Garmin’s Fitness business had another strong quarter, with revenue rising 25% to $757 million. Outdoor moved in the opposite direction, falling 2% to $483 million, partly because of weaker sales across the adventure watch category.

That is not a dramatic decline on its own. The more interesting detail is Garmin’s explanation of what comes next.

New launches should lift Outdoor sales

Garmin expects stronger Outdoor revenue during the second half of 2026 because of the timing of upcoming product launches. It made a similar point earlier this year, when the company outlined a launch-heavy second half for its Outdoor division.

The latest earnings call shows that plan has not changed. Garmin still expects full-year Outdoor growth to improve compared with 2025, despite revenue declining during both the first and second quarters.

No specific watch was mentioned. Garmin did not confirm the Fenix 9, Enduro 4 or a new Instinct model, and it offered no launch dates.

Still, Enduro 4 currently looks like the most concrete candidate. Our Garmin Connect 5.26 teardown uncovered an Enduro 4 device entry, complete with internal ID 5179 and category flags for fitness, outdoor, golf and wellness.

That does not tell us what the watch will look like or when it will arrive. However, Garmin is clearly preparing its software to recognise the device, while its financial guidance assumes stronger Outdoor sales later this year.

The Enduro series has also followed a fairly tidy two-year rhythm. Enduro 2 arrived in August 2022, followed by Enduro 3 in August 2024. An August or September 2026 release would fit that pattern.

CIRQA demand beat Garmin’s expectations

The call also provided Garmin’s first proper comment on early CIRQA demand.

An analyst pointed out that the screenless band appeared to be sold out, with estimated delivery times stretching to between five and eight weeks. Garmin CEO Cliff Pemble said the delays were being driven by both supply and demand, but confirmed that the response had exceeded the company’s forecasts.

Pemble described early demand as ahead of anything Garmin had imagined. The company now expects to spend some time working through back orders, while initial device registrations have also been strong.

We recently covered the long CIRQA shipping delays across different regions. The earnings call now confirms that Garmin did not simply assign conservative delivery estimates. Actual demand has come in above its expectations.

Garmin also clarified how subscriptions work with CIRQA. The band includes the normal health, fitness and recovery features available through Garmin Connect without requiring a subscription. Connect+ remains optional. It adds extras such as AI features, nutrition tracking and other tools Garmin plans to introduce later.

Garmin is still exploring other wearable formats

When asked whether the company planned to enter other wearable form factors, Pemble declined to discuss the product roadmap directly. He did say Garmin regularly explores new categories and described its current roadmap as very rich.

That is not confirmation of a Garmin smart ring, sensor patch or another specific device. It does, however, show that Garmin sees CIRQA as more than an isolated experiment.

The initial demand gives Garmin a reason to keep exploring. A screenless band lets existing Garmin users collect sleep and recovery data without wearing a large sports watch around the clock. It also opens Garmin Connect to people who may not want a watch at all.

Sources: Garmin’s Q2 2026 earnings release, Q2 2026 earnings call.

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Garmin CIRQA is the better buy for existing Garmin users and anyone who wants detailed training metrics without another mandatory annual payment. Whoop remains the stronger recovery coach, but it now has to justify a subscription costing at least $199 every year.

Garmin’s entry into the screenless tracker category was always going to invite this comparison. CIRQA covers much of the same ground as Whoop, including continuous heart rate, sleep, recovery and workout tracking, but the two companies take very different routes once the data reaches the smartphone.

The biggest difference is not the hardware

CIRQA is essentially a Garmin sports watch without the screen, GPS chip and most of the controls. It records the familiar Garmin metrics, sends them to Garmin Connect and works alongside the company’s watches and cycling computers.

CIRQA also sits between cheaper screenless trackers and more coaching-focused platforms. Our Garmin CIRQA vs Fitbit Air comparison looks at how it stacks up against this simpler and more affordable alternative.

Whoop starts from a different place. The band collects the data, but the real product is the app and the way it connects Recovery, Strain, sleep and everyday behaviour.

That distinction became clear during my Whoop review. The hardware was comfortable and easy to forget, but the more useful part was how Whoop encouraged me to pay attention to recovery instead of constantly chasing faster times and a higher VO2 max.

That opinion still applies. Whoop presents its numbers as a daily plan, while Garmin gives you a larger collection of metrics and leaves more of the interpretation to you.

CIRQA is much cheaper over time

Garmin CIRQA costs $199.99. Its main health, sleep, recovery and training features work without a Garmin Connect+ subscription.

Connect+ remains optional at $6.99 per month or $69.99 per year. It adds features including Active Intelligence, expanded dashboards and access to some coaching tools, but CIRQA does not stop working when the subscription ends. Plus, you don’t really need the subscription.

Garmin CIRQA

Screenless tracking with no required subscription

View on Amazon View on Garmin

Whoop takes the opposite approach. The tracker comes with the membership, but an active plan is required to continue using the platform.

