dbrand’s Pulse Band is now on sale for the Fitbit Air, and it’s the first band for Google’s screenless tracker sold on the Google Store that Google didn’t make itself. If you’ve been weighing the Air against the rest of our fitness tracker picks, this is the first real sign of an accessory market forming around it.
The Pulse Band costs $34.95, and dbrand is selling it through the Google Store and its own website. It comes in two sizes, small and large.
dbrand and Google’s partnership goes way back
dbrand was an inaugural partner when Google launched its Made for Google program in 2017. A few months ago, Google came back to the company with two pieces of news, according to dbrand founder and CEO Adam Ijaz. The Fitbit Air was selling faster than Google could keep up with, and Google wanted third parties to start making bands for it. dbrand in particular.
Until now, Google has made every Air band. The tracker shipped in May at $99.99 with the Performance Loop in the box. Google also sells an Active Sport band at $34.99 and an Elevated Modern band at $49.99. dbrand says the Pulse Band matches Google’s own direct price, so it lands right in line with the Performance Loop and Active Sport.
The Air itself is a 5.2g pebble with no display, rated for seven days of battery life and water resistance up to 50 meters. With nothing to look at on your wrist, the band is what most people see. That makes it a natural fit for a company that built its name on changing how phones look. Our Fitbit Air review covers how the tracker holds up day to day, and our Fitbit Air vs Whoop 5.0 comparison is worth a read if you’re still deciding.
A watch band is new ground for dbrand, which is better known for skins, cases, and screen protectors. Having Google ask for it, and give it shelf space on the Google Store, puts the Pulse Band in a spot no other non-Google Air band holds right now. That carries more weight than another case launch, and it tells me Google wants the Air to have the same kind of accessory support its Pixel phones get.
The Pulse Band is available starting today, November 11, from the Google Store and dbrand’s website. For more on Google’s trackers and watches, check out our wearables coverage.
The post dbrand Is Making Watch Bands Now, Starting With the Fitbit Air appeared first on Android Headlines.
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