Fitbit set to break its release drought with new bands in 2026

A year ago Google promised that Fitbit wasn’t going anywhere. Yet here we are, nearing the end of 2025, and not a single new Fitbit device has appeared. It seems, though, that we will be getting a new Fitbit in 2026.

This is according to 9to5google, which says the company shared with them that it will be “launching new Fitbit hardware next year.” Fitbit has teased that 2026 will be an “exciting year”.

Fitbit’s first silent year

Founded in 2007, the company has been releasing new devices every year since its first tracker arrived in 2009, but 2025 has broken that streak. The last model to arrive was the Fitbit Ace LTE, a smartwatch for kids that landed in May 2024. Before that, Fitbit maintained a remarkably steady release rhythm. Between 2016 and 2020, it launched around three to five devices per year, covering everything from the Charge and Versa lines to smaller models like the Luxe and Inspire.

The slowdown began after Google took full control. In 2023, only one device appeared, the Charge 6, followed by just one in 2024. Looking at the data, Fitbit released 35 products between 2009 and 2024. More than half of those came before 2020, while the pace in recent years has dropped sharply.

The absence of a Charge 7 at IFA Berlin in September only deepened concerns. The Charge range has long been Fitbit’s core series, usually refreshed every two years. By that schedule, a 2025 update was expected. Yet there was no announcement, no teaser, and not even a mention of Fitbit at the event. The Luxe line, last updated in 2021, has also been left untouched.

Firmware updates have slowed as well. The Charge 6 received its last patch in July, and little has followed since. The overall trend suggests that development is now geared more toward supporting Google’s Pixel Watch lineup rather than maintaining Fitbit’s once-diverse ecosystem.

The slow shift to Pixel Watch

It’s becoming clear that Google’s strategy is to fold Fitbit’s technology into its Pixel Watch ecosystem. When the company responded to reports in 2024 about possibly discontinuing Fitbit smartwatches, its statement to ArsTechnica said it was “very committed to Fitbit and the customers that use and depend on those products.” Yet the same statement praised Fitbit’s contributions to the Pixel Watch, not Fitbit’s own devices. That sounded less like reassurance and more like preparation for integration.

Since the Pixel Watch 3 and 4 now rely heavily on Fitbit’s health algorithms and dashboards, Fitbit as a standalone brand is losing its identity. The Fitbit app has already been redesigned to fit into Google’s visual style. The Fitbit name still appears, but the experience feels increasingly like a subset of Google Fit and Wear OS rather than an independent platform.

A familiar Google pattern

This kind of slow absorption isn’t new for Google. Over the years, the company has acquired dozens of promising brands and folded them into its ecosystem, often to the point where the original name disappears. Motorola, Nest, and Waze all followed that trajectory in different ways. The products continue in spirit, but the brands fade as Google redirects resources toward its flagship lines.

These days, it seems Fitbit is spending most of its time tweaking the software. Just today it has opened a previous of its upcoming AI power health coach.

If we really do see a new Fitbit in 2026, it will probably not be Sense 3 or a new Versa. But we might see a Charge 7, a new Inspire or Luxe band. Google is focusing on the smartwatch aspect with its Pixel Watch series.

Regardless, at this point Fitbit appears less like a living brand and more like a legacy layer inside Google’s growing wearable ecosystem. Whether by design or neglect, Google seems to be letting Fitbit fade quietly into the background.

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