The Fitbit Sense is getting a new update that’s starting to roll out this week, and among other things it adds the capability to talk to Google through your wrist-worn wearable.
It was only a matter of time before the Google acquisition of Fitbit started to show some user-facing changes. And in this particular case it’s the eventual integration of Google Assistant on the Fitbit Sense. Of course it’s not just limited to the Sense.
Google Assistant is also available on the Fitbit Versa 3. If you own either one of these smartwatches, both of which are fairly new, you’re no longer required to use Alexa. Though you still can if you prefer it. As the option to use both is there.
The Fitbit Sense started getting Google Assistant last month
While this update is certainly a useful one, it’s not entirely new. It started rolling out to device back at the end of November. But it seems more devices are getting the update now so perhaps Fitbit is rolling it out to more people. Maybe even the remainder of users that hadn’t gotten it yet.
Either way, it’s likely that you’ve got the new 5.1 update now if you didn’t have it before. The update also brings along other new features besides the Google Assistant support. Though that is definitely one of the main features.
The update also introduces the blood oxygen monitoring and the ability for Alexa to actually respond to your queries. Whereas Alexa didn’t have this sort of capability prior to the 5.1 software update. It’s also now possible to take incoming calls from these two smartwatches. Your phone will have to be near you though and it has to be connected. As neither watch has LTE support and can’t actually take calls without the data connection.
Older devices aren’t getting these new features
As a reminder, older Fitbit wearables aren’t getting these new features. Fitbit has previously stated that these would be limited to the Fitbit Versa 3 and the Fitbit Sense. Even though there are a few more devices that have support for the Alexa voice assistant.
Fitbit also sent out an update in November that activated the ECG monitoring app. This was a headlining feature when the new Fitbit stuff was announced earlier this year. But the company mentioned that it wouldn’t be available right away and that users would need to wait for an update in the future.