Nothing teases smartwatch from new ‘CMF’ sub-brand, unclear if it runs Wear OS

Nothing announced today that it’s launching a sub-brand called CMF. “CMF by Nothing” will launch earbuds and a smartwatch later this year, though it’s unknown if the latter will run Wear OS.

The goal is to “make better design more accessible” and affordable, thus attracting a wider consumer base, which is important for the startup. In announcing today, Carl Pei argues that “there just isn’t a lot to get excited about” in the “value segment” of consumer electronics. The example used was cheap earbuds.  

In terms of logistics, “CMF by Nothing is run by a separate team within Nothing to ensure that there’s no distraction from our main products.” The main brand will offer “design innovation,” while CMF is said to provide “clean design.”

The name itself is a reference to Color, Materials, Finish in the industrial design process, or how a product feels and looks in users’ hands. The logo makes use of dots and looks like “cmt” at first, but it’s supposed to be a lowercase ‘f’ without the top gap.

Besides the premium versus accessible difference between the two, the other point of comparison is “latest technology” versus “trusted quality.” Existing tech/components are more affordable and should have any early adopter issues resolved.

“Later this year,” CMF by Nothing will first launch earbuds and a smartwatch. More details will be available in the “coming months,” which sounds like a reveal before year’s end to capitalize on the holiday season. 

One such detail that we don’t know today is what operating system is powering the smartwatch. Wear OS would be the most desirable outcome, given their Android-powered phones, but the alternative would be some lightweight OS that’s akin to the Amazfit line of products. Those devices have smartwatch features but rarely offer anything outside of first-party apps/experience.

Google’s OS would automatically provide that ecosystem and offer natural integration between the phone and wearable without any additional work required. Expertise in Android naturally translates to custom watch faces, launcher, and apps, which would aid the development process. However, Wear OS is more battery intensive than a lightweight OS and would be the biggest reason companies opt for something custom.