A renowned name in the fitness tech industry, Garmin, has held its own when its competitors are diving headfirst into the smart ring space. While others are striving to be on top of the game, Garmin continues to innovate its leading smartwatches. So the question arises– is there a Garmin smart ring launching anytime soon?
“We’re aware of what’s happening in the patent world, but we’re focused on innovation. Some companies copy; Garmin doesn’t. We’re committed to developing new features in original ways.” – Joe Schrick
Smartwatches over Smart Rings?
The possibility of a Garmin smart ring is there, but certainly not in the near future. Joe Schrick (Vice President of Fitness), and Scott Burgett (Senior Director of Health Engineering), gave us an insight into this question at Garmin’s Health Summit in Prague held on 24-25 September 2024.
When asked about the possibility of seeing a Garmin smart ring on the shelves, Scott Burgett highlighted how often they update their PPG sensor, initially launched in 2015, pulling focus on constantly striving to be the best at what they do.
This statement further solidifies the company’s stance on not coming out with a smart ring anytime soon. Citing another reason for this, is the accuracy smartwatches provide over smart rings.
Data accuracy is a key point for Garmin’s core customer base, which is why I understand why they can’t deviate into a wearable tech space that can be easily affected by so much background noise. Although Garmin has squashed rumors about their smart ring…
Here’s Why I Feel They Should
Although I agree with Garmin’s reasons not to dive into the smart ring market just yet, even Schrick admits that the comfort smart rings provide for all-day tracking is unmatched. I have to say, in today’s world of every company competing to launch a smart ring, I gained a new perspective as to why they shouldn’t.
The performance and data provided by a smartwatch is unbeatable. Still, I hold hope for a smart ring from a company like Garmin, because I believe their dedication to providing accuracy will also be carried onto a smart ring.
Imagine getting Garmin-level data accuracy without wearing a watch to bed! It could certainly be a game-changer. Especially for tracking recovery after training. A girl can dream, right?
Wrap Up
Though the reasons given by Garmin to stay on one path are justified, I can’t help but wonder– with the wearables market being so fiercely competitive, can they really afford to lag behind and not sustain their market share?
When Joe and Scott spoke about profitability being an issue with smart rings, it led me to correlate the risk involved for them, given the Galaxy Ring’s launch was highly underwhelming as opposed to the buzz surrounding it.
With the massive cost of production and marketing an entirely new line of products, the risk is inherent. However, I, for one, think that they will need to venture out into this market sooner or later, despite the challenges associated.
