The smartwatch market is seeing price increases due to component costs and supply chain pressures, as noted in WIRED's latest roundup. The Apple Watch Series 12 starts at $399, and the Google Pixel Watch 5 at $400, reflecting the premium positioning of flagship models.
Apple's Series 12 focuses on health tracking with a new Health Sensing System, while Google's Pixel Watch 5 emphasizes polished Wear OS and satellite messaging. Samsung's Galaxy Watch9 is a modest upgrade with no price increase, offering a value proposition for Samsung users.
Budget options like the Nothing CMF Watch 3 Pro at $79 show that price segmentation remains, but the overall trend is upward. WIRED notes that many software features are rolling out to older models, so buyers may consider discounts on previous generations.