Google’s $100 Fitbit Air tracks your health and sleep without the distractions of a smartwatch

Smartwatches can do a lot. Sometimes too much.

That’s why Google’s new Fitbit Air is a welcome change. Instead of adding more notifications, apps, and distractions to your wrist, it takes the opposite approach. There’s no screen at all.

I’ve been wearing the new $100 fitness tracker for the past few weeks, and most of the time I forgot it was even there. That’s kind of the point.

The Fitbit Air tracks all the basics, including heart rate, steps, sleep, blood oxygen levels, and workouts. Battery life is rated for up to seven days, which means you’re not constantly thinking about charging it.

The biggest surprise for me wasn’t the hardware. It was the software.

The Fitbit app is now called Google Health, and it includes a new AI feature called Google Health Coach. It analyzes your health data and can answer questions about your sleep, recovery, fitness trends, and more. Some AI features feel gimmicky. This one actually surfaced a few useful insights during my testing.

One feature I really liked is the silent smart wake alarm. Instead of blasting an alarm clock, the band gently buzzes your wrist. It can even try to wake you during a lighter stage of sleep within a 30-minute window before your set alarm time.

Of course, there are tradeoffs. I caught myself looking at my wrist for the time several times a day. There’s no screen, so there’s nothing to see. And yes, Google uses yet another proprietary charging cable.

The free version includes basic activity, sleep, and health tracking. If you want AI coaching, personalized insights, adaptive fitness plans, medical record summaries, and deeper sleep analysis, you’ll need the $10-per-month Health Premium subscription.

My takeaway: if you’re tired of wearing a mini smartphone on your wrist, the Fitbit Air (affiliate link) is a refreshing alternative. It’s comfortable enough to wear all day and all night, and it delivers the health data most people actually care about without constantly demanding your attention.