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Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

reuters.com

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Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#301

Post by jjoonathan »

_57jb wrote: post #280
jjoonathan wrote: post #264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> My Fitbit Ionic (about $300) stopped working one month after the 12 month warranty ran out My Fitbit Ionic stopped working 6 months into the 12 month warranty and they flaked on the warranty anyway. Many Ionics were secretly sold without the manufacturer's warranty. The problem turned out to be a shorted capacitor. My secretly-warranty-less ionic was sold during the Great Capacitor Shortage. Coincidence? Maybe. I d…

That was a fantastic little run-through on your teardown and repair of the ionic. Do you make videos/streams of your work? Would love to watch.

No, but maybe that's something to think about :)

Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#302

Post by eckza »

Oblouk wrote: post #295

It will be interesting to see how Google uses the fitbit data. I could see them synchronizing a user's searches with their heartbeat information to try to gauge emotional response to topics.

That's not absolutely fucking horrifying or anything.

Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#303

Post by [deleted] »

not2b wrote: post #91

Very bad news for anyone who has a Fitbit device. Google tends to destroy any "smart" devices they acquire; first they tie it more closely to their ecosystem, too much for comfort, then they remove features, then they get bored and neglect it, then you have a brick.

[deleted]

Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#305

Post by spectramax »

Oblouk wrote: post #295

It will be interesting to see how Google uses the fitbit data. I could see them synchronizing a user's searches with their heartbeat information to try to gauge emotional response to topics.

This obsession of pervasive targeted ads, and A/B testing methods needs to stop.

I have stopped using all google services except for search and YouTube. Apple Maps is fine now, if you need a free email account, you can get one on iCloud.com.

Who are these soulless marketing execs that are OK with using this type of extremely personal health data!? There should be a moral objection, which evidently isn’t there. That’s more horrifying.

Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#306

Post by plexicle »

pfranz wrote: post #52
atlasunshrugged wrote: post #4

I'd definitely welcome this - it seems like Google has been way behind Apple with a solid watch competitors and given they've got the rest of the ecosystem with the Pixels, Chromebooks, and headphones, bulking up their capabilities there alongside the HTC team acquisition seems logical

Ugh... I get how Google's acquisition would make sense, but why does every company have to do everything? I know it's because of walled gardens and "integration" but it really sucks if you really like Fitbit because of some niche feature you're compelled to buy into the whole ecosystem. After watching what happened to Nest I don't see how any current owner would be excited. I saw a newer, lower priced version release…

Well in this case, Google kind of has to do something with wearables. Apple Watch is pulling people over.

Unless you were suggesting in your comment that Apple should release the AW from the walled garden and allow it to work on Android? In that case, I agree!

Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#307

Post by B1FF_PSUVM »

eckza wrote: post #302
Oblouk wrote: post #295

It will be interesting to see how Google uses the fitbit data. I could see them synchronizing a user's searches with their heartbeat information to try to gauge emotional response to topics.

That's not absolutely fucking horrifying or anything.

Around 2005 or so, Google floated (and let sink) the creepy idea that you should let them listen to your mic, so that they could supply useful info, for instance about the football game you were watching.

This is now the new normal. Pretty sure whatever is now weird will soon be normal too, given a spreadsheet or two to push it through.

(Heinlein was not nearly imaginative enough about the Crazy Years, no one could be. Might as well blame him for not thinking of the "Walk on Your Hands" thing.)

Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#308

Post by Avamander »

beckingz wrote: post #228
Avamander wrote: post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nothing to do with json, if someone wants then data can be always represented in hard to understand formats.

json is a good file format, but the way that fitbit exports the data is strangely partitioned by file and object depth. Machine readable certainly, but most machines will need a lot of guidance to turn it into a useful dataset.

Yeah and you could make an XML or a TOML that requires just as much guidance for computers to parse. That was my point.

Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#309

Post by bransonf »

aluminussoma wrote: post #38

I would think that Google's first choice was Garmin. In my personal opinion, they have better watch products. It was reported last month that Fitbit engaged Qatalyst for a sale. I wonder who leaked the news to Reuters, which did not mention a price: was it Qatalyst, hoping to start a bidding war?

I don't think Google has a shot at acquiring Garmin though. Garmin has no reason to sell.

Garmin has their own growth. In fact, Garmin is the only wearable market that I've noticed growing in the last 3-4 years (Apple is gaining traction obviously, but the Apple Watch is only a small bit of their market). Fitbit is failing, they're in desperate need of an acquisition.

If you own a Garmin watch (Forerunner line for example), you'll understand. It has all the fitness tracking of a Fitbit, an always-on color display, best in class GPS, and several days/a week of battery life. And, their luxury watches are really uncontested for the mountain/marine/extreme market. Frankly, the build quality is better than much of the market as well. The software is less than Apple, but better than Fitbit.

The wearable market is becoming narrower and narrower, and I really think it will come down to Apple, Google and Garmin.

In the wearable space, Apple and Google make flashy gadgets, essentially. This is great for the business people/casuals. But Garmin is capturing a whole different market. I don't see many competitors in the athletic (marathon, triathlete, ironman) market, and even less so in the extreme (mountain, marine exploration) market.

Take what I'm saying with a grain of salt though, I got my whole family hooked on Garmin devices, myself coming from their line of bike GPS. I've also invested in Garmin for several years now.

Re: Alphabet in bid to buy Fitbit

#310

Post by lrem »

Oblouk wrote: post #295

It will be interesting to see how Google uses the fitbit data. I could see them synchronizing a user's searches with their heartbeat information to try to gauge emotional response to topics.

As someone who's taken the internal trainings a few times by now: NOPE. Health data is scary-scary and no team wants to taint itself with it, unless it's the core of the product.
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