Samsung has announced it will add fertility tracking based on the built-in temperature sensor, in a big update to the Galaxy Watch 5.
The feature has been developed in partnership with Natural Cycles, an app dedicated to temperature-based fertility tracking.
After the update the Galaxy Watch 5 and Watch 5 Pro will offer retrospective and predictive cycle tracking, using data pulled from the infrared temperature sensor built into the smartwatch.
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During the menstrual cycle, body temperature fluctuates – making it one of the best ways to track ovulation and fertility windows.
And Samsung couldn’t have partnered with a better brand.
Natural Cycles is one of just two companies with FDA clearance for use as digital birth control. And the company worked with Oura for its temperature-based fertility tracking features back in 2021.
Samsung has already received clearance for the feature from the South Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, and it says its registered the feature with the FDA. The Verge reports this means it can operate under the FDA clearance achieved by Natural Cycles.
The Apple Watch Series 8 added a temperature sensor for cycle tracking last year, but will only use temperature data to retrospectively validate ovulation dates, and look for shifts in the cycle that can point to underlying health conditions.
Given that Natural Cycles is a validated digital birth control device, one would assume that temperature data is used in the prediction of the cycle, as well as the manual input of symptoms. However, that was not been confirmed via Samsung in the press release, nor to The Verge.
But it’s a big step forward for Samsung, which is showing it has the appetite to compete with Apple every step of the way.
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James is the co-founder of Wareable, and he has been a technology journalist for 15 years.
He started his career at Future Publishing, James became the features editor of T3 Magazine and T3.com and was a regular contributor to TechRadar – before leaving Future Publishing to found Wareable in 2014.
James has been at the helm of Wareable since 2014 and has become one of the leading experts in wearable technologies globally. He has reviewed, tested, and covered pretty much every wearable on the market, and is passionate about the evolving industry, and wearables helping people achieve healthier and happier lives.