Whoop One starts at $199 per year, while Peak costs $239. The $359 Life plan includes Whoop MG and its additional heart features.

Whoop

Recovery, strain and sleep coaching with membership

View on Whoop

That makes the long-term calculation fairly brutal. Three years with CIRQA can cost $199.99, while three years of the cheapest Whoop plan costs at least $597.

The difference grows to $717 with Peak and $1,077 with Life. Whoop therefore needs to provide continuing value every year, rather than simply offer a slightly better app.

Whoop is easier to wear and charge

CIRQA is lighter, but it takes up more space along the wrist. Its body measures 47mm from end to end, compared with 34.7mm for Whoop 5.0.

Whoop is slightly narrower but thicker, so neither device wins the comfort comparison purely from the numbers. Wrist shape, band tension and where the sensor sits will probably have more influence than a few millimetres.

CIRQA’s length looks more intimidating in comparison images than its weight suggests. It comes in at a little over 20 grams with the band, while Whoop 5.0 weighs around 26.5 grams.

My experience with Whoop suggests its woven band should remain comfortable during continuous wear. The low-profile shape also works well during activities where a normal watch becomes awkward.

Whoop has the clearer advantage when charging. Its battery lasts more than 14 days, compared with up to 10 days for CIRQA.

The Wireless PowerPack available with the higher Whoop memberships slides over the tracker while it remains on the body. CIRQA uses Garmin’s familiar charging cable and needs to come off the wrist, creating a small gap in the data each time.

Garmin gives you more conventional training tools

CIRQA supports more than 80 activity profiles, automatic workout detection and connected GPS. Its physical button can also start and stop one favourite activity without opening Garmin Connect.

The band feeds into Training Readiness, Training Status, VO2 max, recovery time, workout benefit and Garmin’s wider training-load system. It can broadcast heart rate over ANT+ and Bluetooth, which gives it a useful role alongside other Garmin devices.

Whoop supports more individual activity types, but its approach is less conventional. The app concentrates on how much Strain the workout produced and what that exertion is likely to do to tomorrow’s Recovery.

That is useful, but runners and cyclists may find Garmin’s platform more complete. Garmin Connect gives you more recognisable workout records, routes, pace data and performance trends, while Whoop is better at explaining how hard the session was for your body.

Neither band has built-in GPS or a display. Anyone who needs navigation, live pacing or detailed data fields during a run will still need a phone, sports watch or cycling computer.

Accuracy also remains an open question. CIRQA uses a modified version of Garmin’s Elevate Gen 4 optical sensor, while Whoop collects heart-rate data 26 times per second with its newer PPG hardware.

The faster sampling rate does not guarantee better results. Whoop can still struggle with wrist movement and rapid heart-rate changes, while CIRQA needs broader independent testing across running, cycling and strength sessions before it earns an accuracy win.

Whoop still explains recovery better

Where Whoop has made a name for itself is in recovery tracking. Garmin offers these metrics as well, but Whoop connects the info more effectively. Recovery, Strain and Sleep operate as parts of the same system rather than separate numbers competing for space inside an app.

Whoop can show whether you are ready to train, suggest a daily Strain target and adjust your sleep requirement around previous exercise and accumulated sleep debt. It’s simple and it works. The Journal then connects behaviours such as alcohol, caffeine, supplements and late meals with changes in Recovery.

That remains Whoop’s most useful advantage. It turns the tracker into a structured self-experiment rather than simply another source of graphs.

Garmin provides Body Battery, Training Readiness, HRV Status, stress, sleep score, recovery time and Training Status. The information is useful, but there is overlap between some of the scores, and Garmin Connect does not always explain the relationship between them particularly well.

The new Essentials section improves the situation by bringing key recovery information closer to the front of the app. Even so, Whoop remains better at reducing a complicated physiological picture into a small number of decisions.

Health tracking is closer than it looks

Both trackers record continuous heart rate, resting heart rate, HRV, respiratory rate, blood oxygen, skin temperature and sleep. Each also provides a vibration alarm, although Garmin offers a Smart Wake feature that aims to wake the user at a lighter point in the sleep cycle.

CIRQA includes abnormal heart-rate alerts, stress tracking, nap detection, menstrual tracking and sleep-based temperature data. Most of those features work without Connect+.

Standard Whoop 5.0 does not have ECG. That feature belongs to Whoop MG, which comes with the $359 annual Life membership.

MG also adds irregular heart rhythm notifications and daily blood-pressure insights where available. Those features give Whoop a higher health ceiling, but they sit in a much more expensive version of the product.

For most buyers comparing CIRQA with standard Whoop 5.0, the health sensors are not the deciding factor. The larger differences remain software, training style and cost.

