How to Install / Upgrade: Garmin’s new screen-free fitness tracker doesn’t require a subscription

Garmin announced Cirqa, a new screen-free smart band for advanced fitness and wellness tracking. Unlike a typical watch-style tracker, it has no display so it stays less distracting, and Garmin says battery life can reach up to 10 days between charges. The title also makes clear it does not require a subscription, putting it in a similar lane to products such as the Whoop 5.0 and Google’s recently announced Fitbit Air, with sensing that includes heart rate among other measures.

To install or upgrade, treat Cirqa as a new wearable rather than a software patch on an older Garmin band. Unbox the band, charge it fully before first wear so you start from a full battery, then pair it with Garmin’s companion app on your phone the same way you would other Garmin wearables. If you are moving from another fitness band, keep using your existing account and add Cirqa as the active device so your fitness and wellness data continues in one place, and confirm during setup that no paid subscription is required to use the core features.

Watch for a few gotchas. With no screen, you cannot check status on the band itself, so rely on the phone app for pairing, battery, and tracking confirmation. Verify the connection by wearing the band long enough to see heart rate and other fitness or wellness readings appear in the app, and check that battery estimates match the up-to-10-day claim under your normal use. If readings do not show or the band never appears as connected, reseat the charge, re-pair in the app, and confirm you did not enable a trial or paid plan by mistake, since this model is positioned as subscription-free.