Zepp Health has finally got around to announcing a release date and pricing for the Amazfit Helio, with the smart ring set to debut in the US on 15 May.
We got our hands on the ring when it was initially announced back at CES 2024 in January, with the expectation at that time being that it would launch in March.
Instead, there’s been a slight delay – but, thankfully, not by much. And we’ve even been given pricing details on top of a release date.
Interestingly, the Helio will start at $299.99 – the same tag as the market-leading Oura Ring Gen 3 (before you consider editions and finishes) – though Zepp Health is also getting pretty creative with bundling the smart ring.
If you combine it with an Amazfit smartwatch, the price will instead be $149.99.
Wareable
It’s not clear which watches from the company will be included in this deal, but the Amazfit Cheetah Pro or Amazfit T-Rex Ultra are both name-checked as ready to help the Helio reach its “full potential”.
It’s still not entirely clear yet, but we suspect the ring will lean on the watch for activity tracking – something smart rings aren’t traditionally able to deliver accurate assessments of – while the watches may even borrow the Helio’s sleep and readiness insights.
As a result, we expect the real fruit for athletes will come in the app, where data from both sources will combine and provide recommendations and coaching.
We won’t know for sure until we test this one out over the coming weeks, though – and we’re hoping that more details regarding the global rollout of Helio are released in that time.
In its press release, Zepp Health says that details will arrive soon. We’re hoping for a UK and Europe release date later this month, but, again, stay tuned.
Analysis: Will more watchmakers follow suit?
With an acute focus on athletic performance, the Helio is a different prospect from what’s currently on offer in the smart ring market, which has thus far seen a consistent flood of devices focused on health and wellbeing.
It’s a big reason why we consider it one of the most exciting wearable launches of 2024 – even if there’s still plenty we don’t know about the ring, including whether the idea of an activity-focused one is even viable.
Whatever the case, the bundling announced here and the close connection to the Amazfit family of watches is perhaps an admission that there are simply some areas (ie. sleep tracking) that are much more naturally accurate from the finger, rather than the wrist.
Wareable
Will we see the other major watch manufacturers – starting with Samsung and its Galaxy Ring – also potentially siphon off certain elements to a smart ring and vice versa?
Only time will tell, but we think it’s likely. After all, we’ve already effectively seen Oura do this by prioritizing partnerships and integrations that can help pull in activity data from more accurate sources.