Existing Garmin users have an easy decision

CIRQA makes the most sense as a companion to another Garmin device. It can handle sleep, daily health and background activity, while a Forerunner, Fenix or Edge takes over during serious training.

That keeps the data inside Garmin Connect. Users do not have to compare two recovery scores, maintain separate histories or decide whether Garmin or Whoop should act as the main authority on their training.

It also gives Garmin owners a practical way to wear a mechanical watch during the day. CIRQA can continue collecting health data on the other wrist or upper arm without displaying notifications or adding another screen.

Whoop works with services including Strava, Apple Health and Health Connect, but it remains a separate recovery platform. That is useful for people who mix devices from several brands.

Someone already paying for Whoop and using its Journal regularly may not gain much from moving immediately. Someone wearing a Garmin watch for training while paying Whoop for recovery now has a much stronger reason to consolidate.

The post Garmin CIRQA vs Whoop: One payment or a yearly subscription appeared first on Gadgets & Wearables.

Garmin CIRQA may have only just launched, but buying one in the US already requires a bit of patience. Most colour options come with waits of up to eight weeks, which means an order placed today could still be sitting in Garmin’s warehouse when September rolls around. Black, apparently, gets to skip part of the queue.

Things are not dramatically better elsewhere. Buyers in the UK and several European countries are also seeing multi-week estimates, although a few lucky colour and size combinations can still ship within days.

The tracker has also been made available on Amazon. But the situation is not much better there.

CIRQA may be screenless, but Garmin has found another way to make people keep checking for updates!

US orders could slip well into September

Garmin’s US store currently lists an estimated dispatch time of 5 to 8 weeks for most CIRQA colours. Based on an order placed on July 27, that points to dispatch between August 31 and September 21.

That is the point at which the band would leave Garmin, rather than when it would arrive at the buyer’s door. Depending on the shipping method, the actual delivery date could come several days later.

Black is the notable exception. Garmin currently gives that version a shorter estimate of 3 to 5 weeks, putting its likely dispatch window between August 17 and August 31.

For buyers who are flexible about colour, that could remove as much as three weeks from the wait. It is worth clicking through every colour and size before ordering rather than assuming all CIRQA configurations have the same availability.

The table provides a snapshot of the main regional differences on Garmin’s website.

UK buyers have a quicker option

The situation in the UK is slightly better, although most CIRQA colours still show a wait of around 3 to 5 weeks. That would put dispatch somewhere between mid-August and the end of August for an order placed today.

Some Mauve configurations are available to ship in 1 to 3 business days. The same is the case for the French Grey option. That makes the UK one of the few markets where buyers can currently get a CIRQA without joining a lengthy queue.

Garmin CIRQA

Screenless tracking with no required subscription

View on Amazon View on Garmin

Other European countries show a broadly similar pattern. Most versions carry estimates of around 3 to 5 weeks, without the longer 5 to 8-week delay that is effecting the US range.

It is too early to call CIRQA a sellout

The lengthy estimates suggest Garmin’s initial CIRQA stock is limited, but they do not necessarily mean it has been a runaway success. Garmin may simply have played it safe with the first batch, especially as this is still a fairly new type of product for the company.

CIRQA costs $199.99 in the US and combines screenless health tracking with up to ten days of battery life. The real draw is how neatly it fits into Garmin Connect and works alongside Garmin watches and cycling computers. It costs twice as much as Fitbit Air, but it also offers more serious training tools and makes more sense for people already using Garmin gear, as we noted in our comparison piece.

All things considered – CIRQA looks like a decent bit of kit. The problem right now is actually getting hold of one.

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Garmin has confirmed that CIRQA uses its previous-generation Elevate Gen 4 heart rate sensor because the newer module would have made the screenless tracker thicker. The company has also clarified that owners are expected to switch between CIRQA and a Garmin watch rather than wear both as competing trackers.

The explanations come from Garmin product manager Chrissy Wheeler, who answered several questions about the new band in an interview with Forbes. CIRQA recently went on sale for $199.99 and is the company’s answer to the likes of Whoop.

Thinness won over the newest sensor

When CIRQA launched many people found it strange that it packs the Elevate Gen 4 heart rate sensor rather than the newer Gen 5 hardware. Wheeler has now explained that this was a deliberate design decision rather than an attempt to reuse old components.

“The reason we didn’t go for the very latest one is the size of the module,” she said. Using Garmin’s newer sensor would have increased the thickness of a device designed to remain comfortable during sleep and continuous wear.

CIRQA measures 9mm thick and weighs just over 20 grams with its standard band. Which is pretty low-key. Having said that it is very wide, especially when compared to the recently launched Fitbit Air.

That does not automatically mean CIRQA will be less accurate during workouts than Garmin’s newer watches, as fit, placement and movement all affect optical readings. It is not exactly the same Gen 4 hardware used in older devices, either. Garmin has tweaked it to include skin-temperature tracking, which the earlier version did not offer.

