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Garmin has finally revealed the “Cirqa”, its first fitness tracker without a screen.
The fitness tracker can be worn on the wrist or the bicep, and tracks its owners’ health and performance metrics. As such, it looks set to take on competitors such as the Whoop band and the relatively new Fitbit Air.
Unlike those competitors, the Garmin strap does not require a monthly subscription to work. But some of its features are locked behind a subscription to the company’s Connect+ plan, which was launched last year to some controversy.
Garmin said specifically that the introduction of a band without a screen was aimed at allowing people to take control of their attention. It has been designed to “help users make improvements toward a healthier lifestyle without commanding all their attention”, it said in an announcement.
As with other Garmin products, the new wearable can track daily health metrics, such as steps, sleep and calories burned. It can also be used to track activities – though it requires a connected phone’s GPS to understand its location.
“We purposefully created Cirqa Smart Band for those who are passionate about staying healthy and active,” said Susan Lyman, Garmin’s vice president of consumer sales and marketing. “With its discreet design and trusted health and fitness tracking tools Garmin is known for, this smart band complements our lineup of popular smartwatches and wellness monitors, allowing users to transition smoothly between their Garmin devices throughout the day.”
Garmin’s Cirqa follows the release last year of its Index Sleep Monitor. That looked largely similar, but was aimed only at users to wear in bed – if they find wearing a watch too bulky or distracting, for instance – and as such only measured metrics related to their sleep.
Since the release of that product, rumours have swirled that Garmin was working on a wearable that would allow for fitness tracking at all times, without a screen. Over the last year, a number of leaks have indicated that it was planning to release such a device – including mentions of the new Cirqa band that appeared to have been accidentally published to its website.
The Cirqa will be available from 24 July and costs $199.99 or the same in pounds.
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