Google Fitbit Edge: Specs, Features, Price, Release Date

The new $179 tracker features Pixel Watch smarts, a one-week battery life, and an OLED display.

Google's display-less Fitbit Air made a lot of noise, but it's been three years since the company updated its display-equipped Charge 6. The older tracker is showing its age, lacking the newer automatic exercise detection, deeper health metrics and IP68 rating. That's where the new Fitbit Edge comes in.

Announced on Monday, it's the replacement that screen-preferring fitness tracker fans have been waiting for. It's in the sweet spot at $180 — not quite the price of the Google Pixel Watch, but offering a similar experience in a slimmer, pill-shaped design. And unlike the Pixel Watch, it's compatible with Android and iPhone via the Google Health app. Pre-orders are available now and will go on sale October 27th.

Fitbit Edge in Obsidian with active band (left), magnet band (middle) and performance ring band (right).

The Edge has a user-replaceable battery, a Fitbit first, which aligns with Google's efforts to make the Pixel Watch more repairable. (Probably due to new battery laws coming into effect in the EU next year.) Repair options vary by region and availability.

If you find the round face of the Pixel Watch too bulky, the capsule-shaped alternative Edge may be better for smaller wrists. If the Charge 6's 1.04-inch screen was too small, the Edge upgrades it to a larger 1.34-inch screen. The difference is significant, and this extra real estate can make a real difference when looking at your mid-workout metrics.

The Edge borrows a few other features from the Pixel Watch, including an altimeter that uses atmospheric pressure to measure changes in altitude. This means it can record elevation gain and loss during outdoor activities, track floors climbed, and add more context to your outdoor statistics. It also has a far-field skin temperature sensor that replaces the standard device temperature sensor found on other Fitbits. By bringing some of the Pixel Watch's more advanced hardware to its first fitness wearable, Google gives the Edge a compelling middle ground in its lineup at Fitbit's price point.

From left to right: The Fitbit Edge in Porcelain with Active Sport Band, Silver Brushed Metal Band, Mahogany with Magnetic Band and Olive with Performance Loop Band.

While missing several of the Charge 6's screen-less tracker features, the Edge inherits improvements from the Fitbit Air, including built-in GPS and electrical sensors that work with an electrocardiogram (ECG) app. You can also control music playback on a connected Bluetooth device, just like you did with the Charge 6, and turn-by-turn directions from Google Maps are coming later this year.

Google also announced more advanced automatic activity tracking for Edge, using Gemini Intelligence to identify up to 100 types of exercise. It can track more than 50 exercise modes, up from 40 in its previous version. Google will also bring these features to the Pixel Watch 5 and Air. If they work as promised, it means users won't have to log all activity manually.

With a Google Health Premium subscription, Edge can track blood pressure trends without manual calibration and insulin resistance trends without the need for a blood draw. Google first announced these features alongside the first Pixel Watch 5, but they only became available at the end of September. They're also available on Air, keeping Google's pageless tracker up-to-date as its collection expands.

The seven-day battery life remains unchanged, but it's one of the Edge's biggest advantages over the Pixel Watch. Like the Air, it takes about 90 minutes to fully charge, half an hour less than the Charge 6.

One odd omission is the Near Field Communication (NFC) sensor, which means the Edge doesn't support contactless payments via Google Wallet. It's a downgrade from the Charge 6 and an odd performance to miss out on a fitness tracker that Google offers as a step up from its original Fitbits.

The Edge introduces new digital and analog watch faces, and the Canyon band color from the Pixel Watch 5 returns, along with five other band styles (Active Band, Active Sport Band, Performance Loop Band, Magnet Band, and Metal Links Band). The Stephen Curry collaboration ($220) that also appeared with the Fitbit Air and Pixel Watch 5 is back in the same brown-orange colorway.

New Metal Mesh band for Fitbit Air.

Alongside the Edge, Google has also upgraded the screen-less Fitbit Air with a new metal band. This is an even more comfortable band than the modern high polyurethane band. The Air may have originally been designed to disappear on your wrist, but the new strap turns it into an accessory.

If you use a Fitbit Air without a screen, Edge won't change your mind. But if you're not ready to ditch the screen, the Edge might be a compelling and affordable alternative for iPhone and Android users. Stay tuned for our review.