CIRQA is meant to replace your watch between workouts

Beyond the sensor, Wheeler also addressed whether people should wear CIRQA and a Garmin watch simultaneously. Her answer was fairly direct, saying there is “no real benefit” to using both in that way.

The intended setup is to make CIRQA the Primary Wearable for sleep, steps and daily health tracking, while a Forerunner, Fenix or another Garmin watch remains the main Training Device. Owners can wear the band throughout the day, then switch to the watch when they need built-in GPS, maps or live workout data.

There is one useful exception. CIRQA can broadcast heart rate over Bluetooth, allowing someone to place it on the upper arm and use it as an external sensor with a watch, bike computer or compatible device from another brand. Which is something that we flag in our screenless fitness tracker buying guide.

A few smaller details are now clearer

Connected GPS works with automatically detected activities, so owners do not have to start every walk or run from Garmin Connect to receive a route map. The band can also vibrate once per hour during a manually started activity, reminding the wearer that recording is still active despite the lack of a screen.

Its vibration motor supports alarms but will not reproduce phone notifications or incoming-call alerts. That keeps CIRQA focused on passive health and activity tracking rather than turning it into a smartwatch without a display.

Garmin CIRQA

Screenless tracking with no required subscription

View on Amazon View on Garmin

Garmin has also repeated that users will not be charged simply to access the data recorded by CIRQA. Connect+ will continue to offer optional extras, while the company has already said that CIRQA’s current heart rate reading will become available without Connect+ following criticism of the launch software.

The post Garmin explains why CIRQA uses an older heart rate sensor appeared first on Gadgets & Wearables.

In this article we compare Garmin CIRQA, Google Fitbit Air, Amazfit Helio Strap, WHOOP 5.0 and Polar Loop to find the best screenless fitness tracker for different types of users.

These devices give screenless fitness tracker buyers five genuinely different options. Garmin offers the deepest training tools without a required subscription, Fitbit Air is the lightest and cheapest route into passive tracking, while WHOOP still has the strongest recovery platform but costs far more over time.

A few years ago, choosing a screenless fitness tracker mostly meant deciding whether you were willing to pay for WHOOP. That has changed quickly, with Google, Garmin, Polar and Zepp Health all offering alternatives that collect health and activity data without putting another display on your wrist.

None of these trackers has built-in GPS. They all move most settings, results and analysis into a smartphone app, but the similarities begin to fade once you look at subscriptions, training tools, comfort and compatibility with other devices.

Price, design and battery life

The purchase price only tells part of the story. Fitbit Air and Helio Strap both cost $99.99, while Garmin CIRQA and Polar Loop have $199.99 list prices.

WHOOP does not sell the tracker in the conventional sense. The hardware comes with the membership, but continued access to the platform requires an active plan starting at $199 per year, rising to $239 for WHOOP Peak and $359 for WHOOP Life with the MG hardware. 

Fitbit Air is the easiest device to forget you are wearing. Its pod weighs only 5.2 grams, with the complete tracker coming in at around 12 grams, and its 17mm width makes it noticeably slimmer than everything else here.

That comfort was the strongest part of my Fitbit Air review. It works well for sleep and continuous wear, although the seven-day battery claim trails CIRQA, Helio Strap and WHOOP.

Amazfit Helio Strap is also fairly discreet at 20 grams. Its nylon strap uses a hook-and-loop fastening, and Zepp Health sells an official upper-arm accessory for workouts where wrist movement might interfere with optical heart-rate readings.

Garmin CIRQA is wider than Fitbit Air but remains reasonably light. Its 24mm ComfortFit strap uses quick-release pins, and a physical button gives it a small advantage over the other trackers.

Polar Loop is the heaviest option at 29 grams. That is not excessive for a normal watch, but it is noticeable in a category where the whole point is often to wear something less intrusive.

Garmin CIRQA

Screenless tracking with no required subscription

$199.99

View on Amazon View on Garmin

WHOOP has the best charging arrangement, provided you choose Peak or Life. Its Wireless PowerPack slides over the tracker while it remains on your body, reducing gaps in sleep and recovery data, while the entry WHOOP One plan uses a conventional wired charger.

Health, sleep and recovery tracking

All five trackers cover the foundations. Each records continuous heart rate, resting heart rate, HRV, respiratory rate, sleep duration and sleep stages, but some of the apparent similarities disappear once you look more closely.

Polar Loop does not provide a normal blood-oxygen metric, while its temperature sensor remains available through the software development kit rather than as a consumer-facing skin-temperature feature. WHOOP reserves ECG and irregular rhythm notifications for WHOOP MG, which requires the top Life membership.

Garmin CIRQA has the broadest health package without a required fee. It includes Pulse Ox, skin temperature, HRV Status, Body Battery, Training Readiness, stress tracking, nap detection, abnormal heart-rate alerts and a Smart Wake alarm.

