Be careful, whoop: I’ll switch to Google’s new Fitbit tracker if these features hold true

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ZDNET Highlights

• Google is set to unveil a Whoop duplicate soon.
• Steph Curry teased a screenless health band on his Instagram.
• This is what I want to see from the Google Fitness Band.

Could Google’s latest fitness tracker return to its original, screenless Fitbit form? All signs say yes. Google has teased A screen-free, hoop-adjacent health tracker with the help of basketball star Steph Curry. A recent instagram posts Curry depicts him wearing a screenless, fabric band around his wrist, and the accompanying caption promotes “a new relationship with your health”.

There are very few confirmed details about this next device, but rumors suggest the band will be called “Fitbit Air.”

Also: I replaced my Whoop with a rival fitness band that has no monthly fees — and it’s almost as good

Why a screen-less fitness band? And why now? Google’s new device may lose interest in popular fitness brand Whoop. Whoop’s fitness band is on the more luxurious end of the health wearables spectrum. The company offers three subscription tiers, starting at $199, $239, and $359 annually. Google’s device, on the other hand, there is a rumor It will be made more affordable with the option to upgrade to Fitbit Premium.

Google has an opportunity with the rumored Fitbit Air to create an affordably priced fitness band and breathe new life into its aging Fitbit product lineup, which hasn’t been updated in years.

what am i expecting

Here’s what I expect to see and what I hope Google prioritizes in this new health tracker.

Given Fitbit’s simple approach to fitness tracking, I think Google will emphasize an affordable, accessible fitness band with the Fitbit Air. Most Fitbit products cost between $130 and $230, so I expect this band to be on the lower end of that price range. I would also hope that Fitbit gives users a free trial of Fitbit Premium.

Also: T-Mobile is practically giving away the Apple Watch Series 11 — here’s how to get it

Long, long, long battery life

Smartwatches with bright screens and built-in smartphone integration consume a lot of power. This is why some of the best smartwatches in the market have an average battery life of one to two days.

On the other hand, a fitness band is screen-less. This makes the battery capacity of this Fitbit Air double – or triple – that of Google’s smartwatch.

Also: I use this 30-second routine to fix a sluggish Samsung smartwatch — and it works every time

The Fitbit Inspire 3 has about 10 days of battery life with the watch display on. I expect the screenless Fitbit Air to have at least 10 days of battery life, plus some change. Two weeks of battery life would be great.

Besides usage time, I also hope that a screen-less fitness tracker will solve some issues Fitbit Inspire users have complained About this. Many Inspire users report that the device’s screen cracked after a year of use. They could still access data through the app, but the screen was blurry. Despite being the more affordable Google health tracker, the Fitbit Air should serve users for a few years without any hardware issues – or at least I hope it will.

Fitbit’s classically accurate heart rate measurement

As a Google performance consultant and the athlete teasing Google’s next device, Steph Curry is sending the message that this new device, which gives wearers “a new relationship with your health,” will be built for athletes and exercise enthusiasts. I hope this device offers accurate heart rate measurements and advanced sensing, as other Fitbit devices do.

Also: I walked 3,000 steps with my Apple Watch, Google Pixel, and Ora Ring — this tracker was the most accurate

Like Whoop, I hope the insight the Fitbit Air provides is performance- and recovery-driven. Hoop’s popularity grew for precisely this reason. Whoop users not only get their sleep and recovery scores, but they also see through graphs and health data visualizations how their daily exercise, stress and sleep interact with and inform each other.

I’m assuming Fitbit Premium, with its AI-powered health coach and new app design, can do a lot of work with this new product for sleep and recovery insights.

Also: Is AI Health Coach Subscription a Scam? My verdict after testing Fitbit for a month

But I also hope Google adds some features to the app’s home screen that specifically target athletic stress and recovery beyond the steps, sleep, preparation, and weekly exercise percentage already available on the Fitbit app’s main screen.

Lots of customizable, exclusive bands

I hope the Fitbit Air is cheap – and the bands that come with it are even cheaper. If the affordability rumors are true, I expect Fitbit to sell bands that can be worn with the device that match users’ style and color preferences, at the same affordable and accessible price point. Curry is wearing a grey-orange band in his teaser. I expect the look and feel of this device to be bold, patterned, and easily distinguishable from rival fitness bands.