Previously, the phrase “Google Health” was used to describe the company’s overall work in this area. However, the company recently renamed this structure “Google for Health”. Despite this, highlighting the “Google Health” brand on the subscription side indicates a search for a more holistic structure of the user experience.

However, the absence of the Fitbit logo in the promotional content shared by Stephen Curry and the use of only Google’s “G” symbol stands out as a detail that supports this strategy. This shows that while the Fitbit name will be preserved on the hardware side, the Google brand will become more visible in the service layer.

Although the official promotion has not been made yet, the products and services in question are expected to be announced in the coming weeks. It will be clearer after the launch how the screen-free design choice will be received by users and to what extent the artificial intelligence-supported features offered by the Google Health subscription will benefit.