Fitbit Founders Launch Luffu Link, A $250 Screenless Wearable for Family Health and Safety Tracking

Luffu's New Health and Safety Wearable Isn't Just for You. It's for Your Entire Family - CNET

Anna Gragert (she/her/hers) was previously the lifestyle editor at HelloGiggles, the deputy editor at So Yummy and the senior lifestyle editor at Hunker.... Read full bio Wearables like fitness trackers and smart rings traditionally focus on collecting health data at the individual level, but the AI-powered intelligent family care system Luffu is expanding that scope. Launched by Fitbit co-founders James Park and Eric Friedman in February, Luffu started out as an app where family members could log health information, including medications, diet, doctors' appointments, vaccine records, symptoms and more. It's currently in public beta. Luffu announced on Tuesday that it now has its own screenless wearable, the Luffu Link, and it's available for preorder in the US for people age 13 and up. How Luffu links the entire family together A press release described the Luffu Link as a health and safety band that operates over 4G LTE, meaning you don't need to have your phone nearby to reach out to your contacts for help or use certain features, like voice logging for medications, meals, mood, symptoms, reminders and notes. It also has built-in GPS, so you can share your location or send a check-in to family members. When it comes to your personal health, Luffu Link can capture data around sleep, activity, heart rate variability, resting heart rate, calories burned and breathing rate. AI then uses this information to learn patterns and alert users to any changes. The band features a single button. When you press and hold the button, it allows for voice logging. Press twice to send a check-in to select family members. Any health information you log is organized by AI and then added to the family's Luffu app, where you can also create a profile for your pet to log their medications, meals and vet visits. According to the press release, families decide what information gets shared and with whom. The Luffu timeline and cost Luffu is designing its ecosystem around three locations: the phone, wrist and home. While the app is in public beta, broader US availability is planned for later this year. As for Luffu Link, those in the US can now preorder it on the Luffu website for $250 and get beta access to the app along with a quick charger and large and small silicone bands. Available in halo gold, sterling blue and onyx black, Link is expected to start shipping in early 2027. After that, the expected price will be $300. Water-resistant up to 50 meters, Luffu Link offers battery life of up to five days, a charging time of around 1 hour, a one-year limited warranty, and compatibility with Android 14 or later and iOS 18 or later. LTE data service is included with no separate carrier plan needed. However, to use Luffu, a family plan is required. Sold separately and available later this year, the plan covering up to four people costs $20 per month or $200 per year, while the extended family plan for eight people is $30 per month. Luffu is also developing an intelligent home device -- expected to be announced later this year -- that allows families to coordinate care across generations and households. In the meantime, the company sent over a preview photo of the device. The intended audience A Luffu representative told CNET that some are confusing Luffu Link as a device specifically for aging adults, but it's intended for the entire family. "That includes adults [ages] 35 to 60 managing kids, aging parents, pets and their own health; independent, active adults 65+ who want discreet health and safety support without a traditional emergency pendant; and younger or middle-aged adults who may start with health tracking or voice logging and also benefit from safety, location and shared care features," the representative said. Co-founders Park and Friedman said they were inspired by their own caregiving experiences to create Luffu and their goal is to give families a single place to easily track their loved ones' health and safety.

Screenless Luffu Link Is the Next Wearable From the Founders of Fitbit

After leaving Google post-Fitbit acquisition, co-founders James Park and Eric Friedman expanded their focus from the health of individual users to the health of whole families through a startup called Luffu and an AI-powered app that can track medication, log users' meals, and generally lighten the cognitive load of caregivers and parents. Luffu's next evolution of that idea is the recently announced Luffu Link, a wearable device that offers the health tracking similar to the Fitbit Air, with extra wrinkles that make it more than just another fitness band. The Luffu Link features a rectangular metal housing with a button, sensors, LED, microphone, speakers, and a silicone band that secures the whole package to your wrist. The first big difference between the Link and other wearables is the addition of voice logging. Pressing and holding the wearable's button allows you to verbally note the meal you ate or medicine you took, along with more abstract things like your current mood or things you want to remember. That info, along with data from the Link's health tracking features (heart rate monitoring, sleep tracking, and activity tracking), is then fed into Luffu's app for insights from the patterns its AI spots over time. The other way the Luffu Link differentiates itself is the addition of GPS and free LTE connectivity. The wearable allows family members to see where you've been and even lets you double-press the Link's button to quickly update them on your current location. The addition of LTE also makes it possible to call for help from select members of your family, whether you're near your phone or not. Without a screen, the Link is also part of the growing category of screenless wearables like the Oura Ring 5 and Whoop 5.0. "There's a trend to have no screens on this new class of wearables, but here, it's very purposeful," Luffu co-founder James Park said in an interview with TechCrunch. "We want to be in the background. Link is designed to be on your wrist as a quiet guardian throughout your day, and we also wanted to make this feel nothing like a traditional wearable, nothing like a generic-looking fabric brand or a wrist thing with a screen or a bulky pendant that you're wearing for emergency purposes." The Luffu Link is available to preorder now for $250 (a $50 discount on its $300 price) and ships in early 2027. While the Link's LTE connection is "free," using the wearable requires a subscription to the Luffu Family Plan, which covers four family members and costs either $20 per month or $200 per year. All considered, it's an expensive entry fee for a healthier family, especially if you decide to buy a Link for each person, but maybe Luffu's software will make it worth the cost.

Fitbit founders are back with a $250 wearable, but it's not for counting steps

The LTE-connected band tracks health metrics, records voice notes, shares location, and can contact trusted people without a phone nearby. Fitbit co-founders James Park and Eric Friedman have launched a new wearable, but this time, it's not focused on counting steps. The duo has launched a device called Luffu Link, a screenless health and safety band designed to help families keep track of their loved ones. It's the first hardware product from Luffu, a company that Park and Friedman launched earlier this year. Luffu Link is now available to preorder for $249.99 and is expected to retail for $299.99 when it ships in the US in early 2027. Park and Friedman founded Fitbit in 2007 before it was eventually acquired by Google in 2019. This time, though, the co-founders are taking a different approach to health technology. Luffu's idea came partly from their experiences as caregivers, and from seeing that most health technology is designed for individuals, even though health and care often involve an entire family. Liffu says the screenless band combines health tracking with safety and communication features. It can track activity, sleep, and heart rate, while letting users record symptoms, medications, meals, mood, and reminders by voice. It also has GPS and LTE, allowing it to share a user's location and contact trusted people even when their phone isn't nearby. A double press can send a check-in to selected family members, while the wearer can request help through the device. LTE service is included without a separate carrier plan. Luffu says the band can last up to five days on a charge. It will be available in Halo Gold, Onyx Black, and Sterling Blue. Link is just the first device of Luffu's larger plan. The company's phone app is designed to bring a family's health and safety information together in one place, with AI helping organize the data, identify patterns, and surface important changes. Luffu says families will control what information is shared and with whom. The company also says Link only records voice when the wearer presses and holds its main button. The Luffu app is currently in public beta and is expected to become broadly available in the US later this year. Meanwhile, the company is also developing a home device to help families coordinate care across multiple households. There are no details available about this device for now, but Luffu has promised that more details will arrive later this year.