{"id":784121,"date":"2026-05-09T11:21:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-09T11:21:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/784121\/"},"modified":"2026-05-09T11:21:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-09T11:21:19","slug":"as-a-pixel-watch-4-owner-i-really-love-and-hate-the-new-fitbit-air","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/784121\/","title":{"rendered":"As a Pixel Watch 4 owner, I really love (and hate) the new Fitbit Air"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve worn a Pixel Watch on my wrist since the original dropped in 2022, and have moved through all four models of Google\u2019s smartwatch. Before that, I had worn a Fitbit for many, many years, starting with the original Fitbit One and moving through the Flex, Alta, Charge, Blaze, and more. I love the product line, and it\u2019s no surprise to say that I\u2019m really, really excited about the new Fitbit Air<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It is quintessentially the Fitbit experience I grew to love with the screenless Flex, but brought into the modern day with a sleeker design and updated capabilities. As a Pixel Watch user and fan, I absolutely love that the Air exists, but that doesn\u2019t stop me from hating a few things about it.<\/p>\n

Pixel Watch or Fitbit Air? Which one do you prefer?<\/p>\n

7 votes<\/p>\n

Pixel Watch<\/p>\n

43%<\/p>\n

Fitbit Air<\/p>\n

43%<\/p>\n

Why not both?<\/p>\n

14%<\/p>\n

Neither<\/p>\n

0%<\/p>\n

The Fitbit Air is the perfect companion to a Pixel Watch<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Although the Fitbit Air was built by Google to be a standalone fitness tracker that can\u00a0track your exercise, sleep, and heart rate throughout the day and sync with the\u00a0new Google Health app<\/a>, the small tracker can also serve\u00a0as an excellent companion to the Pixel Watch 4.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve been begging Google to add multi-tracker support for years now, just like Samsung lets you use a watch and a band or ring at the same time in its app. It\u2019s finally happening. If you have a Pixel Watch, as I do, you won\u2019t have to remove it from the Google Health app to add the Fitbit Air. You can have both paired simultaneously, and Google told me you can specify in the app which order of preference the data should follow for each metric.<\/p>\n

That means I could wear my Pixel Watch 4 all day long, prioritize it for activity tracking and heart rate data, and still receive all my important notifications. Then, come nighttime, take off the large watch and switch to the thinner, lighter Fitbit Air, prioritizing it for sleep tracking. No notifications, no screens, no disturbances \u2014 perfect for sleep. Plus, it has silent smart alarms to wake me up in the morning. For heart rate, I could tell Google to prioritize data coming from the Pixel Watch, but since I wouldn\u2019t be wearing that to bed, it should pivot to the secondary data stream from the Fitbit Air at night.<\/p>\n

Google has made switching between a daytime Pixel Watch 4 and a nighttime Fitbit Air nearly seamless.<\/p>\n

All in all, this seems like the perfect two-tracker solution that balances features and comfort, connectivity and disconnection, and offers greater versatility. Maybe I\u2019m going on an adventure where I might scratch the Pixel Watch; I could switch to the Fitbit Air and not worry about that. Or maybe I\u2019m looking for a screenless bracelet so I can wear a classic analog watch on my other wrist. The Fitbit Air allows that.<\/p>\n

And although there aren\u2019t any specific accessories like this, the pebble-like design allows for more versatile wearability. Just like with the Fitbit One and Flex series, I expect a line of third-party bands that let you wear the Air as an armband or an ankle bracelet. Maybe even clip it to your shoes for cadence measurement. The future is full of possibilities now that we\u2019re no longer tied to the wrist.<\/p>\n

How Google missed the ball with the Fitbit Air<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Although a lot of you might be bemoaning the lack of GPS on the Fitbit Air<\/a>, it\u2019s not exactly the one thing I\u2019m most concerned about. I guess I\u2019m just used to using my phone as a companion to GPS-less trackers (such as some of my previous Fitbits and my Oura Rings). However, I\u2019m annoyed by two clear issues with the Fitbit Air.<\/p>\n

One is the fact that these two devices don\u2019t use the same charger. Again. Someone please stop Google from making another charger; it\u2019s getting ridiculous. The sad part is the chargers look so similar that, at first glance, I thought they were the same. But no. The Fitbit Air charger uses the dual-pin system of older Pixel Watches and existing Fitbits, whereas the Pixel Watch 4 charger switched to these new contact-based charging sensors.<\/p>\n

\"googleFitbit Air charger\"googlePixel Watch 4 charger<\/p>\n

What annoys me about this is that I need a separate charger by my bedside to keep the Fitbit Air filled up. Sure, the battery lasts seven days, unlike the Pixel Watch, and I could roll and hide the charger when I don\u2019t use it, but that\u2019s not practical. Google could\u2019ve done the right thing here. It didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Someone please stop Google from making another charger; it’s getting ridiculous.<\/p>\n

Another issue is that the switch from a Pixel Watch to a Fitbit Air isn\u2019t a true 1-to-1 experience due to the different sensors. Besides the lack of GPS, the Fitbit Air has a less accurate optical heart rate sensor than the Pixel Watch 4\u2019s multi-path sensor. It also misses an ECG sensor for AFib detection and a skin cEDA sensor for stress and body response tracking. It still has SpO2 and temperature sensors, though, at least.<\/p>\n

While some of these missing sensors aren\u2019t essential when sleeping, their absence means that anytime I choose to leave my Pixel Watch 4 at home and use the Fitbit Air, I\u2019m sacrificing some extra data points on stress and, more importantly, the life-saving potential of the AFib detection.<\/p>\n

For a $99 tracker, though, I can\u2019t complain all that much. Maybe a Fitbit Air 2 will fix some of these issues. I would take the unified charger approach first and foremost, though.<\/p>\n

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