Feedback about Google, Sense 2 and new watches

[Patrick421]

Let's face reality, the Fitbit sense 2 is a flop, as it concerns all the missing features that any average smart watch has.

This situation is so ridiculous and makes so little sense, that it becomes a legitimate question to ask if it is not artificially created. In other words, does Google want to get rid of Fitbit, to focus on their own line of watches, by removing super basic features, marketing capabilities that do not come and in general, critically damaging Fitbit to the point of no return for many of us.

It seems that it would be such a mistake if the above was true.

What do you think?

Moderator Edit: Clarified subject

[Jdsenter]

@Patrick421 I have a Pixel phone and a Sense 1, Google has always had several projects/products that compete. In the end there is only one that survives, public usage will force one over the other. They had several chat apps, video apps, pay apps, home now nest products. Tried video games stadia, well they just cancelled that. So is there a place for both, in my opinion yes, the Sense 1 is the most advanced smart watch Fitbit ever made.

Once Google took over well, not sure if it was a good move but to downgrade the Sense 2, to make the 2018 Pixel Watch shine was a Giant mistake. Compared to the the 2018 Fitbit Ionic (which I owed and was recalled) the Pixel Watch still is a downgrade, up to 24 hour battery life, the Ionic was still better.

Google doesn't understand why people use their software/products for me having unlimited photo storage (even at storage saver quality) was/is a game changer. But no they want people to pay, they make their money thru ads and clicks, do what you do best, give customers the perks.

Pay walls (Fitbit Premium, Google One), will just make people bitter, I can't understand the logic besides (greedy) capitalism take money out of the poor guy and transfer it to the rich. Great if your the rich, but us poor guys eventually loose. The house always wins in the end.

So here is the dream, make a Pixel watch with the Sense 1 features, then add LTE, Google integration (pay, maps, messages, phone, etc). Keeping all of the Fitbit features battery life, Fitbit pay (keep a choice as not everyone can use one or the other), remove the pay walls, and this will bring people to your hardware/software world.

In the end you still make all your money thru ads and clicks, and people are using your products to do it. Find ways to make money, but greed will always destroy eventually. 

[TLinkins]

I think this is a common sentiment at this point. Google wanted to start making wearables and had little to no experience with fitness tracking. Fitbit was not doing so well and, to survive, was looking for a buyer. Google bought Fitbit for its intellectual property; Fitbit got to live, however form it would be in. Immediately Google vetoed some of Fitbit's decisions, which explains the bewildering situation with the Sense 2 and Versa 4; they had already been in development when Google bought Fitbit.

Does Fitbit have a future? No one knows. I could see the "dumb" Charge and Inspire lines surviving, should Google have the patience to carve out that niche. In any case Fitbit's "golden age" is over; there will never be something like the Ionic or Versa 2 again.

From what I understand most of those who want more than the "dumb"est of fitness trackers (I say this because even a "dumb" fitness tracker like Xiaomi's Mi Band has music controls, which Google-owned Fitbit is stubbornly insistent on completely eliminating) have switched to the Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy Watch, or Garmin. Not the Pixel Watch ironically; Google with all its resources and late-mover advantage had the opportunity to learn from generations of Apple and Samsung wearables but still couldn't come up with a watch that lasts >1 day. I would've switched to Garmin myself if Garmin's sleep tracking wasn't so crappy.

[mocochang]

Imo it's either that, or they're a mess right now because next year they're planning on migrating Fitbit accounts to Google accounts and they couldn't figure out how to keep the old smart features and not have everything break once the accounts start migrating. After all we still haven't gotten Google Wallet and Maps, which are supposed to become available "soon" (which is wasn't soon at all), and I can only imagine it's because they need to start migrating the accounts to Google for those to become enabled. So maaaybe the devices are lacking features right now because they're waiting for the whole migration to start and maaaaybe they'll be able to introduce more features once that happens... We'll see. It's really annoying to not have any dates for the Google accounts and wallet/maps functionality though, that "coming soon" was such a lie.

[Jdsenter]

@mocochang The only thing is for the merger to happen Google had to agree to keep the physical data separate for 10 years (that might be EU specific). So even when they merge Fitbit to Google, it will be for authentication purposes, as the regulators will be watching. But a lot of us have our data already in Fit as it does have sync abilities with others. So not sure how they will merge our data?

@TLinkins Reminds me of Palm and HP, Palm was innovative, Fitbit was innovative, but someone just wanted the intellectual property, not the cool devices we use day and night. Again if the Pixel watch was like the original Sense, with 5 day battery life, they would have blown everyone away. 

[mocochang]

@Jdsenter well, I don't know how they're gonna handle the fitness data, but they will start migrating the accounts from Fitbit to Google starting next year, that much is confirmed. They'll likely just keep the fitness data on the Fitbit app and that will stay in the Fitbit systems, but that doesn't mean they won't migrate the other watch functionalities to Google. I'm guessing they'll require the account migration to enable Google Wallet and Maps, so they may also use the google accounts to enable other services (after all it is weird that they decided to include wifi capabilites on the hardware just to leave them disabled, so it's possible they have plans to enable it later on).

