Samsung has launched its smart ring this year, joining the ranks with many health-centric brands. But if you are expecting Apple to launch its smart ring anytime soon, we’ve got some bad news. The report from Bloomberg this week has made this declaration, talking about Apple pausing development of the product after years of internally working on a model for this segment.
You might say that with the growth spurt of the smart ring segment in the last few years, Apple would surely be eyeing a share of the premium pie. But it seems the company is happy with the existence of another health-centric product, one we call the Apple Watch.
The report points out that Apple fears the possible situation where the smart ring eats into the demand and sales of the Apple Watch, which has been a strong product and a leader of the wearable space for many years.
To be fair, Apple has never talked about its plans for the smart ring category and most of the talk around this segment for the company has been through sources and unverified reports. Does it make sense for Apple to focus on the Watch segment and not make a side pivot into smart rings, we’re not so sure.
After all, the ring can effectively become a health tracker and a fitness tool, something the brand already has in abundance with the Apple Watch. Most of the companies in the smart ring space either have limited exposure to other products or have a clear idea on how to build an ecosystem around their smart ring lineup.
Samsung is one of the very few mainstream names to enter this segment so far. Apple fanboys might feel slightly disappointed with this news but you can never be sure of Apple’s plans unless Tim Cook or any other executive comes out in the open and talks about the product or a category.
