Enlarge (credit: Valentina Palladino)

Misfit hasn’t changed much since joining the Fossil family. Its Phase hybrid smartwatch came out late last year and represents the most collaboration with Fossil the company has had. Around the same time as the Phase’s launch, Fossil announced that most of its brands will come out with “hybrid” smartwatches, or fashionable timepieces that have some connected features.

The Phase is Misfit’s hybrid. It combines smart features like activity tracking with a design that fits in with the rest of its device family and that will (hopefully) appeal to Misfit fans. Starting at $175, the Phase hopes to prove that the right mix of crucial smart features and minimalist style is worth the same amount of money as a device that focuses on only one of those aspects.

Design: More watch than smartwatch

Misfit has always masked its wearables with stylish shells, but the Phase is its first attempt to make a true smartwatch. As far as design goes, the company succeeded: the 41mm case has an analog face with thin dashes instead of numbers or Roman numerals for each hour. There are just two buttons on its right side, and the two parts of its band can be easily detached using their button-like closures.