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The Oppo launching Find X8 series, a shift in the fitness landscape has been seen on Android. Fitbit will become the standard device preload for the first time, which is the beginning of a new trend in the near future. From the trend identified, it could be clear that Google’s acquisition of Fitbit is transforming the fitness tracking ecosystem on devices running on the Android OS.
The Standard Android App Suite
Typically, a new Android device purchased comes already equipped with the standard apps available on Google, like Google Search, Chrome, Gmail, Google Maps, YouTube, Home, Messages, Drive, Photos, Meet, Google Wallet, YouTube Music, and Find My Device. All these apps are designed to offer basic services: from browsing to communication, navigation, and media. But while these apps come pre-installed on most Android phones, many companies also include their own apps for many of these services, resulting in redundant apps that perform similar functions.
In the Oppo Find X8 and X8 Pro, at least, this is changing. In fact, the Oppo Find X8 and X8 Pro are the first non-Google Android phones to include Fitbit in the default “Google” app folder, a break from the status quo of years. Google Fit has long been the Android default fitness application. It was one of the first places where consumers could find health and exercise data. However, to the surprise of many, Fitbit is knocking Google Fit off these new devices, with Google Fit notably absent in the Find X8 series.
Fitbit’s New Role in the Android Ecosystem
This change signals a deeper integration of Fitbit into the broader Android ecosystem, following Google’s acquisition of Fitbit. Since the acquisition, it was widely speculated that Google would gradually shift its focus to Fitbit, and this transition appears to be unfolding in real-time. The inclusion of Fitbit as the default fitness app on the Oppo Find X8 marks an important milestone in this process.
Google Fit was the default Android device-based fitness tracking app for years, an open platform that developers could use to build upon, and was already integrated with many Google services. But it is part of the strategy to further integrate Fitbit into Google’s ecosystem that saw the deprecation of the Google Fit API earlier this year. This does, however effectively pave the way for Fitbit to become a primary fitness tracking service across Android and Wear OS devices.
The transition has been a slow one, with Google placing Fitbit squarely at the center of the fitness service. Its developers will have until June 30, 2025, to switch over to the Health Connect platform, which will only further entrench Fitbit at the center of Android’s fitness services. So it goes on Oppo Find X8.
OEMs Welcome Fitbit for Mobile Devices
Interestingly, since Fitbit was available to Android OEMs for some time, it took till late 2024 for one of the leading Android manufacturers, Oppo, to ship a device with Fitbit preloaded as the default fitness tracking app. At the same time, this indicates that maybe other Android manufacturers will follow soon and include Fitbit on their devices. In the near future, the Fitbit app probably will become a standard pre-installed app on more Android devices, which may replace Google Fit in total.
The decision to preload Fitbit instead of Google Fit aligns with Google’s broader health and wellness strategy. By integrating Fitbit into devices like the Pixel Watch, it increasingly appears that Google will continue to focus Fitbit as the de facto fitness tracking app throughout its ecosystem. But what really puts the issue to rest is the company’s efforts to ensure Fitbit ends up on more devices, allowing consumers to have a streamlined fitness experience.
What Does This Mean for Users?
Perhaps, for users, this is of several implications. First, Fitbit preloading on an Android device, such as the Oppo Find X8, would ensure that these users have instant availability of a set of advanced metrics related to fitness tracking, such as sleep tracking, heart rate monitoring, and workout analysis. An established brand in the health and fitness space, Fitbit may be able to offer users a more substantial and detailed solution than Google Fit does.
Another point is that this integration can mark the beginning of more fluent combinations between Fitbit’s app and other Google services. With data from Fitbit potentially syncing between Google services, including Google Fit and Health Connect, users could finally be presented with a more comprehensive health ecosystem, with information given from different sources combined and available for easier interpretation.
The Future for Android’s Fitness Strategy
Further changes may emerge in the handling of fitness and health tracking as we see even more manufacturers take to having Fitbit on their Android devices as a kind of default app. This transition from Google Fit to Fitbit may open up lines of yet more features and improvements as Fitbit continues to innovate and introduce new technologies in wearable health tracking.
source: 9to5google
