Fitbit s origins
Fitbitâs first device was the Fitbit Tracker in 2009, but 2013 brought wearables to the collective consciousness with the Flex (above).
These two devices brought the idea of step tracking and the evergreen 10,000 goal to the masses. But it was the next device, the Charge HR, that Conor Heneghan believes transformed the company thanks to its optical heart rate sensor.
âI certainly think the move to the optical heart rate tracking was pretty pivotal as a technical enabler, Heneghan told Wareable.
âWe build so much around that. The estimation of the sleep stages, sleep score, heart rate variability. It s all relying on that optical heart rate sensors, so that s a key milestone, he continued.
While all Fitbits have an optical heart rate monitor on board, ECG is different.
An electrocardiogram (ECG or sometimes referred to as EKG) is designed to measure how well your heart is working.
The Fitbit Sense uses the electrocardiogram to measure the rhythm of your heart, which can alert you to conditions such as atrial fibrillation.
However, itâs important to note that your Fitbit Sense cannot detect or warn of a heart attack.
Atrial fibrillation explained
Atrial fibrillation (Afib) is a heart condition that can cause an irregular heartbeat.
AFib is the most common type of irregular heartbeat. Abnormal heart rhythms can occur when the heartâs electrical system that coordinates heart beats does not work properly. This can cause your heart to beat too slow, too fast or irregularly.
December 30, 2020
In terms of stressful years, 2020 certainly took the crown. But even outside of a global pandemic, stress in our daily lives is something that affects us all, both mentally and physically.
Thatâs why stress tracking is at the heart of the new Fitbit Sense health smartwatch. The Fitbit Sense puts the invisible signs of stress in clear focus, helping you to manage underlying causes.
Weâve all been in stressful situations at one time or another, but stress can seriously affect our health â mentally and physically
Itâs not just the feeling of being overwhelmed â stress is physical, too. The symptoms from your bodyâs flight or flight response to stress can be serious and diverse.
What you need to know
Fitbit discusses the work that it s doing to improve ECG s and make them more useful on wearables.
With its new PPG technology, Fitbit aims to bring continuous heart rhythm tracking.
There is currently no timeline for when the technology will reach wearables.
When the Fitbit Sense launched in August, it was without the ECG functionality. It was still a great smartwatch without it, as noted in our Fitbit Sense review, but the feature was finally approved and added in October, cementing the Fitbit Sense as one of the best Android smartwatches available today. The ECG app allows the watch to analyze the rhythm of your heart to check for cardiac problems like atrial fibrillation (AFib). It hasn t been very long since the feature was enabled, but Fitbit is already working on ways to greatly improve the technology.
However, Fitbitâs new technology would continually scan the rhythm of your heart using the optical PPG.
It can you know you can you can allow these events to happen during sleep and you be least aware of it, but we ll have our optical heart rate system monitoring for that, hopefully at some point in the future.
âIt will pick up the things that you wouldn t have been aware of yourself. Dr Conor Heneghan, Director of Research Algorithms at Fitbit told us. And then, for example, if it is picking up things, you could confirm that with an ECG. Weâre just finishing off the trial now and then it ll go through the process of getting approval.â