Apple CEO Tim Prepare dinner gestures throughout the annual developer convention occasion on the firm’s headquarters in Cupertino, California, U.S., June 10, 2024.
Carlos Barria | Reuters
Apple may launch a related ring to rival Samsung by 2026, in keeping with CCS Perception, including to the U.S. tech large’s deal with well being.
The decision is a part of CCS Perception’s annual predictions report and if it got here true, it will be the primary new product from the Cupertino large because the Apple Imaginative and prescient Professional headset launched this 12 months.
“Well being has turn out to be a basic pillar for Apple. In reality, I’d go as far as to say, on the level that Tim Prepare dinner decides to relinquish management and he retires … I want to suppose that certainly one of his main legacies from Apple can be round private well being,” Ben Wooden, chief analyst at CCS Perception, informed CNBC’s Past the Valley podcast printed on Tuesday.
“Given how deeply and personally invested Tim Prepare dinner is in well being, I believe {that a} ring is a really complimentary extension to Apple,” he mentioned, referring to Apple CEO Prepare dinner.
Wooden highlighted Apple’s deal with well being from merchandise just like the Apple Watch with all of its sensors to the newest AirPods Professional 2 headphones that may flip into listening to aids.
Just like smartwatches, a wise ring is embedded with varied sensors to trace well being metrics like coronary heart price.
Oura was one of many pioneers of the area, however Samsung this 12 months launched the Galaxy Ring, bringing this fashion of product to an even bigger viewers, because it seems to be to make an even bigger push into the well being area.
The Samsung Galaxy Ring prices $399 and provides to the South Korean tech large’s portfolio of merchandise from smartphones to smartwatches because it seems to be to maintain customers locked into its world of gadgets.
Apple employs an analogous technique with its suite of merchandise trying to maintain its already sticky clients in its ecosystem of {hardware}. A hoop would add one other product to that portfolio, Wooden mentioned.
Not like different objects of shopper electronics, rings are sophisticated from a retail standpoint as a result of individuals have completely different sized fingers. Samsung has varied sizes and hues of rings and customers obtain a pattern measurement package earlier than they buy a hoop.
Apple differs from Samsung in that it has a big and trendy bodily retail footprint which might assist any try and promote a hoop product to clients, in keeping with Wooden.
“I additionally suppose that their retail footprint is ideally suited to it as nicely as a result of rings are complicated merchandise to get to market,” Wooden informed CNBC.
Rings are additionally vogue objects. Wooden mentioned that Apple’s merchandise nonetheless have attract available in the market.
“Apple is a model that has a specific amount of kudos by way of being a product that persons are proud to have. And I believe a superbly designed ring from Apple might be a kind of issues that is nearly a type of standing image,” Wooden mentioned.
