Fossil hints a 'way faster' Gen 6 smartwatch is launching soon

Fossil has a not-so-subtle way to undermine Samsung’s expected Galaxy Watch 4 launch: give potential buyers second thoughts. 9to5Google reports that users on Reddit and elsewhere have received a Fossil email hinting a “way more way faster” Gen 6 smartwatch is launching “soon,” mere days before Samsung’s Unpacked event on August 11.

The teaser is unsurprisingly thin on details, the release date, or price. However, Fossil recently revealed that it would launch Gen 6 this fall with both major smartwatch hardware upgrades and Wear OS 3.  That could involve the existing Snapdragon Wear 4100 chip (still relatively rare outside of Mobvoi watches), although there have been murmurs of a Wear 5100.

Related: The best Wear OS watches you can buy

Fossil previously suggested that an unnamed chip would improve performance, battery life, global LTE support, and health monitoring. There’s no guarantee of a blood oxygen monitor or similar sensors, but those are increasingly becoming de rigeur when rivals like the Apple Watch Series 6 have had the technology for a while.

The company currently won’t let you do more than register for a notification when the Gen 6 smartwatch is available to buy.  The intention, however, is clear. Fossil is hoping you’ll resist the urge to buy a Galaxy Watch 4 and instead wait to see if Gen 6 is worthwhile. Even if only a fraction of would-be customers buy Fossil’s watch instead, that could sour Samsung’s launch (however slightly) and heat up competition between Wear OS  makers.