Garmin may be about to enter a new category of wearable, after a Garmin India social page apparently jumped the gun and seemingly teased a new device.
Garmin India’s Facebook page posted a teaser image for a wearable not yet acknowledged by the wider company, as spotted by Redditors. The image has since been pulled.
“The future of wearables is almost here,” the picture tagline reads, paired with what looks like the side view of a wrist-worn wearable. Two images show a button or LED porthole apparently glowing white and then red.
One obvious use for use for such an indicator is as a half-way replacement for a screen.
Such screen-free wearables are the hot trend of the season, with bands like the Polar Loop and Amazfit Helio Strap attempting to muscle in on the Whoop audience. If anything it’s a surprise it took this long for others to do so, given the first Whoop band was revealed in 2015.
These wearables often deliver little or no feedback through the device itself, and an LED could be used to quickly relay, for example, training recovery or readiness.
There are complicating factors, though. The image of the apparent LED bears a strong resemblance to the LED flash of the Garmin Venu 4, appearing to live between the stems that join the watch body to the strap.
Garmin watch LEDs have both pure white and red modes, the latter used to help people see what’s around them without throwing out too much light.
This is not necessarily the most convenient spot for an LED light intended to function as a stat indicator, rather than a flashlight. The images could simply show another Garmin with such a light.
The view of the watch is also so restricted, there’s no conclusive proof here this potentially upcoming watch does not have a display in the first place.
That conjecture this upcoming Garmin may be a screen-free wearable is rather rooted in the sell-in that it represents the “future of wearables.” And that such a device has been rumoured previously.
Garmin already sells something comparable, the Garmin Index Sleep. This arm band is primarily a sleep tracker, one Garmin suggests you use in concert with a watch, taking over the job of stat tracking when you go to bed.
Garmin already has the stats it needs to make a solid recovery wearable, like training readiness and Body Battery. But it’s less clear whether the company’s software, Garmin Connect, has the gloss to match Whoop like-for-like when — or if — a full recovery-style wearable does come.
I have approached Garmin for comment on this recent report.
