Fitbit tries its hand at fashion-forward wearable

Fitbit's fitness tracker designs focused more on athletics and less on fashion, but that's changing with the launch of its Fitbit Alta model.

Fitbit AltaFitbit is the kind of digital health company that a lot of businesses envy but would never want to be. Its R&D budget of $100 million dwarfs the revenues of many similar digital health companies. Historically, its fitness tracker designs focused more on athletics and less on fashion, but that’s beginning to change with the launch of its Fitbit Alta model, according to a company statement.

It is making the Fitbit Alta trackers available for pre sale until they hit the market next month. They will be available in multiple colors with a high-performance fitness band with a satin finish and silver stainless steel tracker, but a gold stainless steel tracker option is coming soon too. It’s also working with Tory Burch to introduce new styles specific to Fitbit Alta, according to the statement.

There has been a steady trend over the past year of wearables getting in touch with their feminine side, as if the chunkiness of many tracking devices was the only thing standing in the way of people using them or continuing to use them. Research suggests other factors are involved. Misfit wearables brought a lot of diversity to its designs by making the housing for its activity and sleep sensors look more like jewelry and less like fitness accessories. That approach factored into Misfit’s acquisition by Fossil Group last year.

One of the risks that activity trackers run, and this was abundantly clear at the Consumer Electronics Show this year, is that many look the same. If you’re not going to be a company that emphasizes clinical validation and doing something particularly innovative like tracking vitals through earphones, such as Valencell, then the external design makes a huge difference.

Withings‘ takes both approaches to heart, although it produces a mix of wearables and connected devices. It has a smartwatch that looks like a classic styled watch but with sensors and an activity tracker that is a starkly digital contrast. On the device side its Thermo children’s thermometer, which uses infrared sensors to measure temperature and received FDA clearance last year, looks downright cartoonish compared to the clinical design of other thermometers. In short, its products stand out both in appearance and what they can do.

The growing struggle in the direct to consumer wearable market is balancing the new sensibility of the need to be fashionable with the rising data tracking expectations of customers, illustrated by the lawsuit against Fitbit filed by users.

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