It was a weird Friday in January 2024 when the news finally broke. For months, tech nerds and watch collectors had been whispering on Reddit about why the "Gen 7" never showed up. Then, the official word came down from the Fossil Group: they were done. Completely. No more Fossil smartwatches.
It felt like the end of an era. Honestly, if you’re looking to buy a brand-new Fossil smartwatch today in 2026, you’re basically looking for a ghost. The company officially exited the market, leaving a massive, stylish hole in the Wear OS ecosystem that nobody has quite filled the same way.
Why the Fossil Gen 6 was the end of the line
The Fossil Gen 6, which launched way back in 2021, is the final chapter of this story. For a long time, Fossil was the "ride or die" partner for Google’s Wear OS. When even Google didn't seem to care about its own watch software, Fossil was out there pumping out dozens of designs under brands like Diesel, Michael Kors, and Skagen.
They tried. They really did. They even put the Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 4100+ chip in the Gen 6 to fix the laggy performance that plagued older models. But as Samsung and Google started cozying up to make the "new" Wear OS, Fossil got squeezed out.
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By the time 2024 rolled around, Fossil’s Chief Operating Officer, Jeff Boyer, admitted the landscape had changed too much. They decided to put all their money and energy back into what they do best: leather bags, jewelry, and traditional "dumb" watches that don't need a software update every six months.
What happens if you still own one?
You aren't totally stranded if there's a Fossil Gen 6 strapped to your wrist right now. When Fossil quit the game, they promised to keep supporting existing devices for "the next few years." We’ve actually seen this play out. Surprisingly, a rare security patch even rolled out in late 2024, proving they weren't just blowing smoke.
But let’s be real. "Support" doesn't mean "new features."
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- Your watch is stuck on Wear OS 3.5.
- You aren't getting Wear OS 5 or whatever comes next.
- The battery life, which was always the Achilles' heel of these watches, isn't getting any better.
Most people have moved on to the Pixel Watch 3 or the Galaxy Watch series by now. If you’re still rocking a Fossil, you're essentially wearing a piece of tech history. It still tells time and tracks your steps, but it's a dead-end road.
The Citizen CZ Smart: The last survivor
Here is a weird bit of trivia most people missed. Even after Fossil quit, one "Fossil-made" watch stayed on shelves for a bit longer: the Citizen CZ Smart Gen 2.
Citizen had a partnership with Fossil to use their technology. That watch was still being sold through late 2024, but by early 2025, even Citizen scrubbed it from their website. It was the final gasp of the Fossil smartwatch engine. If you see one on a clearance rack today, just keep walking. It’s buggy, and the software is basically a time capsule from four years ago.
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Where do you go from here?
If you loved Fossil because they made smartwatches that actually looked like watches—not like glowing jellybeans or miniature iPhones—you have a few options.
- The Hybrid Route: Fossil still makes "Hybrid" watches. These have real physical hands but a tiny e-ink screen behind them. They aren't "smart" in the full sense—no Google Maps or apps—but they track heart rate and show notifications. They're actually kind of great if you hate charging your watch every night.
- Withings: If the style was your main draw, Withings makes some incredibly sleek analog-style smartwatches that handle health tracking without looking like a gadget.
- Pixel Watch 4: If you want the best software experience on Android right now, this is it. It’s not as "fashion-forward" as a Fossil Gen 6 Wellness Edition, but it actually works every time you lift your wrist.
Your next steps: Check your Fossil Gen 6 for the latest available firmware update (RFHF.240305.011) to ensure you have the final security patches. If your battery is starting to bulge or barely lasts six hours, it is officially time to look at the Pixel or Galaxy lineups, as Fossil will not be releasing a replacement.