In an effort to move forward with its plan to simplify the user experience, it appears that Fitbit is modifying its platform and removing some community-driven features. The company said that on March 27, 2023, it would remove these features to make room for a better Fitbit app powered by Google.
Today, the company informed customers via email that it would be removing some features from the Fitbit app. Users of both iOS and Android will be affected by this change, which will take effect on March 27, 2023. After this point, Fitbit users will no longer have access to open groups and will no longer be able to create them. Users will also lose access to trophies as a result of the company’s decision to end Adventure and Challenges.
The company simply states that it is making these changes in order to evolve, which will enable it to add “new features, deliver faster load times, and improve your experience.” The majority of the time, there really isn’t a great reason as to why this is occurring. You will still be able to create a closed group that will keep friends and family connected, so there is a small silver lining to all of this.
Fitbit is urging its customers to download the relevant data ahead of the March 27 shutdown before the features are removed. Users will need to go to fitbit.com/settings/data/export to access the Fitbit dashboard in order to accomplish this. Fitbit even adds a brief note stating that Premium subscribers can cancel their subscriptions at any time as a final flourish. So, if you don’t like any of these changes, you probably have options.
In addition to Fitbit’s gradual removal of support for Google sign-in over the past few months, these changes are merely additions. In 2025, users will be compelled to switch to a Google account at some point.