Fitness tech has evolved beyond activity trackers like the Apple Watch and Fitbit. Today, there are hundreds of streaming workout and wellness apps from brands like Nike, Equinox, and ClassPass to help track your exercises and reach your fitness goals There’s also been a boom in connected fitness equipment like Peloton, Mirror, and Tonal that are paving the way for on-demand workouts from the comfort of your home, with additional content like meditation, yoga, and mobility training to boost mind and body health.
Skip Crossrope unless you really love skipping rope.
For runners, Strava’s Best Efforts feature has been an easy way to chase PRs (and get a dopamine hit whenever you see those little medals pop up in your activity summary.) Now Strava is expanding the feature for cyclists. It’ll include new distances, elevation gain, single climbs, power, and time at specific intervals. More good news: it applies to previous rides too!
Three years after completing its $2.1 billion acquisition of Fitbit, Google has taken another step towards integrating the fitness-tracking company into its hardware lineup with some updated branding.
Recent changes on the Fitbit website, first spotted by 9to5Google, include an updated wordmark that uses capitalized Google Sans font and ditches the dotted arrow logo, which is still featured on the brand’s favicon.
A few days ago, Peloton announced it was getting rid of GymKit support for the Apple Watch on its Bike Plus. Technically, Peloton had already introduced a separate Apple Watch integration two years ago. But GymKit was originally a selling point for the more expensive bike, and removing it ticked off the company’s loyal users. Now, Peloton says that they heard the feedback “loud and clear.” GymKit ain’t going anywhere.
Peloton’s Q2 2024 earnings were mixed — some things flopped, other things seem to be buoying the business. Like relaunching the Tread Plus for $6,000. CEO Barry McCarthy told investors on the earnings call that since it started taking orders in December, there’s actually a demand backlog.
McCarthy also said increased interest led to more sales of its cheaper, entry-level Tread. That, I get. (I reviewed it, it’s great.) But I’m fascinated by the folks who didn’t blink at plopping down $6K for the Plus despite the infamy associated with it. Is that you? Hit me up, let’s chat. I’m legitimately curious!
DesFit, a leading voice in the fitness device space on YouTube, has a preview of the new Garmin Connect app and website that’s currently in beta for select users. This major overhaul will hopefully correct one of the main pain points that comes with using Garmin’s information dense devices. Des likes the emphasis on swiping panels, but says the at-a-glance screens will take time to get used to and the website still needs polishing.
What do you think?
The fitness brand will show a mix of content in a new hub on the app, called #TikTokFitness Powered by Peloton, as the company shifts its focus to creating content instead of pricey workout equipment. In the hub, Peloton will show short-form classes, select live sessions, and collaborations between instructors and TikTok creators in an attempt to draw new users in.
The gist is Fitbit told 58 Australian customers between 2020 and 2022 false or misleading information regarding their rights to returns, replacements, and refunds for faulty products. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission wasn’t having it — and this is the second case the ACCC has brought against Fitbit.
It’s concerning given that Fitbit’s pulled out of over a dozen countries recently. Plus, Ionic recalls haven’t exactly been gone smoothly. This kind of pattern is one you never like to see.
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Verge Score
Google’s fingerprints are all over this casual fitness tracker.
New quarter, same story. Peloton shares are falling after today’s earnings release in which the company said it was struggling to convert free users of its app to paid subscriptions. It pointed to recent partnerships, like the one with Lululemon, as an area of growth, along with hardware rentals. But once again, subscriber churn was higher than expected — a not-so-encouraging trend for a company known for its loyal fanbase.
It also confirmed that the Tread Plus will be relaunching at $5,995. That’s business, baby.
[investor.onepeloton.com]
Lululemon isn’t wasting time getting out of connected fitness. Following news it’s outsourcing content production to Peloton and halting Mirror sales, the company is laying off an additional 120 employees from its Studio division. This is a second round too, after laying off another 100 employees in July.
This is hardly surprising. Connected fitness companies that relied on premium hardware sales are all struggs to func these days. Turns out, the average joe isn’t fond of shelling out thousands for smart gym equipment when a digital subscription is much, much cheaper.
I’ve been testing the Ergatta and Aviron Strong for months. Both are great rowers, but I’m struggling to see a future for pricey connected fitness hardware.
One of the best things about Garmin is it often brings newer features to older models for free. Starting today, owners of the second-gen Epix, Fenix 7 series, Forerunner series, and Venu series can get some of the cool stuff introduced earlier this spring on the Epix Pro and Fenix 7 Pro. That includes the new Endurance and Hill Scores, muscle maps, weather map overlays, and... a fish forecast. You can check out the full list at the link below.
Personally, I don’t need a Hill Score to tell me I stink at uphill running but hey, it might be more helpful for you!
