Past year in smartwatches and wearables
As is usual at this time of the year, we take a look back at
the headline-grabbing statements and news that shaped another packed year for
wearables competing to earn a room on our wrists and elsewhere.
January to March: A silent CES, Samsung and Wear OS rumors
stir, OnePlus Watch and Google closes that Fitbit contract
OnePlus Smartwatch Cobalt Limited Edition
With the plague still very abundant in full outcome, CES –
the residence that’s usually oversupplied with announcements – didn’t really bring
a huge flood of new wearables to get eager about.
We saw a new hybrid smartwatch after Fossil Group product
Skagen, lengthways with an LTE version of its Fossil Gen 5 Wear OS smartwatch, though
Zepp (formerly recognized as Huami) bowled out yet more smartwatches. It additional
the Amazfit GTS 2e and GTR 2e to its now wide collection of devices. Those statements
aside, it was a silent show for wearables.
Outside of CES, Garmin proclaimed the Garmin Lily at the
start of 2021, a lean hybrid smartwatch designed for women. That model was
joined in February by the Garmin Enduro, a multi-sports watch made with fortitude
athletes in mind that accessible big battery life and software topographies
built for ultra-runners and bicyclists.
February and March were mainly quiet months for presentations
and news, though it’s when we first heard talk that new Samsung smartwatches remained
on the way, which might land packing Google’s Wear OS in its place of Samsung’s
Tizen OS. While this appeared like an odd move at the time, given how extra imposing
Samsung’s smartwatch stage performed compared to Google’s, this was a story
that certainly conquered in 2021.
March was all around the OnePlus Watch, lastly landing after
years of conjecture over whether it was – or wasn’t – in the the whole thing.
Despite early rumors that OnePlus' debut smartwatch could reach running
Google’s Wear OS, OnePlus decided to go it unaccompanied and use its own
proprietary operating system to run the software expression.
Debatably the main news to drop in the first few months of
the year, though, was that Google had finally finished its acquisition of
Fitbit. At this opinion we began to marvel how long it would take for Fitbit to
jump influencing Google’s wearable drives, firmly putting conjecture of a Pixel
Watch back on the table – which was also a topic of conversation later in the
year.
April to June: Fitbit Luxe, Wear OS by Google and Samsung,
Huawei Watch 3, and original Apple Watch features
Caption into spring, there was a lot more fashionable than
in the first three months of the year. In April, the now Google-owned Fitbit threw
the Luxe, a stylish fitness tracker that developed the first (but not the last)
Fitbit this year to feature a full color touchscreen.
There was launch news from Casio, too, as it bowled out its
first G-Shock to run Google’s Wear OS, having beforehand only included the
smartwatch operating system on its Pro Trek outdoor series of watches.
Maybe Casio must have sat tight, however, since big variations
were afoot with Wear OS. At Google’s I/O developer session in May, we originate
out about a new version of Wear built by Google and Samsung. This attractive
much long-established that the next Samsung Galaxy Timepiece would run on the
revamped Wear 3.0.
The Fossil Group, additional Wear OS hardware partner, also exposed
it was working on a smartwatch that would be built on this new Wear stage.
However, at the same time the business dealt a blow to current proprietors of
its smartwatches by revealing those watches wouldn’t be upgradeable to new
Wear.
Huawei got in on the launch act, too, when in June the brand
formally revealed the Huawei Watch 3– its first smartwatch to run on its individual
HarmonyOS platform. Contribution a more finessed look than the Huawei Watch 2
and the Watch GT 2, it most particularly brought Huawei’s AppGallery app store
to a Huawei smartwatch for the primary time.
Apple Watch proprietors conventional software update news,
too: Apple’s WWDC designer conference keynote presented watchOS 8, which presented
features such as an better-quality Wallet app to store digital keys and
licenses, new mindfulness features, and better photo and messaging support.
July to September: Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, Apple Watch
Series 7 and Fitbit Charge 5
Apple Watch 7
This is the part of the year anywhere things typically start
to get busy, and there was surely plenty new to talk about.
In July, things remained quiet on the launch-front, but
Mobvoi was the first Wear hardware partner to disclose that one of its current
smartwatches would be well-matched with Wear 3.0. The TicWatch Pro 3, its
flagship smartwatch, would join the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra and TicWatch E3
watches in getting new Wear in 2022.
Jumping into August, Fossil formally unveiled its Gen 6
smartwatch, having tormented earlier in the year that the device would also be
joining the company of watches to run on Google and Samsung’s Wear. Except that
version of Wear wouldn’t land on the smartwatch until 2022.
Fitbit was eventful this month, too, proclaiming the Charge
5 – an update to its new fitness tracker. It shadowed the Luxe with a color
touchscreen display, but it also congenital the ECG sensor that before only
featured on its Sense health watch. The last adding made the Charge 5 the first
fitness tracker that was accomplished of helping to notice signs related with
atrial fibrillation.
Then it remained over to Samsung, next many leaks, to formally
announce the Galaxy Watch 4 and the Watch 4 Classic. This on condition that us
with our first and only look in 2021 at the grouping of Google’s new Wear and
the best of Samsung’s Tizen.
The Apple Watch Series 7 hurled in September, with Apple determining
to make vicissitudes on the design front – but it didn’t come generous the
flatter look that had been supposed earlier in the year. We conventional two
new case sizes, more screen estate and a fast-charging options; but, in
fairness, it was a shy upgrade to the king of the smartwatches. Based on what
was brought with the 7, it looks like the Apple Watch Series 8 may be the
device that sees more fundamental changes.
Oura (Third Generation) smart ring
The end of the year still saw sufficient opportunity for producers
to get in on the presentation action – and there was certainly amply of
rumor-mongering, too, about what might be on the way.
First to launch in this timeframe was Motorola, with its
Moto Watch 100. Unlike its previous Moto smartwatches, this one didn’t originate
packing Google’s Wear OS; it originated with a proprietary OS on board in its
place. Zepp also augmented its ranks with three new smartwatches: the GTS 3,
GTR 3 and the GTR 3 Pro. The trio signaled the influx of Zepp’s new OS, which additional
on app store with the view to contributing third-party apps for the first time.
Huawei wasn’t done for the year moreover, launching the
Huawei Watch GT 3 with project elements grabbed from its Watch 3 and its
HarmonyOS software. Away from watches, Oura revealed its third-generation smart
ring, structure on its sleep and retrieval tracking features with an SpO2
sensor plus new women’s health-tracking topographies, too.
Then here have been the delicious rumors of what’s to come.
First, Meta’s first smartwatch, which will supposedly arrive with a
front-facing camera – if that lonely leaked image proves honest. There’s also
talk of the Google Pixel Watch, with manifold reports signifying it could land
in 2022, with unproven images from Pixel Watch marketing material also
surfacing. This is one rumor we forestall could run all the way concluded 2022
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