Should I give Fitbit location access? This is a question that many people ask themselves, especially after reading about how much data apps are collecting.
Fitbit is a company that makes wearable fitness and activity trackers, arguably the most powerful activity trackers on the market.
In order to work properly, a Fitbit needs to access your location which has raised some privacy concerns among users.
In this article, we’ll discuss why you should allow Fitbit to collect your location data and what it means for you.
Table of Contents
Why does Fitbit need my location?
Fitbit may require to access location for the following reasons:
- Syncing: Location services help your Fitbit device sync with the Fitbit app on your phone.
- Bluetooth Low Energy Scans: The Fitbit app needs location services turned on in order to perform Bluetooth low energy scans required to sync with some devices.
- Location-Based Services: Fitbit uses location settings to provide you with the most accurate location-based services, such as move reminders, sleep reminders, weather updates, and jogging and running routes.
- Notifications: Location services can also support notifications and GPS features.
However, it’s important to note that you don’t necessarily need to keep location services “always on” for the Fitbit app to function properly
Should I give Fitbit Location Access?
Whether or not to give Fitbit location access is ultimately up to you and your personal preferences. However, if you want to take advantage of location-based services such as move reminders, sleep reminders, weather updates, and jogging and running routes, you will need to turn on location services.
Additionally, location services can help your Fitbit device sync with the Fitbit app on your phone and support notifications and GPS features. It’s important to note that you don’t necessarily need to keep location services “always on” for the Fitbit app to function properly.
There is no reason to worry that Fitbit will have access to your exact GPS coordinates at all times – they can only use these when you open their app or tell them which activity should be uploaded on the Fitbit service (e.g., running, cycling).
How to allow Fitbit Access my Location
Fitbit will prompt you to allow access to your location when you first open their app after installing it.
If for whatever reason, the Fitbit app did not ask permission to access your location at all or if you denied this request in the past and would like to change that decision, follow these steps: Go to Settings, Apps, Fitbit, and then Permissions.
NB: Location access will be turned off if your phone’s battery is running low and you are using power-saving features.
How to Turn off the “Enable location services” prompt
The “Enable location services” prompt can be so intrusive and annoying… Unfortunately, at the time of writing this post, there is no way of disabling the prompt.
The following is a comment from one of Fitbit’s moderators on the Fitbit forum about the issue.
“Our team is aware of this situation and while there isn’t a time frame for the fix, we’ll continue to monitor the situation and keep our team informed of the impact on you and other members.”
FAQs
Parting Shot
The Fitbit app needs access to your location because it is useful. It can help you make sure you are walking enough to meet your daily fitness goals. It can also help you schedule workouts or fitness classes for times when you are likely to have more time to do them.
By reading this article, we hope you’ve learned about why location permissions are needed for a better experience with your Fitbit device!