Garmin may introduce wrist temperature tracking for better health insights
A new section discovered in the Garmin Connect app suggests the company is thinking about incorporating wrist temperature tracking into its smartwatches, offering users an additional way to monitor their health.
Wrist temperature tracking on smartwatches can provide a variety of benefits. Smartwatches can detect changes in body temperature by monitoring the skin temperature of the wrist, which can be indicative of a variety of health conditions such as fever, sleep disorders, and hormonal imbalances. It can also assist individuals in tracking their menstrual cycle and monitoring the effectiveness of various stress management techniques.
Athletes can benefit from wrist temperature tracking as well, because changes in body temperature can indicate overtraining and the need for rest and recovery. It is the kind of information that can assist people in making informed decisions about their health and wellness.
Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets
In terms of this feature, Garmin is a little behind the times. Fitbit has had it for several years now on a variety of its wearables. Both the Galaxy Watch 5 and Apple Watch Series 8 have a dedicated skin temperature sensor. Another example of a wearable that can monitor temperature is the Oura Ring.
Having said that, a set of Garmin smartwatches do have a temperature sensor inside. But this is to measure ambient air temperature near the barometric altimeter port, not skin temperature. Which is something entirely different. The info can only used to monitor the weather conditions and nothing more than that.
But as many users have spotted, even these readings are suspect. Right now the temperature sensor often gives inaccurate readings because body heat can affect these types of measurements. Garmin actually recommends removing the watch and placing it on a temperature neutral surface for 10 minutes if you want a precise temperature reading.
Garmin Connect app makes a mention of wrist temperature tracking
The question isn’t so much whether Garmin will add wrist temperature tracking to its smartwatches as it is when. And it appears that the wait might not be too long.
A user has discovered a new section in the Garmin Connect app that refers to temperature tracking and posted the image on a social media platform. He spotted it in the software’s sleep section.
This finding, combined with the fact that wrist temperature tracking is a highly requested feature, suggests that Garmin may be planning to introduce this functionality soon. Check out the screenshot below.
The image implies that wrist temperature tracking is being actively developed and will be available soon. It remains to be seen whether it will appear on upcoming watches or whether existing hardware is capable of supporting the feature. Fitbit, for example, retroactively introduced the feature on a number of its wearables. We expect the Garmin Forerunner 265 and 965 to be available in February, making them the first candidates for wrist temperature tracking.
It will also be interesting to see how the feature functions. It appears that, like other brands’ devices, it will only work while you sleep. Fitbit has taken the approach of establishing your baseline temperature and tracking your deviation from it. Which makes sense. Another wearable that uses this strategy is Whoop. We’re also waiting to see if Garmin will stop there or add other features such as cycle tracking based on temperature readings, akin to the Apple Watch.
Wrist temperature monitoring has the potential to provide users with useful health and wellness information. This rumoured addition to Garmin smartwatches will be well received when it finally arrives.
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