Alongside this morning’s introduction of the new Fitbit Versa, we’re also getting our first look at Fitbit’s new kid-focused wearable. In fact, the Ace is the company’s inaugural attempt at a fitness tracker designed for ages eight and up. Fitbit is leaning heavily on its Alta wearable here, with a familiar look alongside smaller bands made to fit tinier wrists.
Parents will note that some data has been removed from the usual dashboard in an attempt to focus on movement and less on measurables like calories burned. Fitbit’s focus here is to build strong habits in kids from a young age, encouraging active lifestyles. More below.
Childhood obesity rates are rising around the world, but particularly in the United States, according to recent data from the World Health Organization. Fitbit is looking to curb that trend with its new wearable that includes kid-friendly features and a design that isn’t bulky. Taking the familiar Alta format allows Fitbit to focus on a software that is intuitive for children, skipping the more complex designs of its higher-end wearables.
One area that Fitbit says it paid particularly close attention was to age-appropriate daily goals. Whether it be movement or sleep, the company leaned heavily on the CDC’s recommend guidelines. For kids that’s 60-minutes of activity per day along with nine-hours of sleep. That’s up from 30 and seven, respectively, for adults.
In terms of tracking data and setting goals, parents ultimately have the final say with control via a smartphone app. Children under 12 are required to have parental assistance in setting up Ace. One interesting feature is the live feed, which shares goals and data in an Instagram-like way that lets kids see progress over time. Of course, there are the usual push notifications that any fitness tracker user has come to love (or hate), offering reminders to get moving.
The long-term play here for Fitbit is obvious. Bring potential users into the fold at a younger age in hopes that they’ll stick with the ecosystem as they grow older. One definite advantage it has over similar kid-focused fitness trackers is a more adult-looking form factor. Some of the designs we’ve seen look decidedly more Nickelodeon than cutting-edge tech.
The new Fitbit Ace has a retail price of $99.95 and will be available in Q2 of this year. It will come in two different colorways, purple or blue, and will be sold at all of the usual retailers including Amazon.
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Fitbit Launches Fitbit Ace, Inspires Healthy Habits for Kids and Makes Fitness Fun for the Whole Family
SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Fitbit (NYSE: FIT), the leading global wearables brand, today introduced Fitbit Ace™, an activity tracker that makes fitness fun for kids while inspiring the entire family to build healthy habits together and help fight decreasing levels of activity in children.ii Designed for kids ages 8 and older, Ace automatically tracks steps, active minutes and sleep, has up to 5 days of battery life,i features an adjustable, showerproof wristband in two bright colors, and provides encouragement to be active. Plus, with the new Fitbit family account, parents can control who their kids connect with in the Fitbit®app so they can safeguard their kids’ privacy and stay on top of their activity. Ace is available for presale today, with global retail availability in Q2 2018.
According to the World Health Organization, childhood obesity rates are on the rise,iii with two out of three kids inactive every day.ii Based on a new Fitbit study, most parents agree and believe their children are less active than when they were children.iv They are concerned about their child’s weight, the food they eat, and their activity levels, as well as the rising trend of childhood obesity. The majority of parents want their children to be healthier (84%) and want their families to be more active (87%).vi Screen time is cited as the biggest challenge in getting their kids to be active, and parents are looking for ways to encourage a more healthy, active lifestyle, including being more active as a family, cooking together, or encouraging their children to have a better understanding of their own activity levels. In fact, 75% of parents said they are interested in the use of fitness trackers to help them keep their kids active, and Fitbit was selected over competitors more than twice as often due to ease of use and brand trust.vi
Help Kids Stay Active While Having Fun
To address this challenge, Fitbit has designed Ace to encourage kids 8 and older to be more active and build healthy habits with their families:
- Track their activity: Provide kids with motivation to move by automatically tracking steps, active minutes and sleep stats, and set customizable daily step and active minute goals. The World Health Organization recommends children ages 7-17 get 60 minutes of daily physical activity,v and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests 9 to 12 hours of sleep a night.vi
- Remind them to move: Reduce sedentary time by setting up personalized reminders that nudge them to get at least 250 steps each hour with a small buzz when they’ve been sitting on the couch or in front of a screen for too long.
- Reward them for moving: Encourage kids to achieve their goals by rewarding them with celebratory messages and fun, collectible badges, which can be seen in the Fitbit app on their (or your) phone.
