Fitbit teased a new wearable that it’ll reveal tomorrow during a special product event. The company posted a shadowy close-up of what looks like a new Fitbit Sense or Versa device on Twitter, and lo and behold: there’s a physical button again.
Back in May, a photo of a smartwatch made the rounds online that was purportedly a leaked Fitbit Versa 4. Verge resident wearables tech reviewer Victoria Song laid out why so many athletes and athleisure-wearing workout cosplayers believe it was a mistake on Fitbit’s part to remove the physical buttons on the Sense, Versa 3, Charge 5, and Inspire 2 in favor of confusing touch-sensitive ones. Deputy editor Thomas Ricker had a higher opinion of the Garmin Epix 2’s touchscreen approach, but that smartwatch also includes five buttons.
This teaser shows that Fitbit may be ready to ditch the all-touch designs and get back to physical buttons that athletes need to get the most out of their smartwatches and fitness trackers. Companies like Garmin have always kept easy-to-locate buttons for sweaty activities, and Apple is rumored to be working on a new rugged watch for that specific purpose.
