No matter how you slice it, the Ionic was a rough start for Fitbit’s first true dive into the world of smartwatches. It was met with lukewarm reviews, and the company has since been fairly candid about the fact that sales figures simply weren’t what it was hoping/expecting.
Announced in March, the Versa was the Fitbit’s second shot at the category, designed to appeal to a more mainstream audience. From the look of it, the company is faring a lot better this time out. Fitbit announced today that it has shipped more than one million devices since the watch hit retail in mid-April.
Is that enough to right the Fitbit ship entirely? Not really, but it’s certainly a step in the right direction, especially given the sort of hail Mary pass involved here, with the purchase of several companies, including Pebble, Coin and Vector. It also presents a glimmer of hope that someone outside of Apple can have some real success in the smartwatch category.
Among other things, the hardware was a much better fit for a larger swath of users than the bulky Ionic — the square design clearly took a page directly out of Pebble’s playbook. Fitbit has also been investing a lot in helping grow the watch’s native app store — the primary reason behind the Pebble purchase.
Also of note, the company’s women’s health tracker has been a success among early adopters, with more than 2.4 million users adding the feature to their app. That number includes 1.8 million users who have added one or more periods to their calendar. It’s certainly a sign that a feature like this was in-demand — how many users actually stick with the tracking after a month is another question entirely, however.
The news was met with a healthy stock bump, as well, representing some good news after what’s been a rough couple of years for the company and wearable makers in general.