Apple Reconsiders the Watch: Screenless Fitness Trackers, Round Faces and New Price Tiers in the Works

Apple is evaluating radical new Apple Watch designs, including screenless fitness trackers, a round display, new sizes and premium and budget tiers, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The company wants to reinvent the lineup in response to growing competition from bands, rings and AI-focused rivals.

Key Takeaways

Apple is evaluating radical new Apple Watch designs, including screenless fitness trackers, a round display, new sizes and premium and budget tiers, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.
The company wants to reinvent the lineup in response to growing competition from bands, rings and AI-focused rivals.

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Apple is rethinking its smartwatch lineup more radically than at any point since the device launched in 2015, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, writing in his latest "Power On" newsletter.

Gurman reports that Apple's industrial design team has been "exploring a broader rethink of its smartwatches" for some time. The company is taking the resurgence of screenless fitness bands — such as Google's Fitbit Air — and smart rings seriously, and is considering new Apple Watch-style devices with no display at all. It has also contemplated a round-display Apple Watch, although Gurman cautions such a device is unlikely to ship.

The review reportedly includes new screen types, various new sizes, premium variants designed to sit above the Apple Watch Ultra and Hermès models, and even more affordable options below the Apple Watch SE. Apple has not yet settled on a direction, but is said to be "determined to reinvent the lineup in response to growing competition" and to make its wearables more AI-focused, with ambitious long-term plans to revamp the Health app.

Gurman compares the potential redesign to the "revolutionary design change" that the foldable iPhone represents — "something that transforms the product for a new era." Apple is hoping to reinvigorate its Wearables, Home and Accessories segment, which has struggled to generate growth in recent years.

The exploration comes as competitors push deeper into health-and-fitness wearables: Google launched the screenless Fitbit Air, Whoop continues to sell its screen-free subscription bands, and a new wave of AI-powered smart rings has grown rapidly. Apple, meanwhile, is preparing its first foldable iPhone for a September launch and has been expanding Apple Intelligence across its product line.