Smart swimming goggles have evolved far beyond simple timing and lap-counting tools, maturing into professional underwater sports data terminals. Today’s mainstream products support real-time pace tracking, distance recording, lap counting, heart rate monitoring, stroke recognition, open-water navigation and training data analysis. Some models project data directly onto the lens for instant viewing while swimming; others store training data locally and support in-depth review via a mobile app after the swim.
The booming domestic smart sports industry also creates growth opportunities for this category of underwater wearables. In the 2026 call for typical smart sports cases jointly launched by the General Administration of Sport of China and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, smart wearables, vital sign monitoring, motion recognition, personalised sports coaching, competitive training and smart swimming venue solutions are listed as key priorities, driving continuous iteration of underwater smart hardware.
As more functions are integrated, the built-in battery must deliver balanced performance in terms of runtime, footprint, weight, peak discharge capacity and safety reliability. For smart swimming goggle manufacturers, battery selection and customisation should not be finalised after mechanical design is locked in. Ideally, it should be initiated in parallel with product feature definition and overall structural design.
By 2026, a group of domestic smart swimming goggle brands with sustained R&D and iteration capabilities have emerged. Different players adopt differentiated solutions for AR display, navigation, audio and training algorithms.
| Product Route | Representative Brands & Models | Core Functions | Battery Design Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| AR Real-time Display | HoloSwim, Dreame AQUA 100, FORM | Pace, distance, lap count, heart rate | Power consumption control for display, lightweighting |
| Open-water Navigation | HoloSwim 3 Pro | GPS positioning, compass, route logging | Continuous power draw, usable capacity |
| Post-swim Analysis | Speedo iQ | Stroke, breathing and turn analysis | Sensor acquisition, data storage, wireless sync |
| Audio & Voice Prompt | SollaWave | Underwater music playback, voice data broadcast | Audio peak current, thermal management |
HoloSwim HoloSwim is a domestic smart swimming goggle line developed by Hangzhou LLVision Technology. Since launching its AR smart swimming goggle in 2021, the brand has rolled out successive iterations including the 2S, 2 Pro, 3 Pro and SollaWave, covering on-lens real-time data, heart rate accessories, GPS open-water navigation and underwater audio. In 2026, LLVision closed a nearly RMB 100 million Pre-B round financing and keeps expanding its smart eyewear portfolio. The HoloSwim 3 Pro integrates AR display, GPS and a compass for both pool and open-water use. It offers up to 16 hours of runtime in pool mode, which drops to 5 hours when GPS is activated for open-water navigation — clearly showing how satellite positioning modules significantly increase overall power consumption.
Dreame Smart Swimming Goggles Dreame unveiled its AQUA 100 AR smart swimming goggle at AWE 2026. Equipped with a single-eye waveguide display, it presents swim duration, stroke rate, pace, heart rate and distance. The complete unit weighs around 68g with roughly 7 hours of runtime under typical usage. Dreame is a new entrant to this segment in 2026. The product is also referred to as Nexis in some industry reports. Final SKUs, naming conventions and long-term firmware support are subject to official announcements.
FORM & Speedo The FORM Smart Swim 2 series features direct on-lens display to show duration, distance, pace, stroke rate and stroke count. The Smart Swim 2 and PRO versions are equipped with optical heart rate sensors, with a rated maximum runtime of 14 hours. Speedo iQ adopts a detachable data acquisition module without an on-lens screen. It captures stroke rhythm, breathing patterns, turns, head posture, pace and distance. All data analysis is completed on the mobile app after swimming. This architecture eliminates continuous power drain from the screen, yet the sensors, main control unit and memory chips still require stable power supply.
Smart swimming goggles do not operate at a constant current. Pool lap tracking, AR screen activation, heart rate sampling, GPS satellite acquisition, Bluetooth synchronisation and firmware updates each generate distinct average power consumption and peak current levels.
| Operating Mode | Power-consuming Modules | Battery Design Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Pool Standard Tracking | Motion sensors, MCU, storage | Low static current, long standby |
| AR Display | Micro OLED, optical projection components | Continuous discharge, stable voltage |
| Heart Rate Monitoring | Optical sensors, signal processing unit | Stable power supply, temperature rise control |
| Open-water Mode | GPS, compass, display | Usable capacity under high load |
| Audio Playback | Decoder chip, speaker, storage | Peak current tolerance, heat dissipation |
| Data Synchronisation | Bluetooth, MCU, storage | Short pulse load, low-voltage stability |
Micro OLED panels and high-brightness optical projection bring sustained power consumption. Optical heart rate modules rely on light-emitting and photodetector components for sampling, demanding steady power supply. GPS satellite searching and continuous route logging consume substantially more power, making open-water mode far more power-intensive than pool-only use. During R&D, engineers cannot simply add up the typical power values listed in chip datasheets. It is necessary to test current draw for individual working conditions and peak current when multiple functions run simultaneously to accurately evaluate battery requirements.
