Fitbit Charge 3 Leak Suggests Fitness Tracker Won't Have Built-In GPS

Images of the still unannounced Fitbit Charge 3 have already leaked online earlier this month and now new details about the upcoming fitness tracker have also been revealed.

The Fitbit Charge 3 won’t have built-in GPS support, according to Android Authority’s sources. This means that if users want to use any feature that requires GPS tracking, they will have to connect the fitness tracker to a smartphone using Bluetooth. Users will also need to use Fitbit’s Connected GPS feature, which is available from the Fitbit app. The device will also have Wi-Fi connectivity.

The removal of the built-in GPS on the Fitbit Charge 3 may disappoint a lot of consumers. The previous iterations of the fitness tracker didn’t have GPS built in and Fitbit could have changed that with the new model. It’s likely that Fitbit is excluding the feature from the Charge, Blaze and Versa fitness trackers to make it exclusive to its high-end smartwatches. So far, the only Fitbit devices that have built-in GPS are the Fitbit Ionic and the Fitbit Surge.

Although the lack of GPS may be disappointing, the Fitbit Charge 3 does offer up significant upgrades from the Charge 2. The upcoming fitness tracker is said to arrive with a real touchscreen interface. Previous models only had a tap-enabled interface that was slow. The inclusion of the full-fledged touchscreen should provide users with an experience that’s akin to what the Ionic and Versa are able to offer.

Another feature that is said to be included in the Fitbit Charge 3 is Quick Reply. This feature will allow users to send quick messages when someone calls or texts. The Quick Reply feature, which is also available on the Ionic and Versa, will only work when the Charge 3 is connected to an Android device.

The Fitbit Charge 3 is also said to be swim-proof with water resistance of up to 50 meters of depth. This is the first Charge fitness tracker to have that kind of water resistance. Android Authority also says that the Charge 3 will have a “Special Edition” model that will have NFC, which will provide wireless payments support through Fitbit Pay.

Finally, the Fitbit Charge 3 will still come with all of the same fitness tracking features, like exercise tracking, heart rate monitoring and sleep tracking. The watch bands are also said to be interchangeable. Unfortunately, the pricing and release date for the Fitbit Charge 3 remain a mystery, according to Phone Arena. For reference, the standard version of the Fitbit Charge 2 arrived in 2016 with a price tag of $149.95.