14 DAY TRIAL // A few days ago Fitbit announced the advent of three new products, including two fitness bands and a so-called “super watch.”
The device blends smartwatch and fitness band functions into one product, but it doesn't come close to products such as the Samsung Gear Live, Moto 360 or LG G Watch.
Fitbit says nay to smartwatches
As it turns out, Fitbit wasn't even aiming to provide a competitor for these products. Why not? Well, according to Fitbit’s CEO and co-found James Park who talked to Mashable, smartwatches aren't really products with a well-defined purpose.
Although the Fitbit Surge is being marketed as a “super watch,” at its core the device remains a fitness tracker that will help you keep an eye on how many steps you have taken, calories burned, continuous heart rate and so on.
The product is actually targeting more serious athletes who are a little bit more serious about sports than your average fitness and health enthusiast.
The idea is that for the time being Fitbit doesn't see the need of building a smartwatch. For them, these devices lack a purpose and that’s why customers are quite skittish about actually picking one up.
Fitbit doesn't feel threatened by the Apple Watch
But after Apple’s Watch was announced, a lot of voices speculated that the product will be in position of wiping out the wearable competition.
After all, the smartwatch embeds most of the features of a smartband, plus some extra ones like letting users check email, answer calls or view videos directly on their wrist.
However, Fitbit believes it has found the solution to survive in this growing market – it will continue to focus on hardware. The idea is to make Fitbit products that can track users throughout the day in a way that can’t be done with just a smartphone app.
Fitbit has also been quite apprehensive of jumping onboard with Apple’s HealthKit hub, but this might be understandable since Fitbit takes up 69% of the wearable marketshare (according to numbers provided by the NPD Group) and wants to preserve its position.
Given that the smartband market is expected to increase throughout 2014, Fitbit wants to make sure it remains on top.
The company has a fair shot at succeeding, as Fitbit bands are compatible with a wide range of platforms, including iOS, Android and Windows, unlike Apple’s Watch which relies on its own products and software.
At some point Fitbit will need to think outside the box, while wearables are concerned, but for the time being the company is staying true to products that have helped it rise to glory, while keeping an open mind.