Google has given Fitbit Air a strong selection of passive health features for a budget-friendly tracker. It records SpO2 and skin-temperature variation, supports Smart Wake and can provide irregular rhythm notifications in supported regions.

That combination makes Fitbit Air more of a health tracker than a serious training device. It is particularly useful for someone who wants sleep, heart rate and background health data without wearing a large smartwatch overnight.

Helio Strap sits closer to the fitness side. BioCharge estimates available energy throughout the day, while Readiness focuses more directly on recovery, and the Zepp app also provides sleep, stress, HRV and blood-oxygen trends.

Polar’s Nightly Recharge remains a useful and well-established recovery feature. Loop also feeds into Sleep Plus Stages and SleepWise, but it lacks a vibration motor, so there is no smart alarm or silent wake-up option.

WHOOP still does the best job of turning recovery information into a daily narrative. Its Recovery, Strain and Sleep system connects behaviour, training and rest more clearly than most competing apps, although useful features such as the real-time Stress Monitor and WHOOP Age require Peak or Life.

Training features and ecosystem differences

None of these products should be mistaken for a full sports watch. There is no onboard GPS, map, display or live pace field on your wrist, so runners and cyclists who depend on real-time feedback will still need a phone, watch or bike computer.

That said, the training gap between the devices is substantial. Garmin CIRQA offers more than 80 activity profiles, connected GPS, Training Status, recovery time, VO2 max and Fitness Age, while its physical button can start one chosen activity without opening the app.

CIRQA is the obvious choice for someone already using a Garmin watch or Edge computer. Health and activity data sync through Garmin Connect, and the band can broadcast heart rate to compatible Garmin equipment.

It can also fill a practical gap for people who do not want to wear a Fenix or Forerunner continuously. You can wear CIRQA for sleep and general health tracking, then switch to the watch for a run without splitting your long-term data between two platforms.

The main caveat is that CIRQA is new. Its feature list is excellent, but comfort, workout heart-rate accuracy and automatic activity detection still need extensive real-world testing before it can be declared the most accurate tracker in the group. Garmin’s official specifications confirm the 80-plus activity profiles, connected GPS, training tools and 10-day battery claim. 

Helio Strap is the strongest low-cost option for people who care about training. It offers more than 50 sports modes, BioCharge, Training Load, VO2 max, heart-rate broadcasting and an official upper-arm band, all without a subscription.

It also shares data with Amazfit watches inside the Zepp app. My earlier Helio Ring and Helio Strap comparison looked at how Zepp Health uses separate screenless devices to maintain sleep, recovery and exercise tracking when a watch is charging or not being worn.

Fitbit Air can record a decent workout, but its software remains the weak point. In my Fitbit Air and Garmin 5K test, heart rate and distance were surprisingly close, but the overall experience lacked the workout controls and post-run detail Garmin users will expect.

The hardware often seems more capable than the app. Automatic recognition can also record the wrong start or finish time, and Google Health does not always provide enough editing control to repair the session afterwards.

WHOOP is more polished for interpreting training than recording conventional workout statistics. It excels at showing how a session contributes to Strain and affects subsequent Recovery, but it is less useful for someone who wants maps, splits or detailed running dynamics.

That difference came through when I let Fitbit Air and WHOOP automatically record the same 8km run. Both detected activity, but neither produced a complete record without checking, which is a reminder that passive detection still needs supervision.

Polar Loop works best as a doorway into Polar Flow. Manual sessions use the tracker as a heart-rate sensor inside the app, with the phone providing GPS, while automatic detection can record casual sessions without the phone.

Training Load Pro and Nightly Recharge give it more depth than a simple activity band. However, its lack of vibration, SpO2 and a user-facing temperature metric makes the $199.99 price difficult to justify unless you already value Polar’s training system. That said, phone GPS can provide route, speed and distance during manually recorded outdoor workouts. 

Frequently asked questions

What is a screenless fitness tracker?

A screenless fitness tracker records health, sleep and activity data without putting a display on your wrist. Most settings and results appear in a companion app, which allows the tracker itself to stay lighter, simpler and less distracting than a smartwatch.

Are screenless fitness trackers accurate?

The better models can track resting heart rate, sleep duration and general activity trends reasonably well, although accuracy varies by device and activity. Workout heart rate, automatic exercise detection and GPS distance can be less consistent, especially because the trackers in this comparison rely on a connected phone rather than built-in GPS.

Is Garmin CIRQA better than WHOOP?

Garmin CIRQA is the better choice for Garmin users who want training, recovery and health data without a mandatory subscription. WHOOP has the more mature coaching platform and does a better job of connecting sleep, behaviour, Strain and Recovery, but its membership makes it considerably more expensive over time.

Does Fitbit Air require a subscription?

