• Home
  • News
  • Fortune 500
  • Tech
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechFitbit

Fitbit’s Newest Tracker Will Keep You Moving

By
Jason Cipriani
Jason Cipriani
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Jason Cipriani
Jason Cipriani
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 3, 2016, 9:00 AM ET
Courtesy Fibit

On Wednesday Fitbit announced a new wrist-worn activity tracker called the Alta. The device is capable of counting steps and recording sleep patterns.

Alta will be available in black, teal, plum or blue starting in March for $129.95. Last month at CES, Fitbit (FIT) announced the Blaze, a “fitness focussed” smartwatch that will also be available in March.

Users will have the option to customize the Alta with premium bands made of different materials ranging from $59 leather bands to $99 stainless steel options. Fitbit will continue its longstanding partnership with designer Tory Burch for its Alta bands, as well as new partners in the future.

For more read Fitbit Blaze is the Company’s Fitness-Focused Smartwatch

Alta offers a feature Fitbit is calling “Reminders to Move,” which will prompt users to get up and walk around every hour. With an hourly step goal of 250, users will receive encouragement from the device to keep moving until each hourly goal is met. The app will also include the ability to tailor the amount of coaching a user receives, including a do not disturb mode.

While a reminder to move is not a new feature to wearables—Jawbone’s UP line has long had it and the Apple Watch (AAPL) alerts users to move every hour—it’s a feature that’s been missing from Fitbit’s lineup and is a welcome addition.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

A Fitbit representative told Fortune the reminders to move feature was the number one requested add-on by Fitbit customers.

Fitbit Alta will also allow users to customize the orientation of the display, with vertical and horizontal text options. A quick tap on the device’s screen will bring up step counts, the current time, or other stats just as it currently does on other products.

In November, the company released a software update to its existing products that enabled automatic activity tracking. With the feature, users are able to go from sleeping to walking to aerobic exercise (plus many other forms of exercise) while the Fitbit automatically identifies, and records the activity. Prior to the update, Fitbit users had to indicate either by pushing a button on the band or within the Fitbit app that an exercise was starting and then ending. The Alta is equipped with SmartTrack out of the box.

For more on Fitbit watch the following Fortune video below.

Auto-activity tracking combined with reminders to move is a fantastic way to keep a user engaged, without forcing him or her to keep interacting with the tracker.

Taking a feature from the Blaze, Alta will display text, call, and text notifications from a connected smartphone. The wrist-worn gadget’s battery can last five days in-between charges, but does not offer Fitbit’s heart rate monitoring technology PurePulse.

The Alta rounds out Fitbit’s product lineup, and is priced the same as the less-customizable and less-capable Fitbit Charge. Eventually the Alta will replace the Charge in Fitbit’s lineup, according to a company representative.

After announcing the Blaze last month, Fitbit’s stock price dropped as the market seemingly reacted to the announcement, along with a class-action lawsuit, that the firms heart-rate tracking technology is inaccurate. A claim Consumer Reports later refuted after retesting Fitbit’s products.

The company will announce its fourth quarter 2015 results on Feb. 22.

About the Author
By Jason Cipriani
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Big TechSpotify
Spotify users lamented Wrapped in 2024. This year, the company brought back an old favorite and made it less about AI
By Dave Lozo and Morning BrewDecember 4, 2025
7 hours ago
InnovationVenture Capital
This Khosla Ventures–backed startup is using AI to personalize cancer care
By Allie GarfinkleDecember 4, 2025
11 hours ago
AIEye on AI
Companies are increasingly falling victim to AI impersonation scams. This startup just raised $28M to stop deepfakes in real time
By Sharon GoldmanDecember 4, 2025
11 hours ago
Jensen Huang
SuccessBillionaires
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang admits he works 7 days a week, including holidays, in a constant ‘state of anxiety’ out of fear of going bankrupt
By Jessica CoacciDecember 4, 2025
11 hours ago
Ted Pick
BankingData centers
Morgan Stanley considers offloading some of its data-center exposure
By Esteban Duarte, Paula Seligson, Davide Scigliuzzo and BloombergDecember 4, 2025
11 hours ago
Zuckerberg
EnergyMeta
Meta’s Zuckerberg plans deep cuts for metaverse efforts
By Kurt Wagner and BloombergDecember 4, 2025
12 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
Two months into the new fiscal year and the U.S. government is already spending more than $10 billion a week servicing national debt
By Eleanor PringleDecember 4, 2025
16 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
‘Godfather of AI’ says Bill Gates and Elon Musk are right about the future of work—but he predicts mass unemployment is on its way
By Preston ForeDecember 4, 2025
12 hours ago
placeholder alt text
North America
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos commit $102.5 million to organizations combating homelessness across the U.S.: ‘This is just the beginning’
By Sydney LakeDecember 2, 2025
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Nearly 4 million new manufacturing jobs are coming to America as boomers retire—but it's the one trade job Gen Z doesn't want
By Emma BurleighDecember 4, 2025
12 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang admits he works 7 days a week, including holidays, in a constant 'state of anxiety' out of fear of going bankrupt
By Jessica CoacciDecember 4, 2025
11 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Health
Bill Gates decries ‘significant reversal in child deaths’ as nearly 5 million kids will die before they turn 5 this year
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 4, 2025
23 hours ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.