Fossil abandons Wear OS and stops producing new smartwatches

What happened?

According to multiple reports from people familiar with Fossil, the brand will no longer release smartwatches running on Wear OS, the operating system developed by Google for wearable devices.

What does that mean?

This means that Fossil Gen 7, which was expected to be the new generation of Fossil smartwatches, will not arrive after all. And it seems that this decision is in line with the recent events around Fossil, which indicate that the company is facing difficulties in the field of smartwatches.

What is the evidence?

The last Fossil Gen 6 was released two years ago, and did not receive major updates since then. Also, the usual summer release schedule for Fossil watches did not include Fossil Gen 7 this year. In addition, the device is suddenly absent from the usual rumors, which usually precede the launch of new watches.

What are the consequences?

Fossil is currently conducting a massive sale of its Fossil Gen 6 watch, perhaps to clear the inventory. It reaches a discount of more than 50% on the official Fossil website. This suggests that the company does not expect a high demand for its smartwatches in the future.

What is the next step?

Unfortunately, there is no information about why Fossil canceled the subscription to Wear OS, or even the type of system that will run on Fossil’s future watches. This may be the end of the era of Fossil as one of the most prominent brands in the field of smartwatches. Or maybe the company is planning something new and different. We have to wait and see.