Google Launches Fitbit Air and Health App

Google redrew its wearable strategy in a single announcement, unveiling the $100 Fitbit Air and a new Google Health app that will replace Fitbit.

The hardware stands out for what it lacks: a screen. Google appears to position the Fitbit Air as a simpler, lower-cost fitness device aimed at people who want tracking without the constant pull of notifications and on-wrist apps. The company also opened preorders today, signaling that this is not a concept or a future tease but an immediate shift in its consumer health push.

Google is pairing cheaper hardware with a broader software reset, turning Fitbit from a standalone brand into part of a larger health platform.

The bigger story may sit in software. Google Health will replace the Fitbit app, a move that suggests the company wants one home for activity, wellness, and device data across its ecosystem. Reports indicate this transition marks another step in Google's long effort to absorb Fitbit more fully after the acquisition, while trimming overlap between brands and services.

That combination could reshape how buyers think about entry-level fitness wearables. A screenless tracker cuts cost and complexity, while a unified app could make data easier to manage for users already inside Google's products. At the same time, the change raises obvious questions about how existing Fitbit users will migrate, what features will carry over, and how much of Fitbit's identity survives inside Google's broader platform.

What happens next matters beyond one gadget launch. Google now needs to prove that a stripped-down device and an app transition can feel like simplification, not subtraction. If the company pulls that off, Fitbit Air and Google Health could define a more seamless, lower-friction path into digital fitness for a much wider audience.