Chicken, meet egg. Google has clarified why it didn’t include NFC and, in turn, Google Wallet support on the Fitbit Edge, and it just boils down to the fact that hardly anyone was using the feature.
The ability to pay at the register with your wearable is nothing new, but NFC support on smartwatches and trackers has been pretty hit or miss in the past. Google supports the feature as a standard across the Pixel Watch lineup, and the last-gen Fitbit Charge 6 also supported the feature.
But, with the new Fitbit Edge, NFC support is gone and, in turn, so is Google Wallet.
It’s an interesting regression on Google’s part, so why the change? In a statement to Android Authority, Google explains that it really just comes down to a lack of people actually using this feature on the Fitbit Charge 6.
Fitbit Edge does not offer NFC for payments. It was not widely used by our Charge 6 users — in fact, less than 1% reported using the feature on Charge 6 — so we prioritized other top features such as adding an altimeter and requested improvements.
Google says that skipping NFC left room to “prioritize” other features such as the Edge’s new altimeter, but it still seems like a shame to skip out on mobile payments for what is very much a “Pixel Watch Lite.”
Would you have used Google Wallet on the Fitbit Edge? Is it a dealbreaker? Let us know in the comments below.
Fitbit Edge launches on October 27, with pre-orders open now.
More on Fitbit:
- Google Fitbit Edge hands-on: Pixel Watch Lite, take two
- Fitbit Air is getting a shiny new Metal Mesh band and better automatic tracking
- Google announces $179 Fitbit Edge tracker with display, GPS
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