Fitbit's debut in the smartwatch market is likely to take place in the fall, after several delays caused by some technologies not being ready for launch.
But Fitbit claims that all of these reports are false and the smartwatch is actually on track, stressing that the device will undoubtedly succeed.
The development of SmartWatches and third-party applications "is on track," says the company, which claims "that the developer program is false.".
However, people familiar with the matter seem to be claiming otherwise. Company employees say that the smartwatch has been delayed, as Fitbit's board originally planned to launch it as a rival to the Apple Watch 2.
“This thing is designed to compete with the Apple Watch 2,” said one insider. “But by the time it comes out, there will be the Apple Watch 3.”
So why is Fitbit taking so long to launch its new smartwatch? While previous reports have shown that Fitbit is struggling to fit all the hardware it wants into the watch, it now appears that the company is struggling with its own App Store, which is still not ready to go live.
Instead of leveraging Android Wear, which would provide access to a large collection of apps, Fitbit is building its own proprietary platform, creating an app store based on technology developed by Pebble, the smartwatch company it acquired last year.
Fitbit wants to sell its smartwatch for less than $300 and it comes with rich app support, though that's clearly a risky bet, given that the company makes its own operating system and this is the only device that supports it. The app store will be available on Android phones and iPhones, and users will have to download the apps to their smartphone before transferring them to the watch via Bluetooth.