Product marketing pages mostly state battery life while rarely disclosing cell capacity or internal layout. Teardown records and certification documents can serve as references for form factor, but should not be treated as design standards for new projects. A teardown of the FORM Smart Swim 2 PRO reveals a full system including a Micro OLED screen, BLE chip, motion sensor, magnetometer, pressure sensor, heart rate sensor, flash memory and lithium battery pack. Power is consumed across display, sensing, computation and wireless transmission. The earlier FORM FSG200 uses a 3.7V 140mAh lithium polymer cell housed in the side temple module. Internal photos of the HoloSwim SW01 show a slim custom cell rated 3.89V, 170mAh (0.67Wh). These samples share a common trait: most mainstream smart swimming goggles adopt a single rechargeable lithium cell installed on the side of the frame or in the temple. The 140mAh and 170mAh figures are parameters for specific models and do not represent the industry capacity range.
Battery capacity is calculated based on overall power consumption and target runtime, while the cell shape must fit the narrow frame cavity. Nominal voltage, internal resistance, weight, swelling allowance, protection circuit scheme and tab orientation need to be confirmed at the early project stage.
During development, collect current data for pool mode, GPS mode, maximum screen brightness, continuous heart rate monitoring, audio playback, Bluetooth sync and standby, together with the device cut-off voltage. FORM officially notes that actual runtime varies greatly with usage habits and screen brightness. Cells with identical capacity deliver noticeably different runtime under different operating modes.
The battery cavity of swim goggles runs along the temple, with narrow and irregular space. Standard rectangular cells cannot fully utilise the available internal space. Custom shaped lithium polymer cells can be tailored in length, width, thickness and tab position to match the frame contour. TEERBO supplies ultra-narrow custom Li-Po cells with a minimum width of 6mm and thickness down to 0.5mm. We support curved, semicircular, L-shaped, D-shaped and C-shaped profiles to maximise space utilisation in compact wearables. For pouch cells, reasonable swelling clearance must be reserved in the structural design. The complete assembly also needs protection against extrusion, puncture and drop impact.
If the battery cavity is extremely tight with almost no room for cell expansion, or the cell is fitted in a pressure-bearing area of the temple, custom hard-shell lithium cells are a viable alternative. TEERBO custom hard-shell cells support bespoke dimensions, shapes and voltage ratings. The rigid shell delivers superior dimensional consistency and removes the need for large swelling gaps required by pouch cells. The trade-off is a slight weight increase. In addition, the potential impact of the metal shell on antenna signals and assembly structure must be assessed. When selecting a cell type, evaluate the full assembly including cell, protection PCB and structural components in terms of volume, weight and reliability.
Waterproof performance of the whole device depends on the housing, sealing gaskets, wire routing and charging contacts. The battery cell alone cannot achieve waterproofing. Validation tests should cover chlorinated pool water, seawater, internal condensation, repeated submersion, strap tension, submersion after drop impact, and charging protection under humid conditions. Enclosure protection ratings are tested in accordance with GB/T 4208—2017. Lithium battery safety follows GB 31241—2022, the national safety standard for lithium batteries and packs used in portable electronic products.
Parameters sourced from prototype testing deliver the best results. More complete data helps us accurately match capacity, structure and protection solutions:
- Maximum cavity dimensions or 3D drawings
- Average operating current, continuous discharge current and peak current
- Target runtime for pool mode and open-water GPS mode separately
- MCU operating voltage and cut-off voltage
- Charging scheme and target charging duration
- Cell mounting position, tab direction and connection method
- Required IP rating and operating environment
- Target sales markets and mandatory certification requirements
China’s smart swimming goggle market hosts specialised brands such as HoloSwim, while consumer electronics giants like Dreame have also entered the track. Overseas products fall into three main categories: FORM with on-lens real-time display, HoloSwim for open-water navigation, and Speedo focusing on post-session analysis. Display, heart rate sensing, GPS, audio and wireless communication impose diverse power demands. Most products on the market place a compact single lithium cell inside the temple, yet the narrow, curved internal space of swim goggles limits the utilisation rate of standard rectangular cells.
TEERBO provides custom lithium polymer battery solutions for wearables including smart swimming goggles. We develop ultra-narrow, curved and trapezoidal pouch cells to fit frame structures, balancing capacity, weight and wearing comfort within limited space. For projects requiring strict dimensional consistency with no allowance for cell expansion, our custom hard-shell lithium cells offer another highly reliable option with enhanced structural stability.
There is no one-size-fits-all battery solution. The final selection depends on a comprehensive assessment of power budget, runtime target, available space, sealing design, charging scheme and certification requirements for domestic or overseas sales. TEERBO can engage in the overall mechanical development from the early stage, offering one-stop support covering custom cell shaping, protection circuit matching and wiring solutions. Synchronised development of the battery and the whole goggle design is the key to balancing runtime, weight, manufacturability and long-term reliability in this demanding underwater wearable application.
