What apps can you use on the Fitbit Versa 2?
Best answer: There are over 100 great apps available for the Fitbit Versa 2, including some innovative Fitbit Labs apps, as well as third-party gems like Alexa, Uber, Spotify, and Strava.App happy: Fitbit Versa 2 ($200 at Fitbit)
There actually are quite a few good apps
At last count, there were well over 100 apps available in the Fitbit App Gallery. While this is far fewer than what is available for the Apple Watch, there are a surprising number of useful apps available here, both from Fitbit and from third-party app developers. And unlike the Apple Watch, there are tons of great customizable clock faces available. Our favorite of which is the Bitmoji clock face that changes throughout the day based on your activity. Most of these apps work across the Versa line, including the Versa (1st Gen), Versa Lite, and Versa 2, as well as the older Fitbit Ionic.
With the release of the Versa 2, two of the most significant features of the watch are arguably two of its biggest and most important apps — Amazon's Alexa smart voice assistant, and the popular Spotify music service. Both apps have drawbacks that have been documented, like no speaker for Alexa voice replies and no on-device Spotify music storage. But the two apps dramatically improve the utility and functionality of the smart fitness watch.
Onboard and downloadable Fitbit apps
Out of the box, the Versa 2 comes with several apps that bring out the value of the smart fitness watch. These include the Exercise app with its multisport modes, connected GPS, and automatic sport tracking. There is Fitbit's meditation app called Relax that guides you through short breathing sessions. Plus, its Music app allows you to upload around 300 songs to play through your Bluetooth headphones. You can also keep track of your stats versus your friends in the Leaderboard app.
With the Versa 2, you have contactless payments through Fitbit Pay, so there is an onboard wallet app to access your credit card preferences. Also included are a basic Settings app, Timers, Alarms, and access to Fitbit Coach, soon to be folded into the Fitbit Premium service.
Fitbit Labs Apps
Fitbit Labs is a program that attempts to utilize the latest research and technologies available to Fitbit to "deliver experimental apps and clock faces to your wrist." These include gems like Fitbit Pet that feature a sort of Tamagotchi-style virtual pet that you can take care of with your activity. There is also a Pregnancy Tracker clock face that allows you to track your pregnancy stages and follow your baby's development week-by-week.
My favorite might be the Treasure Trek app. It uses steps to guide you on your search for hidden treasure... sort of like the Adventure Race challenges inside the Fitbit app.
Uber, Starbucks, Strava, and more
The true test of platform maturity is the availability and development of third-party apps, and to be honest, this is where Fitbit OS has struggled the most. That being said, there are dozens of independent apps that are quite good.
Major third-party developers are slowly coming onto the platform as well, most notably the Alexa and Spotify apps we mentioned earlier. Other important third-party apps include workout apps like Strava and MySwimPro, shopping/convenience apps like Starbucks, Uber, Hue Lights, and E-Trade, music apps like Pandora and Deezer, and news apps from the New York Times and Flipboard.
Fitbit also recently announced several new app partnerships, including TRX to track TRX Suspension Training sessions, a Achu Health illness prediction clock face, Genius Wrist who is offering four fitness apps for structured on-device workouts, C25K to help you plan for races from a 5K to a marathon, and Home Connect to serve as a wrist-based smart home controller. We hope this is just the tip of the iceberg from developers big and small on the Fitbit OS platform.
