For years, wearables have done two things well: track every step, heartbeat and calorie burned — and make fashion-conscious consumers cringe.
That’s finally changing. With nearly 60% of US adults sporting health trackers, shoppers increasingly expect them to look as good as they perform.
The result? A new generation of smarter, sleeker wearables that don’t force customers to choose between style and stats.
“Consumers increasingly want the products they use to reinforce the person they aspire to be, not interrupt that image,” Shakaila Forbes-Bell, a fashion psychologist who works with Afterpay and Cash App, told The Post.
“When health technology looks like fine jewelry rather than medical equipment, it allows people to realize their desire for self-expression and integrate wellness into their personal style identity while communicating, ‘I’m someone who values both my health and my aesthetic.’”
But the shift toward more stylish trackers isn’t just about creating the next high-end status symbol. It could also change how people use them.
An analysis by Rock Health found that 83% of wearable owners don their devices five or more days per week. Making them more visually appealing could encourage even more consistent wear.
“If a device makes someone feel attractive, confident or like themselves, they’re far more likely to incorporate it into their daily wardrobe,” Forbes-Bell said. “If it feels bulky, clinical or at odds with their style, it risks ending up in a drawer — regardless of how advanced the technology is.”
Looking better isn’t the only way wearables have evolved. Once little more than glorified pedometers, today’s devices have become sophisticated health monitors powered by AI that track dozens of biometrics, deliver personalized recommendations and can even flag potential issues before symptoms appear.
Here’s a look at the jewelry-inspired devices proving the future of health tracking can be just as stylish as it is smart.
Smart watches and bracelets
The days of looking like you’ve strapped a tiny computer to your wrist are over.
Just look at Withings’ ScanWatch Nova Brilliant, a $599.95 tracker that disguises advanced sensors inside what looks like a luxury analog watch.
Available in silver and two-tone silver-and-gold finishes, it houses a sophisticated monitoring system that keeps tabs on things like body temperature, blood oxygen levels, sleep, activity and heart rate variability, all available in a companion app ($99.50 per year).
“That kind of awareness can be a useful starting point for healthier behavior,” said Dr. Jeff Lin, a cardiologist and chief medical officer at MDVIP. “[Wearables] shouldn’t be treated like a substitute for an actual relationship with a primary care provider, but they’re a great tool to help you maintain more continuous engagement.”
But the biggest selling point may what it lacks: no glowing screen or distracting notifications. The design reflects a broader shift away from the tech-forward aesthetic that defined earlier devices.
Meanwhile, the Fort Strength Training Wearable takes that minimalist approach even further. Developed by former Tesla engineers, the $349 bracelet forgoes a digital display entirely.
“A screen makes everything about the device: It needs charging, it wants your attention and it announces ‘fitness tracker’ from across the room,” said Miranda Nover, co-founder of Fort.
“Our user is someone whose training fits around their life, not the other way around, and the product should work the same way … it goes from the gym to the office to dinner without asking you to think about it.”
The device uses motion and heart rate data to track more than 50 strength-training exercises while also monitoring sleep, recovery and stress. All of that data is then synced to a companion app.
“After a session, the app gives you a plain recap: what you did, a breakdown between strength and cardio, a per-muscle intensity analysis, how a session compares to your recent training, whether you’re progressing, holding steady or due for recovery,” Nover said.
Available for preorder, Fort comes in silver, black and gold, with several interchangeable strap colors.
Smart rings
Once inspiring shoppers to disguise them with “jewelry jackets,” smart rings are now getting a style makeover of their own.
Oura released its fifth-generation smart ring earlier this year, available in finishes like silver, gold black and deep rose. Starting at $399, the band is 40% smaller than its predecessor and tracks more than 50 health metrics.
“The goal was to make the experience feel more effortless and more natural to wear all day, while also opening the category up to people who may have held back because other wearables felt too bulky, too obvious or too tech-forward,” said Jason Russell, vice president of consumer software products at Oura.
The push to make wearables more discreet isn’t just attracting style-conscious shoppers. It’s also inspiring products for people who have resisted health monitors for other reasons, like the stigma attached to aging.
Haelo, for example, caters to older adults with a sleek alternative to the bulky medical alert necklace you’ve been trying to convince Grandma to wear.
The stainless steel ring uses motion sensors and AI to detect falls and potentially concerning health changes, including shifts in heart rate or activity. If the user doesn’t respond, it automatically notifies designated contacts through an app.
Haelo is available for preorder now. The three-year cost is $682, which includes a monthly subscription fee.
Smart necklaces
Neck-worn health trackers aren’t mainstream yet — but The90 Gem could help change that.
The $299 pendant, available in gold and silver, tracks real-time UV exposure, whether you’re soaking up the sun outdoors or sitting near a window.
Its app breaks exposure down into UVA, which fuels premature aging, and UVB, which causes sunburns and drives skin cancers. Users can enter their skin type and sun habits for personalized burn and aging-risk estimates, along with sunscreen reminders and guidance about how much sun they need to reach their daily vitamin D targets.
“I love how wearable technology can make you more connected with your body,” said Stacy Salvi, co-founder and CEO of The90. “But I wanted to have something that women could wear as jewelry that nobody would guess is a tracker.”
Smart earrings
While they aren’t commercially available yet, the most discreet wearables about to hit the market are headed for your ears.
Leading the charge is Incora Health’s 18-karat gold-over-titanium smart earrings, which look like classic studs but monitor your vital signs, hormones and fertility.
A companion app provides personalized advice through the lens of each wearer’s menstrual cycle. For example, it might recommend adjusting your workout intensity or changing your diet depending on whether you’re in the follicular or luteal phase.
Pricing hasn’t been announced, though the company has opened a waitlist.
There’s also the Lumia 2, billed as the world’s first smart earring to continuously monitor blood flow to the head alongside metrics like sleep and body temperature.
“Blood flow to your head is a major driver behind how you feel. It drives your energy levels and mental clarity, as blood flow is your brain’s fuel,” explained Daniel Lee, CEO of Lumia Health.
Blood flow fluctuates throughout the day based on everything from hydration and sleep to diet, movement and posture.
“Lumia illuminates those changes, connecting the dots between what’s happening to your body and how you feel, so you can optimize more days to feel your best,” Lee said.
Originally developed for people with blood flow disorders, Lumia 2 is now aimed at anyone interested in tracking the metric. Demand has already been strong, with the company selling out its 2026 preorder inventory ahead of launch.
The titanium model starts at $249, with interchangeable earring fronts priced from $59 to $99. It can also be worn with your own push-back earrings.
For shoppers who prefer something even subtler, Joule‘s tiny smart earring back fits behind most earrings, quietly tracking heart rate, calories burned and activity while sending insights to a companion app.
Joule hasn’t announced pricing, but interested buyers can join the waitlist.
