Comparing fitbit with Google Glass…
Comparing Apples with Oranges
I am a “Google Glass Explorer” (translation: I coughed up $1,500 to get Glass early, in beta). I understand that it’s not really fair to compare a simple activity tracker, fitbit, with a “ask-it-to-do-anything” wearable device like Google Glass, but, here it is.
I have been wearing Google Glass for about a year now. I only recently got a fitbit (and a Pepple smartwatch). I have waxed poetic in the past about my problems with Glass, but, also, just found improved connectivity with my Glass which, I hope, means a whole new, possibly positive experience with Glass.
But, back to my assertion that fitbit beats Google Glass in user experience. It’s the simple things that count. Glass has created an online “Explorer” community where we Explorers can share our experiences, network, and the like. That’s a part of the Glass user experience and it’s a positive one. Yet, what I am talking about, is something more proactive, small, but, big.
Like I said, I am new to fitbit. So, I was delighted to receive the following email from fitbit:
The “Little Things” Are Generally “the Big Things” in User Experience
So, yes, I’m excited about a stupid, little reminder I got telling me that the battery level on my fitbit is low. “Big deal!”
To me, it is a big deal, because as a new user the email just helped me continue my daily tracking that would have been interrupted if I hadn’t gotten the friendly reminder. I also like how the email walks me through the process of recharging my fitbit. And, there is an unsubscribe link for when I become more fluent in my fitbit use.
A while ago, my experience with Glass improved when Google Glass finally created an iPhone app that comes with some very friendly walk-through videos. Still, I don’t recall every having received a very simple email like this from Glass on anything.
For example, since it seems that I was alone in complaining about Google Glass connectivity, it would have been really nice to have gotten an email from Glass saying, “Hey, we’ve heard that more than a few of you have been having problems with Glass connectivity. Here’s what we’re doing to try and address this…. And, here are some suggestions on what you might do in the meantime to improve your Glass connectivity: outline the steps like fitbit outlined the recharging instructions.
The More Complicated Your Wearable Device Is, the More You’ll Need to Pay Attention to “the Little Things”
If you are putting together a really ambitious, do-everything wearable device, please don’t forget “the little things” in helping your would-be loyalists through the baby steps.