You can buy new Fossil Gen 6 watches now, Michael Kors models on the way

By Babu Mohan
last updated

Fossil Gen 6
Fossil Gen 6 (Image credit: Fossil)
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Update, Sept 27 (3:45 p.m. ET): Fossil Gen 6 on sale now

What you need to know

  • Fossil has announced its next-generation Gen 6 series wearables.
  • The smartwatches will get the Wear OS 3 update sometime in 2022.
  • They are now available to pre-order for a starting price of $299.

Fossil, which is known to make some of the best Android smartwatches, today announced the launch of the first wearables powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon Wear 4100+ platform. The new Fossil Gen 6 features the Snapdragon Wear 4100+, which was introduced in June last year alongside the standard Snapdragon Wear 4100.

Even though it's not as powerful as the 5nm Exynos W920 chip inside the Galaxy Watch 4 series, the Snapdragon Wear 4100+ promises faster app load times and higher power efficiency than the previous generation Snapdragon Wear 3100 platform.

Fossil's new Gen 6 smartwatches come in two sizes: 42mm and 44mm. All variants feature a 1.28-inch circular AMOLED display with a pixel density of 326 PPI. They also boast an upgraded heart rate sensor that enables continuous tracking with improved signal accuracy. There's a new SpO2 sensor as well, capable of tracking an estimate of your blood oxygen levels.

Fossil Gen 6

Source: Fossil (Image credit: Source: Fossil)

Aside from improved performance and upgraded health sensors, the Fossil Gen 6 smartwatches bring significantly faster charging speeds than their predecessors. Fossil claims the Gen 6's charging speed is "two times faster than the leading smartwatch," taking just 30 minutes to reach 80%. Thanks to the always-on co-processor in the Snapdragon Wear 4100+ platform and Fossil's Smart Battery Modes, the new smartwatches allow for "24 hours of battery life or multiple days in Extended Battery Mode."

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Fossil Gen 6

Other key highlights of Fossil's Gen 6 smartwatches include a built-in speaker for tethered phone calls, Google Assistant support, and 3 ATM water resistance. If you are a Spotify Premium user, you can continue to enjoy your music and podcasts offline on the new watches.

Fossil Gen 6 will receive the Wear OS 3 system update sometime in 2022, along with a few other updates to improve the user experience further. The smartwatches are now available to pre-order from Fossil's website for a starting price of $299. Fossil has confirmed that the Michael Kors Gen 6 smartwatches are also on their way.

Update, Sept 27 (3:45 p.m. ET) ― You can buy the Fossil Gen 6 now

The new Fossil Gen 6 smartwatches are available for purchase from retailers such as Best Buy and Amazon.

New Gen 6 Michael Kors smartwatches are also on the way, in case you're looking for something a bit more flashy, although the stylish new watches are a bit more pricey and start at $350.

Fossil Michael Kors Gen 6 Bradshaw

Source: Fossil (Image credit: Source: Fossil)

Fossil Michael Kors Gen

Source: Fossil (Image credit: Source: Fossil)

The Michael Kors Gen 6 smartwatches feature the same internal specs as the Fossil Gen 6 but with more fashion-focused designs. They will only be available in 44mm sizes.

Fossil hasn't provided a launch date for these models yet, but if it's more your style, you may want to wait a bit longer.

Fossil Gen 6 Render Cropped

Fossil Gen 6 Smartwatch

Fossil's latest Wear OS smartwatches bring faster performance, upgraded wellness features, and improved battery life. The Gen 6 watches come in seven styles with four colorways in a 44mm case and three colorways in a 42mm case.

Babu Mohan
Babu Mohan
News Writer
8 Comments
  • As a Gen 5 owner who just bought a few months ago learning I have a brand new abandoned device makes me DONE with Fossil. Next smartwatch I buy will be Samsung. Good job Fossil!!! I'm sure I am not the only one.
    Sure would have been nice to know in May when I bought this dang thing you would leave it behind immediately!!!
  • As a Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 owner, I have a brand new abandoned device which will pretty much just get security updates moving forward. The grass isn't always greener my friend!
  • At least you have an actual great watch that doesn't really need to be updated though.
  • Your Gen 5 will work just fine for years. It's just the way it is. I have a Gen 5 that I have owned for a couple of years and I just pre-ordered the Gen 6.
  • Wow, that's a bummer. I didn't realize Fossil watches stopped working the minute they announced the new version. Thank goodness phones don't do that and you can still use them if a newer version comes out.
  • Looks like weak sauce.
  • I'm excited! Thanks for the news.
  • I have to say, disappointed to see it is only rated at 3ATM, just splash resistant, no swimming/immersion. Seems like a significant step backwards. I'm sitting here with my Fossil Sport watch (2 years old) which I've been very happy with (and rated at 5ATM) and didn't like the design of the Samsung new watches (which are 5ATM as well) so was really excited about the Gen 6, until I read the 3ATM rating. Looks like I have to hard pass, and maybe stuck with Samsung. Maybe Fossil will put out a sport version with 5ATM, but for now, no pre-order for me.