According to The Verge, Withings has announced the Body Scan 2 smart scale at CES 2026, priced at $599.95. The device features eight electrodes on the scale and four more in a retractable handle, and it introduces a new 90-second “longevity assessment” that tracks over 60 biomarkers across five health categories. These include heart performance, hypertension risk, artery health, cellular health, and glycemic regulation. The scale uses noninvasive methods like bioimpedance spectroscopy and foot sweat analysis to gauge metabolic health. Withings is pursuing a new type of FDA certification for the scale’s EKG and hypertension features, aiming for a launch in the second quarter of 2026. The company also includes an “Eyes-Closed Mode” that displays only emojis on the scale to address concerns about weight-focused anxiety.
The Noninvasive Metabolic Gamble
Here’s the thing: everyone in health tech is chasing metabolic and longevity data. Whoop and Oura have their scores, and they’ve even started integrating blood tests. Withings’ play is to skip the blood draw entirely. Using bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS) and, bizarrely, foot sweat analysis, they’re trying to get similar insights from your morning weigh-in. It’s a clever premise—if it works. The logic is sound: if you can get people to do something frequently and easily, you get more data points. A scale you step on for 90 seconds beats a quarterly blood test for frequency, hands down.
But let’s be skeptical for a second. Bioimpedance for body composition is one thing; it’s a known, if sometimes finicky, technology. Using it, along with sweat gland stimulation, as a proxy for deep metabolic health and glycemic regulation? That’s a huge leap. Withings is careful to say it’s not diagnostic, just an “early warning flag.” That’s the right legal framing, but it’s also where consumer confusion can creep in. People might see a “poor” score and panic, or see a “good” score and ignore actual medical advice. The burden is on Withings to communicate what this data actually means, and that’s never easy.
The Scale as an Emotional Battleground
Now, this touches on the bigger issue Withings is trying to solve. Scales are emotionally loaded devices. For many, they’re tools of anxiety, not wellness. The company knows this. Their “Eyes-Closed Mode” with emojis is a genuine, thoughtful attempt to fix that. It’s an admission that the raw numbers can be harmful. Their long-term goal to rebrand the scale as a “longevity station” is smart marketing. Don’t think about weight; think about your “Health Trajectory” score and your “healthspan.”
But is that enough? Can you truly decouple a device you stand on from weight anxiety? I’m not totally convinced. For some, it might work. For others, the very act of using a scale—even one that hides the number—might be a trigger. It’s a huge hurdle that no amount of biomarker tracking can fully overcome. It’s a product design challenge as much as a tech one.
The FDA and The Race to Market
Withings’ regulatory history is… mixed. Their ScanWatch took ages for FDA clearance. The U-Scan launched as a wellness gadget to avoid it. The Move ECG still isn’t in the US. So their claim of a “new kind of certification” to get the Body Scan 2 out faster by Q2 2026 is intriguing. What does that even look like? A streamlined process for low-risk monitoring tools? They’re not saying, but Antoine Joussain’s optimism is notable.
This is critical because speed to market is everything. While Withings navigates the FDA, competitors are iterating. Whoop and Oura are already on their second or third generation of their aging scores. Apple and Samsung are baking more health features into watches everyone already owns. The scale’s convenience is its advantage, but only if it’s actually on the market and in bathrooms. If this new certification path works, it could be a blueprint. If it doesn’t, the Body Scan 2 could be stuck in regulatory limbo while the market moves on.
A Crowded Wellness Dashboard
So where does a $600 scale fit? It’s a premium device for the data-obsessed wellness crowd. The value proposition is consolidation: get your heart, vascular, and metabolic snapshots in one place, without extra gadgets or needles. The science behind BIS is solid for what it measures, but the extrapolation to overall longevity is the big, expensive bet.
Basically, Withings is asking you to pay a premium for convenience and the promise of noninvasive insight. In a world flooded with health data from watches, rings, and apps, the question is whether this specific dataset is valuable enough. For most people, probably not. But for the right person—someone deeply engaged in tracking their healthspan, maybe with specific risk factors—this could be a compelling, if pricey, command center. The success hinges entirely on whether those foot sweat readings actually mean something. We’ll have to wait until 2026 to find out.
