Fitbit Charge 6 release date announced: The wearable features a new physical button and Google Maps

The latest Fitbit also receives Google Wallet and YouTube Music controls

The new device launches this October and is available to pre-order now (iStock/The Independent)

It’s been two years since Fitbit released the Fitbit Charge 5 – our favourite fitness tracker out of all the company’s wearables. Filled with both smartwatch and health-tracking features, it was the Goldilocks device for your wrist.

But the Charge 5’s successor is about to take that up a notch with even more smarts, seeing Google apps come on board for the ride. The company has just announced the launch of the Fitbit Charge 6, which adds a host of Google services to the fitness tracker, including Google Maps, Google Wallet and YouTube Music.

The wearable, which Fitbit says has the most accurate heart-rate tracking of all the company’s trackers, sees (at long last) the return of the physical mechanical button that the Fitbit Sense 2 and Fitbit Versa 4 gained last year.

The new Fitbit tracker is just one of many new devices we expect Google to show off on stage at its Pixel event next Wednesday, most likely including the Google Pixel 8 and Google Pixel Watch 2.

The Fitbit Charge 6 is available to pre-order now in the UK and starts shipping in October. Here’s everything you need to know about the wearable, including the release date, price, specs and more.

Fitbit Charge 6: £139.99, Google.com

(Google)

The Fitbit Charge 6 looks broadly the same as the Fitbit Charge 5, with a slimline design, except it now has a physical button on the side, making it easier to get back to the home screen and see the time (no fussing about with touch gestures and capacitive buttons like the previous Fitbit models). 

It now also features Google apps, so you can get turn-by-turn directions right from your wrist, and pay for stuff on the go with Google Wallet. You can also use YouTube Music on the go. It gains double the number of exercise modes too (40 instead of 20), so you can track HIIT workouts, CrossFit, skiing and surfing.

The big standout feature appears to be the introduction of heart-rate visibility on exercise equipment. With the newest model, you’ll be able to connect your Fitbit via Bluetooth to gym equipment, including treadmills, exercise bikes and rowers from Peloton and Concept2. Fitbit says the heart-rate sensor is more accurate than ever, thanks to improved machine learning. 

On top of that, you get all the features you’d expect to see on a fitness tracker, including an ECG, high and low heart-rate notifications, blood-oxygen tracking, irregular-heart-rhythm notifications, menstrual tracking and more. You still get access to the EDA sensor for stress tracking and a sleep tracker with a sleep-quality score.       

As with the Charge 5, you still get a lengthy seven days of battery life, access to an always-on display mode and on-wrist call, text and app notifications. It, of course, supports the new and improved, simplified Fitbit app.

Fitbit Charge 6 UK release date and price

(Fitbit)

The Fitbit Charge 6 comes in three different colourways: obsidian, porcelain and coral. The Fitbit Charge 6 costs £139.99 at launch – that’s £30 cheaper than the Fitbit Charge 5 cost at launch. It is available to pre-order in the UK today, and the fitness tracker will start shipping on 12 October. 

Pre-order now

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If you’re looking for an accessory that tracks exercise, read our review of the best fitness trackers