Fitbit Air does not require a subscription for its main health, sleep and activity features. Google Health Premium adds extra analysis and guidance, but the tracker remains usable without it.

Which screenless tracker has the longest battery life?

WHOOP 5.0 has the longest quoted battery life at more than 14 days. Garmin CIRQA and Amazfit Helio Strap follow with up to 10 days, while Polar Loop offers up to eight days and Fitbit Air up to seven days.

Do screenless fitness trackers have GPS?

None of the trackers in this comparison has built-in GPS. They can use a connected phone to record routes, distance and pace during outdoor workouts, although the available features and reliability vary between platforms.

The post Which screenless fitness tracker should you buy in 2026? appeared first on Gadgets & Wearables.

More than a single oxygen reading

The APK includes fields for average, minimum and maximum saturated haemoglobin percentage. It also contains average, minimum and maximum total haemoglobin concentration.

The potential upcoming device would need to track both because they measure different things. Saturated haemoglobin measures the amount of oxygen-carrying haemoglobin in the muscle, while total haemoglobin measures the total amount of haemoglobin present, whether it is carrying oxygen or not. Together, they give a more complete picture of what is happening inside the muscle during exercise.

MUSCLE_OXYGEN
Muscle Oxygen
sensor_name_type_muscle_oxygen

avg_saturated_hemoglobin_percent
min_saturated_hemoglobin_percent
max_saturated_hemoglobin_percent

avg_total_hemoglobin_conc
min_total_hemoglobin_conc
max_total_hemoglobin_conc

That is more detailed than simply recording one muscle oxygen number at the end of a workout. Garmin Connect can follow how muscle oxygen changes throughout an activity, then identify typical levels, the lowest point reached and the highest recovery point.

Average saturated haemoglobin percentage provides a broad view of muscle oxygen availability across the session. The minimum value shows when the working muscle became most depleted, while the maximum reflects recovery during easier sections, rest intervals or the period immediately after an effort.

Total haemoglobin concentration adds another layer. This measurement reflects changes in blood volume within the monitored tissue, which can help distinguish between a drop in oxygen saturation and a wider change in local blood flow.

The device would need specialised optics

Current Garmin devices cannot produce these readings. Muscle oxygen monitoring normally relies on near-infrared spectroscopy, using several light wavelengths to estimate oxygenated and deoxygenated haemoglobin inside a specific muscle.

That also explains why the likely device would need to sit directly over the muscle being measured. A cyclist may place it on the thigh, while a runner could use the calf or quadriceps. An upper-arm position might work for strength training or general conditioning.

The fields in Garmin Connect suggest the sensor would need to record continuously and send more than a basic SmO2 percentage. It would also need enough optical information to calculate total haemoglobin concentration and track changes over time.

In essence, we are expecting a dedicated optical pod. Garmin watches could act as the display and recording device, while the sensor itself handles the specialised measurements.

That matches our reporting in April on the Garmin Muscle Battery patent filing. This described software for analysing muscle oxygen saturation and related performance data.

Muscle oxygen sensors are not new

Muscle oxygen sensors have been around for years, although they remain few and far between. They have never really caught on outside serious endurance athletes. We reviewed the Humon Hex back in 2019, while Moxy remains one of the better-known options.

The difference is that these have always been third-party products sitting on the edge of the Garmin ecosystem. They can send muscle oxygen data to compatible watches, but Garmin has zero control over the hardware and the algorithms.

Whether these fields currently support third-party sensors or future Garmin hardware, they show that Garmin Connect already understands the muscle oxygen data Muscle Battery could use. A Garmin-made sensor could integrate those measurements more closely with Body Battery, Training Readiness and the wider Garmin ecosystem.

Separately, the same Garmin Connect 5.27 teardown also revealed more clues on the likely Enduro 4 and possible Fenix 9 family.

APK teardown note

This article is based on an APK teardown. Code found inside an app can reveal features or devices that are under development, but there is no guarantee they will appear in a future public release.

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Enduro 4 now has a codename

We compared the main APK from Garmin Connect 5.27 with the base APK contained inside the older version. The most useful entry is product 5179, which Garmin categorises under fitness, outdoor, golf and wellness. Version 5.27 associates that product number with the internal codename GOBI.

That number is not new by itself. Our previous Garmin Connect 5.26 teardown found an Enduro 4 reference tied to the same internal ID, 5179. The difference is that the direct Enduro 4 name does not appear in the new version. Instead, Garmin now lists 5179 as GOBI, giving us a likely development codename for the watch.

The connection is fairly clean. Garmin used 4575 as the internal product ID for Enduro 3, and the company appears to be preparing Garmin Connect to recognise its successor under 5179.

The number cannot be converted into Garmin’s eventual retail part number or website product ID. Those sit in separate databases, so 5179 is mainly useful as a search key for future firmware files, support pages, image servers and Connect IQ records.

