Fitbit has made no bones in the past about how difficult it has been to integrate low-power Bluetooth integration with select Android phones. At issue here is not the presence of Bluetooth 4.0, which most modern Android smartphones have, but the software stack required to communicate with third-party accessories like the Fitbit One and Flex.
Every new phone we add Bluetooth 4.0 sync support for requires custom development. While many of the new phones coming out have Bluetooth 4.0 hardware, many of them don’t have the necessary software for third party apps (like ours) to access this hardware. Google recently announced that they will be standardizing support for Bluetooth 4.0 in an upcoming Android OS, which will allow us to sync to Android phones with Bluetooth 4.0 more easily in the future. We’re continuing to work with phone manufacturers and with Google to try and get sync support for additional devices.
That being said, they’ve added support for the Galaxy S4, which is the fastest-selling Android phone of all time, and is on its way to be the platform’s most popular device. The company, which promises to launch its Fitbit Flex band in Canada later this summer, also says they’ll be adding more Android support when Bluetooth 4.0 support is standardized “in an upcoming Android OS.” This new Android release improves activity graph and sleep recording functionality, too.
Download Fitbit for Android.
Via: Fitbit Blog
MobileSyrup may earn a commission from purchases made via our links, which helps fund the journalism we provide free on our website. These links do not influence our editorial content. Support us here.
