Fitbit is back into some launch news after a rather silent couple of years. The company has come up with the latest edition of the Charge line of bands, the Charge 4, almost 2 years after its last edition- Charge 3 was launched. And the Charge 4, apart from a whole suite of new features, gets an in-built GPS tech.
The band will be able to track its users position without the need of a smartphone, unlike Charge 3. The company has added a ton of other features as well, including a relative blood oxygen sensor, heart rate and sleep tracking, as well a swim-proof design. Other features, that were previously exclusive to Fitbit’s smartwatches, like Fitbit Pay, app notifications and smart wake, have been extended to the Charge 4 as well.
Fitbit promises a 7 day battery life on a full charge. The GPS however, takes a massive drain from the battery, with the band lasting just about 5 hours with GPS turned on. Nevertheless, the addition was very much in-demand and is a welcome one.
The NFC feature, that was usually announced for a special edition version of the Fitbit devices that cost extra, has been made available for all variety of Charge 4 devices. There will however be a Charge 4 SE, which will cost $20 extra, sporting a special woven strap, providing a reflective band as opposed to a simple black one.
The device still houses the same OLED display Charge 3 had, which will be able to display your heart rate, active time and steps progress, along with message previews and music controls, using Fitbit’s own minimalist OS for its fitness bands,
Fitbit also announced a new feature, Active Zone Minutes, a service that takes in parameters like your resting heart rate and age to calculate the amount of time you spend in various cardio zones. This feature will be available for just Charge 4 as of yet. However, the company plans to roll this out for other devices very soon.
Pre-order for Charge 4 and Charge 4 Special Edition begins today at Fitbit.com and select retailers online such as Amazon.com, Bestbuy.com, and Walmart.com. The band is also available online at all retailer sites worldwide and in stores where they are able to remain open, starting April 13, 2020. Charge 4 is available for $149.95 USD in black, rosewood, and storm blue/black.¹ Charge 4 Special Edition is available for $169.95 USD in an exclusive granite reflective/black woven band, plus a classic black band to easily swap out for workouts
With this announcement, Fitbit will stop selling its Charge 3 devices through its website. However, for those who are still interested in buying the device, Fitbit is planning to keep the supply running through 3rd party retailers.
