Apple has definitely built up quite a compelling ecosystem around the Apple Watch. Between all of its fitness challenges, activity rings, and competitions – Apple has certainly found a way to make exercise fun for a lot of people. The problem? Some people simply don’t like the form factor of a smartwatch.
The proposal
To put it short, I think Apple should allow third party health trackers to integrate with the Apple Fitness app. The catch? It’d be tied into an Apple Fitness+ subscription.
Apple launched its Fitness+ service at the end of 2020, in the midst of the pandemic. It provided easy workout videos that you could follow along with at home, while getting some good exercise in. The thing that makes it compelling is the fact that, if you have an Apple Watch, your heart rate and exercise rings will all show up in the TV in real time, giving you very precise insights in real time.
It’s no secret that Apple is getting more and more into the business of services. Fitness+ is priced quite competitively at $9.99/month or $79.99/year, and it’s even available with a 3 month free trial.
That said, I think there could be an interesting opportunity for Apple to grow its user base for Apple Fitness+ if anyone with some sort of health tracker could utilize it the same way as an Apple Watch user could.
Why Apple should do it
You may wonder, why would Apple want to open up the door to third parties? It’s because there would be an incentive to. Apple is facing a lot of anti-trust pressure regarding its ecosystem, and one of the key areas being targeted is the Apple Watch.
Last year, the DOJ sued Apple, alleging that the company is a monopoly. One of the key points the DOJ brought up is the fact that an Apple Watch is only compatible with an iPhone, and if someone wanted to switch away from an iPhone, they’d need to purchase a new Android wearable.
Apple responded to this by stating that the company had worked on Apple Watch compatibility with Android for many years, but ultimately scrapped the idea due to technical limitations.
However, if the company followed my suggestion and allowed third party fitness trackers to work with the same Apple Fitness ecosystem as the Apple Watch, Apple could potentially argue that there’s far less iPhone lock-in with the Apple Watch.
Wrap up
There are plenty of great fitness trackers on the market that people enjoy, including the WHOOP, Oura Ring, and Fitbit Charge. Ultimately, none of them are smart watches, but they do offer precise fitness tracking that a lot of people have come to love.
I personally couldn’t see myself ditching my Apple Watch, but it’d honestly be great for Apple to level the playing field with the competition. It’d be incredibly nifty to share activity rings and competitions with some of my non-Apple Watch wearing friends.
The Apple Watch is great, but some alternatives simply offer better tracking, better battery life, and more. Apple could pull these users in with Fitness+, while making the Apple Fitness ecosystem better for everyone.
Popular fitness trackers on the market:
What do you think about this suggestion? Let us know in the comments.
My favorite Apple accessories on Amazon:
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