The first-ever OnePlus wearable device will not be as exciting as expected

UPDATE: It sure didn’t take long for all the OnePlus Band promo images in the world to leak out here and here, confirming the nearly identical design to the existing Oppo Band.

 

Our original story follows below.

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But the company is also preparing to release at least two different wearable devices, one of which could come out as soon as next week. Unfortunately, those who got excited seeing the brand’s first-ever smartwatch officially confirmed for an “early” 2021 debut will apparently need to settle for a low-cost fitness band for the time being.

That’s pretty clearly what OnePlus is teasing on Twitter as “the new face of fitness”, and it’s also precisely what Ishan Agarwal expects to be launched in India on January 11. The aptly named OnePlus Band could fetch as little as $34 (2,499 rupees), according to the generally reliable mobile tech leaker, supporting everything from 24/7 heart rate monitoring to blood oxygen saturation tracking and sleep supervision.

That’s a decidedly impressive, but incredibly enough, not unprecedented list of features for that price bracket. In fact, it’s exactly what the Oppo Band offers, and given the two brands just so happen to be owned by the same Chinese giant, we have a sneaking suspicion the OnePlus Band will look quite familiar when it finally breaks cover.

Still, we can’t help but feel (moderately) excited about the first-ever OnePlus wearable, especially considering the rest of its rumored specs and features. We’re talking IP68 water resistance, two whole weeks of battery life, a grand total of 13 built-in exercise modes, and a relatively large 1.1-inch AMOLED touchscreen.

All in all, that’s a superior list of capabilities compared to the $100 Fitbit Inspire 2, for instance, which doesn’t come equipped with blood oxygen saturation monitoring technology. Of course, we don’t know if the OnePlus Band is also headed for US shores in addition to markets like India, but even when pitted against the similarly affordable Xiaomi Mi Band 5, which is wildly popular in Asia and Europe, this bad boy sounds remarkably feature-packed.