Fitbit

Fitbit ending Pandora and Deezer support on Sense, Versa 2/3 in March

Abner Li | Jan 17 2023 - 12:48 pm PT

Compared to its predecessors, the Fitbit Sense 2 and Versa 4 already lack music playback. Fitbit is now set to remove Pandora and Deezer from the Fitbit Sense, Versa 3, and other older devices in March.

In an email today, Fitbit informed users of Pandora and Deezer that the two apps “will be removed as of March 31, 2023.” As a result, “you will no longer be able to download Pandora stations or add Deezer playlists to your device, nor will you be able to play anything that you have previously downloaded.”

Fitbit does not provide an explanation for this “deactivation,” and just says it’s “sorry for any inconvenience!” — yes, with an exclamation mark. A support article on the web confirms the end of March date, while help pages for those two streaming services have been removed.

Following last year’s removal of the ability to transfer playlists to your watch from your computer, Deezer and Pandora became the only way to listen to music. The apps were supported on the Ionic (recalled), Sense, Versa, Versa 2, and Versa 3. Of those devices, Fitbit still (curiously) sells the Versa 2 for $149.95.

There are arguably still many Sense and Versa 3 users, and this removal is rather surprising for what’s a key functionality. It also throws into question whether Fitbit wants to maintain a third-party app ecosystem anymore, especially since the Sense 2 and Versa 4 only support first-party apps. Fitbit has not provided developers with any details on how to build for the newer watches.

Meanwhile, we’ll see what happens to Spotify Connect on older devices. At this point, Fitbit is more or less telling users to get a Pixel Watch if they want smart features.