The Fitbit Force combines fitness and sleep tracking with some nifty smartwatch functionality, announced the activity tracking company today.
Most of the features we learned about in a recent leak: wireless activity and sleep monitoring, a much-needed OLED display for daily stats and the time, and an altimeter for floor tracking.
But not all of Fitbit's new ideas were leaked in full force. Today's Fitbit Force specs also included soon-to-come helpful incoming caller ID notifications when paired with an iPhone 4S, iPhone 5 or iPhone 5S.
That means if you happen to be running (and your Apple phone is running iOS 7), you can see who is calling without taking your smartphone out of your pocket.
That's also great for inactive moments if you're wearing the wristband around the house and have the phone charging in a different room. You know whether to rush to pick up a call or let it go to voicemail.
A Fitbit more pricey, but worth it
The ability to receive "smart call notifications" from an iOS device is in the offing for this $129.95 (about £81.56, AU$137.81) activity tracking bracelet.
"Call notifications will be available to Force users with the first firmware update, expected soon," a Fitbit representative told TechRadar.
The Fitbit Force price is more expensive than the almost-displayless Fitbit Flex, which is still available and costs $99 (£79.99, AU$129.95) and only comes in two colors: black and slate.
But it combines the best of the features of the Flex and company's clip-on Fitbit One.
iOS and Android advantage
Fitbit Force is one of the few smartwatches compatible with both iOS and Android devices in addition to the web for motivational online stat tracking.
That's more than we can say about the Nike FuelBand, as Nike has refused to make an Android app.
Same goes for the Android-only Galaxy Gear and Sony Smartwatch 2 on the other side of the fence.
Galaxy Gear uses S Health fitness tracking, but Samsung has only made it compatible with the Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 Edition and a few more devices coming soon.
It appears to be Nike's movement-tracking move next, as we'll be monitoring the company's expected FuelBand 2 announcement on Tuesday, Oct. 15.
- Another contender is the Jawbone Up.
