I told myself that the Fitbit Air would be a good addition to my EDC. A simple, complementary tracker that I don’t need to worry about charging as often. I also told myself that it will never replace a dedicated smartwatch. Turns out I was very wrong.
I love the Pixel Watch 4. I think it’s Google’s best product of 2025 despite what seem like inconsequential changes. Not only does it look good, but it also complements basically any Android phone you’ve used over a period of time. Although that also applies to all previous versions.
When the first leaks of the Fitbit Air appeared, I’ll be honest. He had little interest.
Then the release date arrived and curiosity got the best of me. With over £100 in Google Store credit accumulated on the UK site, I thought I’d get one to try as it’s free for me. And while I know this sounds like a lot of hyperbole, this spur-of-the-moment decision has potentially changed my daily life in ways I really didn’t expect.
A wearable that doesn’t look like a wearable
For years I’ve used a smartwatch as a bridge to my phone. I’m not breaking any new ground that millions of people haven’t already done. I mention this because I have never used notification sounds or vibration on my phone. It drives me crazy when I hear a phone make a noise that I haven’t allowed. Therefore, I constantly keep it in silent mode with only the keyboard and touch haptics enabled; these can remain.
I want the little screen I carry everywhere to only make noise when I tell it to.
Then, in my infinite wisdom or stupidity, you decide, I somehow offloaded those annoyances to the various smartwatches I’ve used over the last decade. Changing the pings, knocks and vibrations to the extremity of my left wrist. You can probably get where this is going.
Yes, it’s something I’ve regretted over time.
My various Pixel watches have become an extension of my smartphone. Information overload has really become a struggle for me. The sensible decision would be to disable those vibration pings, right?
So I did just that. But that didn’t stop me from just scrolling or waiting for things to appear on the small screen that I can watch for more than 16 hours a day. My phone can be left face down, out of sight, or requires active interaction to become a “true” distraction. My watch, not so much. It is literally strapped to my body with all those important sensors needed to get information about my health and fitness.
Now back to the Fitbit Air. When I finally saw the Air launch and read the details of the smartwatch downgrades, I instantly saw a stop to that information overload. Something I could use to keep an eye on those key metrics on my own time. It is not necessary to constantly touch up or tinker to make everything work.
I saw it as a truly passive piece of technology.
It is small, light and comfortable. The trio of dream features for something you’ll wear all day and all night. Charging just one a week is also liberating, but the sedentary individual might take even longer.
I’m not sure if this is a compliment per se, but I would compare it to those old Live Strong bands if you remember them. Now, the biggest compliment I can pay is that I forget the Fitbit Air is there, and that’s arguably its best feature. It just fits seamlessly into my existence while keeping tabs on the key health stats that matter to me.
This is the type of product I want and need more of in my life.
What’s more, it’s actually not that bad to track fitness. I recently came out of a brief involuntary retirement to play soccer (“soccer” to my American friends) with some long-time friends, and the entire 80-minute session went on without me touching my phone. I tagged it in Google Health later when I picked up my phone from the field.
The same thing happens when I go for a walk or take my dog for an evening walk. I’m not even setting it or forgetting it. I can’t speak to the accuracy, but it seems pretty fair to me, even though there’s no GPS hardware hidden inside. I’m not too worried if he misses a few feet here and there. Anything above a truly rough estimate is more than enough for me.
The lack of a screen is actually liberating in more ways than one.
First of all, I’m not playing with the screen mid-workout. Just lift the weights, run, walk the dog. Zero distractions of any kind. I’m focused and damn, that feels amazing.
Less, less is actually more.
Perhaps my opinion would be different if my Pixel Watch 4 was an LTE-compatible model. I 100% agree that going to the gym or going for a run without needing to carry your phone is a tempting prospect. The thing is, in most cases, those experiences are to completely lock me in. Putting in tough hours at the gym and just focusing on that one task, something I’ve been doing more of over the last 18-24 months in a bid to improve all areas of my health and wellbeing.
Yeah, Google Health could be a little betterbut I just want to see the data. Just give me a pretty solid picture of what’s going on and I can modify my habits to hopefully live a healthier existence.
If you had asked me a few weeks ago if I had a Fitbit among my “must have” products in my EDC, I would have called you a liar, but here we are. I’m going to use the free Pixel Watch and I really love it.
The only negative thing? I often find myself raising my left wrist to check the time. Unfortunately, there’s nothing but a light blue cloth strap and a silver sliver staring back at me, and that’s all it needs to be.
At $99It’s hard to go wrong.
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