From Google Fit to Fitbit
The Fitbit app is likely to be showing up on a lot more phones in the future(Image credit: Google)
- Fitbit has replaced Google Fit on the Oppo Find X8 series
- It’s a first for a non-Pixel Google handset
- This could be the norm for Android phones from here
The end is nigh for the Google Fit app on Android phones, it would seem: It looks as though the Fitbit app is going to replace it on these devices going forward, with Google making the most of its 2021 acquisition of the fitness company.
As spotted by 9to5Google, the newly-unveiled Oppo Find X8 comes with Fitbit installed rather than Google Fit. It’s the first time we’ve seen that on a non-Google Android phone, and could well be the norm in the future.
If you’ve bought one of the Google Pixel 9 phones you’ll notice Fitbit has replaced Google Fit here as well. If it’s happening on handsets made by Google’s manufacturing partners as well, the transition from one app to the other is just about complete.
Should you have a lot of data already in Google Fit, Google’s Health Connect service can sync it to Fitbit, if needed: Tap Profile then the gear icon in the Google Fit app to set this up. You can also export your Google Fit data from inside the app by tapping your Google account avatar (top right), then Fit data and privacy.
>>>>GPDX1 Battery for Google Pixel Fold
Fitbit (and AI) is the future
The Pixel Watch 3 is Fitbit-focused (Image credit: Future)
While it’s disappointing to see yet another Google app killed off, Google does at least seem to be investing in new features and upgrades for the Fitbit app – even if it did recently abandon the web interface for your Fitbit data.
Google has previously announced an AI health coach that’s now in testing and is likely to soon make an appearance in the Fitbit app proper. It’s not clear when everyone will get it, but it could show up before the end of the year.
The Gemini-powered feature can answer questions about your health and give you personalized insights into your activity patterns and workouts. We’ll have to wait until we can test it out for ourselves to see just how accurate it is.
In recent weeks we’ve also heard that an AI-driven Sleep Journal is also on the way for the Fitbit app, which will give you detailed feedback on your sleep health and ways in which you might try and improve it. Whether or not these extras will be exclusive to Fitbit Premium subscribers remains to be seen.