- Motivate them with challenges: Kids can compete against family, or friends (coming soon), in daily and weekend challenges, or in a Family Faceoff – a new 5-day step challenge that allows members in a family account to compete against each other and stay motivated (coming soon).vii
“The challenge of inactivity with our children is not going away and is only estimated to get worse as they get older, dropping almost 40 minutes per year from ages 9 to 15,viii” said Chris Watts, executive director of the National Fitness Foundation. “It is essential to provide parents with tools to help their kids be more active. Fitbit’s solution offers more than just a way to track activity – it helps instill healthy habits from an early age, making it fun and rewarding to move more and empowers parents to make health and fitness a family affair.”
Safeguard Your Kids’ Privacy and Stay Connected
Protecting kids’ privacy is top of mind for parents who let their kids use technology. That’s why our new Fitbit family account is designed to be compliant with Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and other applicable privacy laws, allowing parents to manage who their children connect with and what information they see in the Fitbit app:
- Parent view setting: Lets you navigate between your view and your kid’s view to check their activity, progress, and approve their friend requests from family members and friends (coming soon) at any time in the Fitbit app. Ace automatically syncs with most Android and iOS devices; Windows devices coming soon.ix
- Child view setting: Limits what data your child sees in the Fitbit app, such as stats, friend requests, and more.
- Stay in touch: For kids with smartphones, ensure they never miss your call with notifications directly on their wrist.
“As childhood obesity rates continue to rise, it’s more important than ever to empower the entire family to embrace a healthy and more active lifestyle,” said James Park, CEO and Co-founder of Fitbit. “It can be hard to start and stick to good habits, and we know from our community that network effects are key to getting and keeping people motivated. By bringing that experience to families, it can make healthier habits feel more achievable by making it fun and engaging. We are excited by the opportunity to enable parents to help set their kids on a path to building lifelong, healthy habits all while having fun together.”
Designed for Kids
With an adjustable, showerproof wristband and up to 5 days battery life,i Ace is designed to keep pace with your kid’s life and withstand any splashes, spills or activities. By offering 10 unique clock faces and two fun interchangeable bands in electric blue and power purple, kids can find the style that fits their unique personality and be motivated to wear Ace day and night, no matter what they are doing.
Pricing & Availability
Fitbit Ace is available for presale today on Fitbit.com for $99.95. Ace will be available in stores worldwide in Q2 2018, including major North American retailers Amazon, Best Buy, Kohl’s, and Target.
Today, Fitbit also announced Fitbit Versa™, a contemporary, intuitive smartwatch at an approachable price, and female health tracking tools; see all press releases and download images at www.fitbit.com/press.
About Fitbit, Inc. (NYSE: FIT)
Fitbit helps people lead healthier, more active lives by empowering them with data, inspiration and guidance to reach their goals. As the leading global wearables brand, Fitbit designs products and experiences that track and provide motivation for everyday health and fitness. Fitbit’s diverse line of innovative and popular products include Fitbit Blaze®, Fitbit Charge 2®, Fitbit Alta HR™, Fitbit Alta®, Fitbit Ace™, Fitbit Flex 2®, and Fitbit Zip® activity trackers, as well as the Fitbit Ionic™ and Fitbit Versa™ smartwatches, FitbitFlyer™ wireless headphones and Fitbit Aria 2™ Wi-Fi Smart Scale. Fitbit products are carried in over 45,000 retail stores and in 86 countries around the globe. Powered by one of the world’s largest social fitness networks and databases of health and fitness data, the Fitbit platform delivers personalized experiences, insights and guidance through leading software and interactive tools, including the Fitbit and Fitbit Coach apps, and the Fitbit OS for smartwatches. Fitbit Health Solutions develops health and wellness solutions designed to help increase engagement, improve health outcomes, and drive a positive return for employers, health plans and health systems.
Fitbit and the Fitbit logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Fitbit, Inc. in the U.S. and other countries. Additional Fitbittrademarks can be found at www.fitbit.com/legal/trademark-list. Third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, that involve risks and uncertainties including, among other things, statements regarding the future retail availability of Fitbit Ace and the availability of other product features described in this release. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and may differ materially from actual results due to a variety of factors, including the effects of the highly competitive market in which we operate, including competition from much larger technology companies; any inability to successfully develop and introduce new products, features, and services or enhance existing products and services; product liability issues, security breaches or other defects; and other factors discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in our most recent report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements contained herein are based on information available to us as of the date hereof and we do not assume any obligation to update these statements as a result of new information or future events.
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