[llc78]

I'm not sure of the things you are speaking about I'll try to keep-up. I just purchased a Sense 2 did I make a mistake? I have had a fitbit charger2 and was very happy, my band screen was damaged so I decided to make a change. I'm not sure I like the watch concept.

[Patrick421]

@llc78 ,I would not recommend to anyone to buy Fitbit watches based on my experience with the sense 2. This sense 2 feels like a demo version of a future possible product, sold at the price of what should be a finished product.

Fitbit just created a new line of watches though. There used to be smart watches, now the sense 2 opens this new category called "xxxx watches" where anyone can replace the xxxx with what suitable, just cannot use anything even remote to "smart"

And the best part, when we report the forgotten features, they are placed in the "suggested new features" forum category... Really making fun of us or thinking customers will be so ignorant and will just say "thank you" for the privilege to buy a $300 unfinished product.  😞 

[lichmeister]

I kept hearing good things about fitbit and recently noticed that google owns them now. I figured that since I am already solidly in the orbit of googles paid services and am planning to buy the Pixel 7 Pro in the next few weeks, I would buy what seemed to be the best model they had available. I forked out 400 bucks (canadian) and not even 2 days later I am sorely regretting my decision:

• the voice assistant is Alexa? Really?? I cannot get Audible to play my audiobooks on the nest but the flagship watch ships with Amazons subpar assistant and not even an option to go with google? I really thought I was done with Alexa when I spent a few hundred bucks replacing all the Alexa devices in my home with google ones a few months back! We broke up spectacularly (there was a hammer and many flying pieces of plastic involved) and here I am crawling back 2 months later 😞
• zero ability to control my smartphones music app (YT premium, btw) so if i want to switch playlists or skip a song i have to STOP my workout, pull out my phone and manually do it. As I type that I realize how spoiled we have all become. I still expect better from a so-called "smart" device that costs 400 bucks before taxes.
• the ECG has yet to detect that I have a heartbeat (I swear I am not the tinman) and my mood goes from "calm" to "frustrated" every time I spend 30 seconds trying and failing to get a result.
• almost every single function on the watch has a button to learn more by opening the app. None work. I am linked to the app, it is running in the bg and it's synching fine yet every open button is greyed out and simply make the **ahem** watch vibrate when clicked.
• no google maps, despite the lies that it is available in the latest update
• no google wallet, despite same mistruths about an update today. (it is available on my 8 year old samsung phone but is apparently beyond the capabilities of a google owned product) 
• the onboard speaker (which I honestly don't require or expect much of) literally sounds like an FM radio 2 ticks off the correct tuning at a volume level that I can barely hear in an empty and silent room.

At this point, it doesn't feel too late to re-evaluate the whole 'google' thing and convert to samsung or (shudder) apple. Samsung has some amazing products and services but, afaik, no music service or home automation service (iirc they had one but it floundered?). Apple, on the other hand, I have hated almost all of my life but, i will admit, they make quality stuff and there are very few half-baked apple products or services. I have never seen an apple smartwatch, but it's probably safe to say it doesn't ship with alexa, a cheap plastic strap and a crappy dollar store speaker.

[TLinkins]

It's sad seeing what Fitbit has become..

[Patrick421]

True, but 2-3 days of battery works better against even 2 months of battery with so many missing features.

I also liked the Fitbit way to keep you engaged with your health. They did it so well.

They had so many things going on well for them, before they released the sense 2. Really a pity.

[primortal]

On the plus side, at least Google is creating APIs for all these despaired health apps and share data.

With Health Connect APIs, our engineers were able to easily adapt their existing architecture in order to read and write user health data such as nutrition, hydration, exercise, and steps,” said MyFitnessPal’s Jason Peterson. “With this integration, we’re now able to consume data from any 3rd party application that also writes to Health Connect, expanding our users’ choices while allowing them more flexibility to grant granular permissions about which data they want to share.

https://9to5google.com/2022/11/14/google-health-connect-beta/

[Zombied69]

I still don't get the purpose of paying 23,000rs or 200$ to 300$ for a watch whose features are locked and need to be paid after 6 month. I mean why pay such huge amount when all you are giving in a way is a 1000rs phone since rest all the actual features that you are Mareting with price is not even true,  and it's inference is locked and not available.. it's like giving a Ferrari with breaks always on. Also, who actually checks if he/she is feeling stressed? I mean what's the feature about a scenario where I might actually feel stressed and I need to check if I am feeling stressed and if yes than how much? How does this make sense? Paying 23,000 rs dor this stupidity that too which is locked after 6 month. Humanity has fallen way below it can ever stand back on even it's knees. What is wrong with people buying such stupid things that make no sense to general public, this is just a shoe off  toy for rich brats who want to flex " I got money" 

What is wrong with technology developer and researcher in doing something fhat will help masses or every human being so that it eases the way we live life. It's becoming zo stressful.that rhey are inventing stress monitor, if people with sense  and respect for money buy this crap, the stress level will always be high thinking why, who,whom is this stupid intelligent people working for.

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