In 2021 Google acquired Fitbit for $ 2.1 billion. At that time, almost 50 million people were using the legendary fitness tracker, and Mercury was there from the beginning.
Activity Tracking Apps
& Social Network for Mobile
and Web
From the early startup days, FitBit selected Mercury Development as its software partner, to help deliver their game changing technology to the masses. Aiming to facilitate users’ health and fitness journeys, the app offers a variety of amazing features that helps users to:
Track steps, distance, calories burned, floors climbed, active minutes and recording the heart rate.
Work out from home, access cardio, strength, yoga sessions and more.
Improve night routine with innovative sleep tools.
Manage stress via listening to audio tracks and improve mood.
Keep nutrition in check with easy-to-use tools to set goals, log food, and water.
Connect with friends and join the community to find the support and encouragement to get inspired.
How It Began
Way back in 2011 we were approached by a small startup called Fitbit: the guys needed help with their first invention, a clip-on step counter. These days, any smartphone can count steps, but back then the technology was quite new. As the first smartphones were hitting the market, Fitbit wanted to connect their device to mobile phones, PCs, and laptops.
Fitbit Connect
The Mercury Team developed the first multi-platform app for Windows and Mac. The app could sync with the user’s band and allowed to set up a tracker on a computer. Also, there was a music module. Fitbit device owners could transfer their favorite tracks from a computer to a fitness tracker and listen to them during workouts.
Android Development
Early Android smartphones did not support Bluetooth 4.0, so it was impossible to transfer data from a tracker to a smartphone.The only thing available at the time was the raw proprietary technology developed by Samsung for their own devices. We spent two months trying to decipher that technology and connect Samsung and Fitbit devices.In the end, we were able to successfully sync the app with a Fitbit tracker via Bluetooth, and then used the same technique on other Android smartphones.
Collaboration with HTC
HTC was the first company to integrate a step counter into their flagship device.In collaboration with HTC engineers, we integrated the feature into the device firmware even before it was officially maintained by Google.Thanks to that, HTC device owners were able to track their activity in the Fitbit mobile app even without a fitness tracker.
Xbox One
We decided to use the possibilities offered by game consoles to enhance the Fitbit Coach app. In addition to counting calories and customizing workouts, we taught the Xbox version to measure heart rate and evaluate overall fitness level.
Collaboration with Microsoft
The legacy Fitbit app running on Windows 8 was unable to sync with wrist trackers, and users had to use cables to transfer data from their trackers to computers. To transfer data wirelessly, we needed to add support for Bluetooth 4.0 to Windows 8.Working in cooperation with the Windows team right on the Microsoft Campus, we made the necessary tweaks to Bluetooth 4.0. With the release of Windows 8.1, the app appeared on Microsoft Store, and it can run on PCs, Windows phones, and even on HoloLensOn top of that, Microsoft even started preinstalling Fitbit Coach on their smartphones.
Website and localization
into 44 languages
In 2014 we updated the company’s website:
- — Built and optimized 44 versions of the website in different languages
- — Added integration with some then-popular services, like Weight Watchers
From a step counter
to the No.1 fitness tracker
We started working with Fitbit when nobody had heard of them — back then, they were just an ambitious six-people startup. Today, FitBit has grown to over 1,700 employees, and their products have a loyal following around the world.
Fitbit Joins Google
In 2015, the company filed for an IPO and raised $4 billion, and in 2016 it acquired a competitor company Pebble. In 2021, Fitbit itself was acquired by Google.
This is one of the brightest success stories in Mercury’s history: the app and the fitness tracker are currently used by over 50 million people.
We continue working with the Fitbit team, which is now a part of Google.
See Also
Tonal
FitnessBank
