Apple may not be making a Smart Ring right now after all

Apple has been researching smart rings for two decades — or at least there have been rumors for that long — but now we'll have to hold our breath for a lot longer. According to Bloomberg, the issue is less technical, and more pragmatic marketing.

"Apple isn't actively developing a ring and has no plans to launch one," wrote Mark Gurman, "[because it] would detract from the Apple Watch."

"[Consequently, Apple] has no reason to cannibalize a product that still has room to grow," he continued, "and is the envy of the fitness-tracking industry."

More than most firms, however, Apple does have a reputation for doing exactly that cannibalization. The most famous example is how it entirely destroyed its own iPod with the iPhone.

Amongst the many rumors regarding the Apple Ring, there have also been ones where it could work alongside the Apple Watch. For instance, it's possible that wearing both the Apple Ring and the Apple Watch together might improve the accuracy of heart rate measurement, as the Oura ring currently does.

Then according to multiple patents over the last many years, there has also been research into gesture control, perhaps related to the use of the Apple Vision Pro. So it's repeatedly been expected that the Apple Ring would fit into the existing Apple ecosystem as a complementary accessory rather than a replacement.

If the report is correct, however, this makes 2024's second cancellation of a device that has become high-profile without Apple actually announcing it. In February 2024, it was reported that the decade-long Apple Car project had been entirely cancelled.

In that case, there is no competing Apple device that it would cannibalize. But otherwise there are striking similarities, with Apple's research efforts into a car continuing to be documented in newly granted patents.