Google on Wednesday officially announced the Fitbit Ace LTE, a device specifically made and marketed toward children.
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Described as a “first-of-its-kind connected smartwatch,” the Fitbit Ace LTE has a couple of main features. For one, it aims to help kids lead healthier lives through fun, gamified exercises. Secondly, it helps to increase parent-child communication and child safety through real-time location data.
If you’re in the market for a wearable for your child, here’s what you should know.
Design & specifications
The form factor of the device appears similarly to other Fitbit devices, such as the Sense 2 or Versa 4. It sports a stainless steel and recycled plastic housing, and comes with a raised bumper to help protect the screen.
As far as specifications, the Fitbit Ace LTE actually has a lot in common with the Pixel Watch 2. It packs a Snapdragon W5 chipset, 2GB of RAM, and 32GB of internal storage. Additionally, it has 50 meters of water resistance.
It packs a 16-hour battery life with usage aimed at helping kids get through the typical school day, and has the same pin-based charger as the Pixel Watch 2. As far as connectivity, it features 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, and GPS.
There are some differences when it comes to hardware. Google has removed some health sensors that aren’t relevant for children, such as the ECG, which has an age requirement of 22. The device does sport an optical heart range sensor, as well as an accelerometer, gyroscope, altimeter, magnetometer, and ambient light sensor.
Gaming and fitness features
Although the Fitbit Ace LTE looks like a standard smartwatch, it has a number of modifications that make it suitable for a range of different ages. For example, the device doesn’t have advertising, third-party applications, or a Google Play Store app.
Instead, the app will have fitness-oriented games that children can play. In an effort to help kids get more active, all of the games require players to actually physically move to play. As an example, a kid may not be able to progress to the next level if their activity hasn’t reached a certain threshold — a feature Google calls “interval-based gaming.”
As a reward for their efforts, kids can earn tickets that allow them to customize in-app avatars called “eejies.” Games range from fishing simulators to maze escape games and puzzle challenges.
Parent communication features
In many ways, the Fitbit Ace LTE will function like a normal smartwatch — with limitations. Kids will be able to text, call, or send voice memos to their parents right from their wrist, as well as a parent-approved list of up to 20 other contacts.
Through the Ace app, parents will also be able to track their kids location and see their real-time location. Privacy is shored up here, however, since location data is deleted after 24 hours and activity data is deleted after a maximum of 35 days.
In the near future, the Fitbit Ace LTE will also allow kids to tap-to-pay with Google Wallet. Parents will be able to set spending allowances for their kids and get real-time notifications of what their children are buying, however.
Pricing & availability
The Fitbit Ace LTE is set to launch on June 5, but is available to pre-order starting May 29. It’ll cost $229.95 on the Google Store and Amazon.
A Fitbit Ace Pass with LTE services, which is required for most of the features, will cost $119.99 per year or $9.99 a month. However, through August 31, parents can get 50% off the subscription price — and a free band for the smartwatch.