Eight more devices appear

The same registry update introduces eight other product entries. These are BRISTLECONE under product 5169, MARGAY_CARACAL under 5161, BENGAL_SIBERIAN under 5162, PANTHER under 5164, TORR_SNARF under 5143, LEAH_CHEETARA under 5144, WILYCUB_PANTHRO under 5145 and Rogers under 5193.

All except Rogers carry the same fitness, outdoor, golf and wellness categories as GOBI. That combination is normally associated with Garmin watches that support a broad mix of sports, outdoor navigation and health features, rather than simple activity trackers.

The naming pattern is difficult to ignore. Six of the entries use feline references and appear to form two groups of three. Products 5143, 5144 and 5145 use names linked to ThunderCats characters, while products 5161, 5162 and 5164 use real cat breeds or species.

One possible explanation is that these six entries belong to the future Fenix 9 family. Garmin commonly releases its Fenix watches in three case sizes, while also separating AMOLED and MicroLED models into different internal product records. Two groups of three could therefore represent three sizes across two display or charging configurations.

That remains speculation, as the APK does not mention Fenix 9 by name. The matching categories, coordinated codenames and closely grouped product numbers do suggest the six devices belong to one wider hardware programme rather than six unrelated watches.

BRISTLECONE appears separate from the feline group, although its outdoor-focused categories suggest another capable Garmin watch. Rogers is the odd one out, as Garmin assigns it only fitness and wellness categories, which could point to a simpler wearable or accessory.

Software changes are also included

Garmin Connect 5.27 is not only about new hardware records. The update also adds the new Garmin Connect Essentials section, which lets users place selected health and training stats at the top of the Home screen.

Garmin has also reworked parts of the device setup process, with new flows for primary wearable selection, sleep schedules, Wi-Fi, backups and firmware updates. There are further changes around Garmin Coach, including expanded triathlon support, along with smaller updates to Pulse Ox reports, workout syncing and activity screens.

APK teardown note

This article is based on an APK teardown. Code found inside an app can reveal features or devices that are under development, but there is no guarantee they will appear in a future public release.

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Garmin is buying more than two apps

As detailed in the press release, around 120 employees from the two businesses will join Garmin, although the companies have not disclosed the financial terms.

TrainingPeaks has spent more than two decades building tools for endurance athletes and professional coaches. It handles training calendars, structured workouts, performance analysis and coaching relationships, with a particularly strong following among runners, cyclists and triathletes.

TrainHeroic covers the strength side. Its platform allows coaches to create programmes, manage clients and deliver workouts remotely, while athletes can buy plans through its training marketplace.

Together, they give Garmin something it has never quite had before. Garmin already collects huge amounts of workout and recovery data, but these platforms sit above that data and help athletes decide what to do next.

The Garmin connection already runs deep

This is not a case of Garmin buying a completely unfamiliar service. TrainingPeaks already has a close integration with Garmin Connect, allowing planned running, cycling and swimming workouts to sync to compatible Garmin devices.

Completed activities then travel back to TrainingPeaks for analysis. Sleep, HRV, resting heart rate and Body Battery data can also feed into the platform.

That makes the acquisition fairly logical. Garmin now owns one of the main services coaches use to interpret the information coming from its watches and bike computers.

The tricky part is that TrainingPeaks does not only serve Garmin users. It also works with Apple, Polar, COROS, Wahoo, Suunto, Amazfit and other platforms.

Garmin will need to maintain that broad compatibility if it wants coaches and athletes using rival hardware to remain comfortable with the service. Turning TrainingPeaks into a Garmin-first platform could quickly undermine much of what made it valuable.

Strength training could see the biggest improvement

Garmin’s endurance tools are already extensive, while its strength features still feel less developed. The company has expanded Garmin Strength Coach and introduced more adaptive fitness plans, but logging gym sessions and following detailed programmes can still feel clumsy.

TrainHeroic gives Garmin access to established strength-programming tools, exercise demonstrations, coach dashboards and progress tracking. A deeper integration could eventually make strength workouts easier to build, follow and review on Garmin devices.

TrainingPeaks Virtual is another interesting part of the deal. The indoor cycling service, previously known as indieVelo, gives Garmin a foothold in the same broad market as Zwift and TrainerRoad.

This acquisition is unlikely to produce a major new watch feature straight away. Longer term, it could help Garmin own much more of the planning, coaching and analysis that happens around its devices.

Connect Plus questions are already appearing

The early social media discussions around the acquisition quickly turned to Garmin Connect+. Some users are already wondering whether more advanced coaching plans will eventually become part of Garmin’s subscription service.

That concern is understandable. A recent Garmin Connect app teardown found references to coaching plans that require Connect+, covering cycling, fitness, triathlon and other categories.

