| Cult of Mac

Take charge of your fitness routine with this GPS-powered Fitbit

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This GPS-powered Fitbit will help you accomplish your fitness goals
You don't necessarily need an Apple Watch to achieve your fitness goals.
Photo: Fitbit

Ready to take control of your health and wellness? Whether you like to cycle outdoors, go on hikes, or work up a sweat with a fitness app, if you’re not wearing an Apple Watch or similar fitness tracker, it can be hard to tell whether the plan you set for yourself is actually working

If you don’t want to shell out for Apple’s smartwatch, this Fitbit Ionic GPS Fitness Smartwatch is just what you need to help guide you in your fitness goals. it’s packed with helpful features that help you refine your plans and keep up with your progress.

3 Apple Watch studies you can join to help fight COVID-19

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Stanford COVID-19 Wearables Study is open to Apple Watch and Fitbit wearers.
The Stanford COVID-19 Wearables Study looks to see if your Apple Watch or Fitbit can detect a coronavirus infection before you know you have it.
Photo: Stanford University

Scientists want to know if the health data an Apple Watch collects can be used to diagnose COVID-19. There are multiple research studies currently open to those with Apple’s wearable.

Participants contribute to the goal of detecting the illness before the wearer knows they’re sick.

Google splashes $2.1 billion on Fitbit to fight Apple Watch

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Fitbit
Fitbit will soon be a Google company.
Photo: Fitbit

Google has confirmed plans to buy Fitbit as it looks to step up its fight against Apple Watch. The deal, worth approximately $2.1 billion, will bring new Made by Google wearables to market.

“Together, we aim to spur innovation in wearables and build helpful products to benefit more people around the world,” Google said.

Fitbit hopes to copy Apple Watch’s ECG

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Fitbit Ionic takes on Apple Watch
Fitbit’s offerings have become more sophisticated as they try to catch up to Apple Watch.
Photo: Fitbit

A highlight of the Apple Watch is the ability to tell if the wearer has a heart problem called atrial fibrillation, and rival wearable-maker Fitbit is working to add AFib detection to its smart watches.

Fitbit is feeling the hurt from Apple Watch

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Fitbit Versa
Smartwatch revenue decreased 27% year-over-year.
Photo: Fitbit

Apple Watch is soaring right now, but the same can’t be said for all its competitors.

Fitbit, which preceded Apple in the wearables field, has reported its latest quarterly earnings — and they’re not as good as hoped for. Fitbit’s smartwatch revenue decreased 27% year-over-year. That was partly due to “weaker than expected” sales of the Fitbit Versa Lite Edition.

Apple dominates global wearables sales with only one product

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What cool new features are hidden inside that slimmer Apple Watch Series 4 frame? [Mockup]
People around the world buy lots of different types of wearable computers. But not enough to outsell the Apple Watch.
Photo illustration: Graham Bower/Cult of Mac

We already know that Apple sells more smartwatches than everyone else. But there are other types of wearable computers. Do companies sell enough of these other types to overtake the Apple Watch? In a word…Nope.

But the second largest wearable maker might surprise you. Especially considering how close behind Apple they are.

Fitbit gives Apple Watch its only real competition

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Fitbit Versa
The Fitbit Versa would be on the top of smartwatch market if there were no Apple Watch. As it is, it's being solidly beat.
Photo: Fitbit

The smartwatch competition has come down to just two players: Apple Watch and Fitbit. They leave Samsung and other wearables makers well behind.

And in the second quarter of this year, Apple stayed far ahead of even Fitbit.

Apple Watch sales are up but it’s losing marketshare

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2018 Apple Watch
Raise to wake might finally be coming to an end.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple Watch is finally starting to face some bigger competition from rival smartwatch-makers, based on the latest data from Canalys.

Fitbit and Garmin are capitalizing on the wearables trend and diversifying their lineups to appeal to specific use cases. As a result, Apple Watch’s market share shrunk even though it sold more watches in Q2 2018 than it did during the same period last year.

Apple Watch wins Q1 wearables race, no matter who you ask

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Apple Watch
Rival market analysts peg Apple Watch shipments at different numbers, but the winner in the smartwatch market isn't in doubt.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Apple was the top wearables vendor in Q1 according to market analysis firm Canalys. A rival analyst from Asymco also placed Apple at the top, but with a higher total of devices shipped. Canalys put the number at 3.8 million. the other at just over 4 million.

Disagreements like this are possible because Apple itself doesn’t reveal how many smartwatches it sells. Still, both groups of analysts agree that Apple Watch leads the market.

Apple Watch shipments almost double Fitbit’s

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Save big on the Apple Watch Series 3
Apple Watch dominates the global wearables market, solidly beating its arch-rival.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

There’s no doubt who’s top dog in the global wearables market. Just over 4 million Apple Watches shipped during the first quarter of this year. That’s nearly double the number of Fitbits shipped.

The performance of Apple’s wearable was also up dramatically when compared to the same period of last year.