The Fitbit Versa is Fitbit's most prominent product in its spring lineup, but it'll also be joined by the company's first fitness tracker made specifically for kids — the Fitbit Ace.
The Fitbit Ace adopts the same general design found with the Fitbit Alta, meaning it's got a small digital screen on the front that's surrounded by a comfortable silicone band. The body is smaller compared to the Alta and is intended to grow with kids as they get bigger, and its waterproof design means you won't have to worry about the Ace being worn in the shower.
You'll find 5+ days of battery life on the Ace, and it accurately tracks steps, active minutes, and sleep. Kids will get reminders to get at least 250 steps each hour, and per the recommendation of the World Health Organization for kids between 7 and 17, the Ace will encourage users to get 60 active minutes each day.
Kids will get rewards and collectible badges for completing specific challenges, there are 10 different clock faces available to change up the look of the Ace, and it's available in two fun colors: Electric Blue and Power Purple.
Young ones will be able to sync and view all of their data through the Fitbit app like adult users, but they'll be grouped under new family accounts that Fitbit's also launching alongside the Ace. Stats that kids view are altered (for example, they won't see how many calories they've burned), parents can choose who their children can accept friend requests from, and you can enable a kid view on your main Fitbit app to see how much activity and sleep the little rascals are actually getting.
Why is Fitbit releasing the Ace in the first place? 1 out of 5 kids in the United States are obese and 2 out of 3 kids are inactive every single day. With the Ace, Fitbit wants to cut those numbers down.
Per Fitbit Co-Founder and CEO, James Park:
As childhood obesity rates continue to rise, it's more important than ever to empower the entire family to embrace a healthy and more active lifestyle. It can be hard to start and stick to good habits, and we know from our community that network effects are key to getting and keeping people motivated. By bringing that experience to families, it can make healthier habits feel more achievable by making it fun and engaging. We are excited by the opportunity to enable parents to help set their kids on a path to building lifelong, healthy habits all while having fun together.
Pre-orders for the Fitbit Ace are live right now, and it'll be made available at Amazon, Best Buy, Kohl's, and Target in North America. Pricing is set at just $99.95.