Garmin has also been steadily expanding the paid side of Connect. TrainingPeaks and TrainHeroic could eventually provide more content and coaching tools for that subscription, although Garmin has not announced any immediate changes.

For now, there is no indication that TrainingPeaks or TrainHeroic pricing will change. Garmin has also not said the platforms will be merged into Garmin Connect or Connect+.

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CIRQA tracks heart rate continuously, but during a workout the free Garmin Connect screen appears to show only average heart rate, not your current live reading. To see live heart-rate data in the workout interface, Garmin wants users to pay for Connect+.

A basic number goes missing

The issue was highlighted by DC Rainmaker during his early testing of CIRQA. Start an activity through Garmin Connect without a subscription and the app gives you elapsed time and average heart rate, but not the live number most people would actually want to check during exercise.

That is a strange restriction for a $199 screenless heart-rate band. The phone effectively becomes the display, particularly during gym sessions, indoor cycling, strength workouts or runs where someone wants to stay inside a target heart-rate range.

Garmin has already built the fuller Live Activity interface. Connect+ adds a heart-rate graph, heart-rate zones and guided workout content, all of which make more sense as paid extras. Hiding the basic current reading is much harder to explain.

Garmin’s wording adds to the confusion

The situation gets more awkward because Garmin says users can see basic activity data in Garmin Connect, including current heart rate and time. On the same product page, the company describes live graphs and heart-rate-zone information as Connect+ features.

That wording suggests the live number should remain free while the graph and zone visualisations sit behind the subscription. Based on the early testing and discussion from CIRQA owners, that does not seem to be how the app currently behaves.

It is not clear whether this is a launch bug, unfinished software or a deliberate Connect+ restriction. Garmin needs to clarify it because the current experience does not match the way the feature is described.

There is a workaround – kind of…

CIRQA can broadcast live heart rate to a compatible Garmin watch, Edge cycling computer or another supported device. That should work well for existing Garmin users who want to wear CIRQA during the day and use a separate device as their main training screen.

We touched on that ecosystem advantage in our Garmin CIRQA vs Fitbit Air comparison. It does not help someone who bought CIRQA specifically to avoid wearing a sports watch and expected Garmin Connect to provide the display during workouts.

Some might argue that a screenless tracker does not need live data. That misses the point. A screenless band does not remove the need for feedback, it simply moves that feedback to another screen.

Garmin CIRQA

Screenless tracking with no required subscription

View on Amazon View on Garmin

When we first covered the early Garmin CIRQA listing, one of the obvious questions was how much Garmin would place behind Connect+. Most of the main health and recovery experience remains available without paying, which is good, but live workout heart rate is about as basic as exercise data gets.

Garmin could fix this neatly by keeping the current heart-rate number free and reserving graphs, zone breakdowns and guided sessions for Connect+. That would better match its product wording and make the subscription split much easier to understand.

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Garmin has started rolling out a new Essentials section in Garmin Connect alongside today’s CIRQA launch, but it has not yet reached every phone. The good news is that anyone impatient can already switch it on through the Garmin Connect web dashboard and see exactly how it works.

The new section sits at the top of the Garmin Connect home screen and gives four recovery and health metrics their own large cards. These are Sleep Score, Body Battery, Training Readiness and HRV Status.

Each card shows the latest result without requiring much digging. Selecting one opens the corresponding page with the more detailed trends, explanations and historical data Garmin already provides elsewhere in Connect.

The mobile rollout is still uneven

Essentials is appearing with Garmin Connect version 5.27 on both Android and iOS, although availability appears to depend on whether the latest app release has reached your account and region. Once installed, the setting can be found under Settings and then Home Settings.

I checked both platforms in the UK, and version 5.27 was not yet available on either of them at the time of writing. That is fairly normal for a staged app rollout, but it means some users may see screenshots of Essentials before the update reaches their own phone.

There is no need to keep refreshing the app stores, though. The same layout has already appeared in Garmin Connect on the web, where it can be enabled immediately.

How to enable Garmin Connect Essentials on the web

Sign in to the Garmin Connect website and open Settings. Select Home Settings, then switch on the Essentials toggle near the top of the page.

Return to the home screen and the four new cards should appear above the existing In Focus section. There is also an Edit Essentials option for changing the stats displayed within the row.

Garmin CIRQA has no display, so nearly every useful interaction happens after opening Garmin Connect. It is probably why the company saw the need to display a few headline stats right at the outset.

Garmin officially launched CIRQA today as its first screenless smart band, with continuous health tracking, up to 10 days of battery life and no Garmin subscription required. It is similar to Whoop in looks, but has a physical button and multi-functional LED. Check out our overview on how it compares to the Fitbit Air.

Essentials is a small addition, but it gives the new device a more obvious landing point inside Garmin Connect. Mobile access should follow as version 5.27 spreads more widely, while the web dashboard provides an easy preview in the meantime.

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