If you're in the market for a new fitness tracker or a health-focused smartwatch, Fitbit has some fresh options.
The Google-owned wearable device maker is refreshing its Sense and Versa smartwatches, and its Inspire fitness tracker. Announced Wednesday, Fitbit's fall 2022 wearable device lineup includes the $299.95 Sense 2, the $229.95 Versa 4, and the $99.95 Inspire 3.
Fitbit is not updating the Charge 5 or style-focused Luxe fitness trackers this season, but introduced some new accessory straps for them, including vegan leather.
Fitbit Sense 2
The premium Sense 2, Fitbit's most advanced health-tracking device, is the follow-up to the original smartwatch released in 2020. On the design front, Fitbit says this model is 10% thinner and 15% lighter than its predecessor while offering the same 6-day battery life.
The original Sense was the first smartwatch to feature an electrodermal activity (EDA) sensor, which measures small electrical changes in your skin's sweat level to track your body's response to stress. This year's model features a continuous EDA (cEDA) sensor for all-day stress tracking.
When the Sense 2 detects a "body response," as determined by an algorithm that takes into account microsweat levels, heart rate, heart rate variability, and skin temperature, it notifies you and asks how you're feeling: excited, calm, worried, frustrated, etc. In times of stress, it also offers some suggestions to help you chill out, like taking a walk or doing a guided breathing exercise. The Fitbit app keeps a record of your stress data, including charts of your body responses over the last two hours and day.
The Sense 2 can alert you about body responses in real time, at the end of the day or week, or you can disable these notifications. Fitbit says body-response notifications are automatically disabled at night, so as not to disrupt your sleep. Meanwhile, when you wear it to bed, the Sense will now track your sleep consistency and the amount of time it takes you to fall soundly asleep.
Like the original, the Sense 2 offers irregular heart rhythm notifications and an electrocardiogram (ECG) app for on-demand heart health checks, two features meant to help detect signs of atrial fibrillation (AFib). The Apple Watch offers similar features, and the watchOS 9 update slated to arrive this fall includes a new AFib History feature designed to help you track the frequency of this condition over an extended period of time.
Fitbit Versa 4
The midrange Versa 4 now features a more tactile mechanical button instead of the haptic one on last year's model, which should be a welcome upgrade for athletes with sweaty hands. Fitbit says the Versa 4 will soon offer a few new Google apps: Google Maps with turn-by-turn directions and Google Wallet for mobile payments.
Fitbit has also redesigned the Versa 4 and Sense 2 interface, and doubled the number of exercise modes available on these devices to 40. Like its predecessor, the Versa 4 features a built-in GPS; supports Bluetooth calling, text notifications, and quick replies; and also promises up to 6 days of battery life on a charge.
Fitbit Inspire 3
The Inspire 3 is Fitbit's new entry-level fitness tracker, offering buyers a more affordable alternative to the Charge 5 and Luxe.
This year's model features an AMOLED color display with an always-on option, a thinner design, and an SpO2 (blood oxygen saturation) sensor, while promising to maintain its predecessor's 10-day battery life. The Inspire 3 supports 24/7 heart rate monitoring, stress and sleep tracking, and Fitbit's Active Zone Minutes and premium Daily Readiness metrics.
How to Get the New Fitbits
Fitbit's fall 2022 wearables are available for pre-order now and slated to arrive at some point in September. All three will come with six months of Fitbit Premium (normally $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year), which gives you access to 90-day health metric trend graphs, more than 1,000 workouts and meditation sessions, and more.
The new Charge 5 and Luxe accessories are available now. Fitbit is selling vegan leather bands for both models ($49.95), a woven Charge 5 strap made with recycled fiber ($34.95), and a new Charge 5 sport band color in golden sunrise ($29.95).