
Welcome to the only place to catch up on the wearable tech news that didn't quite make the cut on the site this week. But we're still going to show it some love here.
We're talking about the stories that lost out to news that the Apple WatchOS 5.1 update has been bricking devices and speculation that a Samsung hybrid smartwatch with physical watch hands is in the works. Honor also launched a new smartwatch and details of Apple and Stanford's atrial fibrillation study were revealed. You can see all the headlines over in our news section.
We've saved three more servings of wearable tech news that we think may pique your interest too. So lets get into it.
Apple Watch selling like hotcakes
Apple was talking numbers this week and while it never talks specifically about how its smartwatch is performing, Tim Cook says that its wearables category set a September quarter revenue record with a growth over 50 percent.
Now that record is likely to have been connected to the fact that the Apple Watch Series 4 launched that month. The latest Watch saw Apple make the most radical design changes to its wristy companion since launching the original Watch in 2015. We got new sizes and an improved Digital Crown.
The Series 4 also introduced ECG, with support for the potentially life-changing heart rate feature slated to be available in the US before the end of the year. Although it seems that there is already a way to use ECG on the Watch Series 4 if you don't live in the US.
Like all things Apple Watch? Read our Apple Watch missing manual for absolutely everything you'll need to get started with the smartwatch.
Fitbit's smartwatch play is paying off
Fitbit was all about the numbers too, specifically about its performance in the third quarter of the year and it was largely good news. The company said it experienced growth in trackers and smartwatches, but it was the latter that has been really making the difference. Fitbit smartwatches now account for 49% of the company's revenue and it sold 3.5 million wearables overall in the last financial quarter. It seems that the move into healthcare has paid off for the company too according to CEO James Park who commented on the latest earnings report:
“We are now the number two player in the smartwatch space in the U.S. - a category we just entered with zero share only fourteen months ago. We also launched our most advanced tracker yet, Fitbit Charge 3, which is blurring the lines between trackers and smartwatches and is already one of the top selling devices in the U.S."
Got a Fitbit Versa? Check out our roundup of the best Fitbit Versa bands to buy.
Huawei Watch gets new lease of life
Despite launching its first smartwatch that doesn't run Wear OS in the shape of the Watch GT, Huawei is clearly not about to forget about its watches packing Google's operating system. Like the original Huawei Watch, which might be ancient in smartwatch terms, but is still very much a Wareable fave and a Wear great.
This week, Huawei rolled out a major software update to its first gen Watch bringing a new features Google recently added to the OS. That includes the new-look, interface that uses gestures to make it quicker to navigate. There's also been an overall performance boost that along with the Wear OS updates should hopefully keep you using that Watch for a while longer yet.
You can check whether the Huawei Watch makes the cut in our list of the Best Wear smartwatches to buy.
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