Google's latest wearable seems like a Fitbit Air with a screen, but the two actually have less in common than you might think.
Google cares about fitness trackers again. The company has continually iterated on the Pixel Watch since it launched in 2022 and even released the kid-focused Fitbit Ace LTE in 2024, but you wouldn't be wrong to think the company had all but given up on releasing an affordable wearable under the Fitbit name. That changed in May with the release of the $99 Fitbit Air, an affordable Whoop competitor without a screen. It changed again in October with the introduction of the $179 Fitbit Edge, a new half-step between the company's most affordable tracker and the Pixel Watch 5. Both devices offer AI-powered features not available on Fitbit's older wearables, and more importantly, do so without costing an arm and a leg or locking you into the Android ecosystem.
Now, you do have to pay for Google Health Premium if you want to use them to their fullest, but the Edge and the Air otherwise seem like great options if you're not interested in spending hundreds of dollars on a smartwatch. Just because they support some AI tools doesn't mean they're completely interchangeable, though. The Fitbit Edge features a screen, and some subtler differences that might make it worth picking over the Fitbit Air depending on what you're looking for.
While both are worn on a wrist, the Edge and Air are distinctly different form factors.
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