Huawei might soon tease a new smartwatch that can take blood pressure readings
Back in September, we told you about the first smartwatch that features an inflatable cuff to deliver what the manufacturer (YHE) called medical-grade blood pressure readings. Not even the most popular watch in the world, the Apple Watch, can bring you this important metric. Recently, a Weibo tipster in China who calls his account "Changan Digital King" said that Huawei will be unveiling a new watch later this month.
Rumor calls for Huawei's next smartwatch to include the ability to deliver blood pressure readings
There is a possibility that Huawei's new smartwatch will include a blood pressure tracker. Back in May, He Gang, Huawei’s president for the consumer business smartphone category said that the company's first smartwatch equipped with blood pressure readings had passed the test required for it to be considered a medical device. At the time, speculation called for the device to be released during the second half of the year, which includes November
Huawei GT 3 smartwatch
In October, the Food and Drug Administration of Guangdong Province released a list of products it had approved, and on the list was a medical-grade electrocardiogram (ECG), and a blood pressure tracker. The former tracks the user's heart rhythms looking for something out of the ordinary. An unusual rhythm could be a sign of Atrial fibrillation (aka AFib). AFib is an unusual heart pattern that could lead to strokes, heart failure, and other serious heart-related problems.
The pieces are beginning to fit into place. Huawei's new technology will undergo clinical trials within the next six months. The Guangdong Food and Drug Administration adds that Huawei has three other medical devices that seek priority approval. Most smartwatches offer health-related tools, but these are not suitable to deliver a diagnosis with.
Some manufacturers have received a second class certificate for medical equipment related to smartwatch sensors. These brands include Apple, Huawei, Huami, and Oppo.
In September, a report noted that Huawei had registered the name Huawei Watch D with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and there is speculation that this watch could include SpO2, or blood oxygen testing as well as the ability to deliver blood pressure readings. We could see Huawei start to tease information about its new watch, soon, especially since the previous rumors called for a new watch to be released in the second-half of this year.
TF International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who can tell you what the soup of the day will be in the Apple cafeteria three years in advance, says that 2022's Apple Watch Series 8 will feature a body temperature sensor, fertility monitor, and an improved irregular heartbeat tool. Kuo says that future models might be equipped with the ability to provide blood pressure readings, and the holy grail of smartwatch related-features, non-invasive blood glucose monitoring.
What makes non-invasive blood glucose testing so important is that there are millions of insulin-dependent diabetics that three or more times a day subject themselves to a painful and expensive test to get a reading on their blood glucose level to determine how much insulin they need to inject before each meal. Adding such a feature, which has been rumored for years, could generate a huge surge in Apple Watch purchasers.
Huawei, by the way, was the second-largest shipper of smartwatches worldwide during the second quarter. Apple shipped 7.9 million units during the three-month period covering the period from April through June to give it a 31.1% share of the smartwatch market during the three months. Huawei delivered 2.3 million smartwatches during the quarter to garner 9% of the market.
Still, Huawei has seen its smartwatch business disintegrate. That 9% market share was less than half the 18.9% slice of the smartwatch pie that the company had during the same quarter last year. The number of smartwatches that it shipped during the second quarter was down a massive 33.9% on an annual basis during the three months.
A new smartwatch that can monitor a user's blood pressure can only help light a fire under Huawei's business.
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