Popular fitness gadgets company Fitbit has decided to level up their game. Introducing their newest smartwatch, Ionic, which is touted as the newest competitor to other popular smartwatches such as the Apple Watch, Garmin, and Samsung Gear.
Ionic has no definite release date yet, but it is expected to hit the stores worldwide in October. Already available for pre-order on the Fitbit official website, it costs $299 in the United States and £230 in the United Kingdom.
So, what makes it different from other Fitbit products such as the Fitbit Blaze? Although it sports notification support, music control and a similar color touchscreen, Ionic also boasts of water resistance up to 50 meters, a built-in Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking, and a third-party app platform called the Fitbit App Gallery.
"We have become the leading global wearables brand, setting the pace of innovation in the category and establishing the largest social fitness network that helps millions of people around the world be healthier," said James Park, co-founder and CEO of Fitbit, in a statement.
"With Ionic, we will deliver what consumers have not yet seen in a smartwatch – a health and fitness first platform that combines the power of personalization and deeper insights with our most advanced technology to date, unlocking opportunities for unprecedented health tracking capabilities in the future," he added.
Ionic also sports a contactless payment system. Dubbed Fitbit Pay, it is the result of Fitbit's acquisition of Coin last year. Like Apple Pay and Android Pay, it will allow users to pay over the counter using the smartwatch even without a phone. Fitbit Pay is already compatible with major credit card companies such as MasterCard, Visa, and AMEX.
The PurePulse heart rate of Ionic is also upgraded, allowing users to track their heart rate more accurately during exercise. The company also says Ionic can also monitor oxygen levels in the blood, making other health metrics available for monitoring in the future.
Also, unlike its competitors, Ionic is said to run on a four-day battery life or 10 hours on GPS. Other features of Ionic 2.5 GB storage, swappable band designs, and premium coaching on its Fitness app.
Ionic comes in three colors: silver, grey, and orange. For more information about the product, visit Fitbit's official website.
