Apple has built working prototypes of a screenless fitness band that would offer Apple Watch-style health tracking without requiring you to wear another smartwatch.
A new report says the device consists of a fabric band with a small computing module worn on the wrist. Like Whoop, it has no display, and the hardware is designed to collect health and fitness data continuously in the background.
Apple has been exploring the idea for several months, although the project remains experimental and hasn’t been approved for release.
Apple is testing a simpler kind of wearable
The band would use sensors similar to those found on Apple Watch to continuously track metrics such as heart rate, but without apps, notifications, or a screen competing for your attention.
That could give Apple another way to reach people who want its health tracking without wearing an Apple Watch all day. It could also appeal to anyone who prefers wearing a traditional watch but still wants continuous health and fitness data.
Tim Cook and Eddy Cue are both said to be interested in the project. Cue, who now oversees Apple’s health teams, has been pushing the company to explore simpler wearable devices, with products such as Whoop and the Oura Ring providing examples of what that could look like.
Apple has already brought some of the same ideas into Apple Watch. Its latest models include a Readiness score and biological age estimate, putting more emphasis on interpreting health and recovery data collected throughout the day rather than simply displaying individual measurements.
The Health app is getting similar attention. A redesign currently being tested in iOS 27.2 reorganizes health information to make that data easier to understand.
Don’t expect it anytime soon
The screenless band is still far from becoming an Apple product. Even if development continues, it’s not expected to reach consumers before 2028, giving Apple plenty of time to change the design or abandon the project altogether.
Other new wearables are further along. Apple is expected to introduce AI-powered smart glasses and camera-equipped AirPods before the fitness band is ready.
For now, the working prototypes show Apple is at least experimenting with a wearable that separates its health-tracking technology from the Apple Watch and puts it into a much simpler device.
