2013 the smart watch year
Well if there are nay predictions that have come true, then it has got be be that the year 2013 was going to be a smart phone year. In this time and age, it is rare to find many people in possession of a watch leave alone the futuristic smart watch that everyone is busy talking about. If my memory serves me right then the last wrist watch I ever bought was around 20 years ago ( not mean i am that old). But just for bragging rights, I have had the privilege to lay my hands on a smart watch in the recent past, thanks to Sony Ericsson and i might say it was quite a privilege.
Even though my first ever smart watch made look like "Ben10" it sure did serve me right until i gave it away. I remember taking numbers with it and watching the ladies get wowed. Did i mention that this was a first generation phone Sony Ericsson smart watch that will pass as a dud and a complete joke if i wore it now?
The second and real smart watch was launched by Sony in early 2012 after a not so good sales record with above gadget and very mediocre battery life. This tie round the smart watch came with plastic straps that are interchangeable as well as well done but the sad thing about is that the product was launched in a transition time and just like a majority of the first generation products, the watch had its short comings that were more of hardware than software. I never got a chance to lay my hand on this gadget to the fact that it has never been locally available in Kenya and the second reason is that Sony has decided to scale down on the mobile phone and accessory sales in Africa except for Africa and a majority of its products are still exorbitantly priced despite the shelf life.
While Sony was busy enjoying the sales of its first generation smart phone, a smart phone start up in the United States of America was busy raising funds for its revolutionary smart watch. Pebble Technology a start up raised enough funds to start commercial production of the smart watch through a crowd funding platform. The 1.26-inch 144x168 pixel black and white ultra low power "memory LCD" made by sharp has taken the US by storm.
If you are a fitness chap then you must have heard about the Motorola smart watch called MotoActiv that was unfortunately discontinued. It you ask me, this was one mean ass smart watch that I looked for in vein. It had all the features that you could have wanted in any smart watch today. You know I am talking about apps, GPS, ANT radio, media player, wifi, heart monitor and many more. It is still a collectible if you really know what you want and are deterred by the arm and leg pricing of the new generation stuff.
At desperate time we saw attempts by apple fan boys converting the iPod nano into a smart watch. This was achieved by apps and the development of accessories that could make the music player wearable just like a watch but there was not much support from Apple. This has fueled speculations of apple getting into the smart watch business. We shall await for the September 10th just to see what they have in store for us.
Just but to mention, smart watches are not just be watches. They are accessories that are made to communicate with out mobile phones either by being the second screens or remote controls for our phones. Do you really thing that independent mobile phone accessory manufacturers will be able to get into this field that might just be a three horse race if apple is to launch a smart watch? What will be the most important approach to be a success in this totally new field? I do believe that pricing shall be a big factor as well as a wide market reach. Only one manufacturer in this case seems to have this in its favor and that is Samsung but I am their built quality has never been impressive.
At the IFA 2013, both Sony and Samsung launched their 2013-2014 smart watch range with apple like key note speeches. Sony did launch a 2nd generation smart watch which is claimed to be better than the last one and Samsung also did launch a smart watch (Galaxy Gear) complete with a camera. I will await to see which one shall reach my market first but thanks to my country's recent taxation measures, I might as well not be able to afford any of this watches.
Below are some videos of the smart watches of both Samsung and Sony.
Even though my first ever smart watch made look like "Ben10" it sure did serve me right until i gave it away. I remember taking numbers with it and watching the ladies get wowed. Did i mention that this was a first generation phone Sony Ericsson smart watch that will pass as a dud and a complete joke if i wore it now?
While Sony was busy enjoying the sales of its first generation smart phone, a smart phone start up in the United States of America was busy raising funds for its revolutionary smart watch. Pebble Technology a start up raised enough funds to start commercial production of the smart watch through a crowd funding platform. The 1.26-inch 144x168 pixel black and white ultra low power "memory LCD" made by sharp has taken the US by storm.
Just but to mention, smart watches are not just be watches. They are accessories that are made to communicate with out mobile phones either by being the second screens or remote controls for our phones. Do you really thing that independent mobile phone accessory manufacturers will be able to get into this field that might just be a three horse race if apple is to launch a smart watch? What will be the most important approach to be a success in this totally new field? I do believe that pricing shall be a big factor as well as a wide market reach. Only one manufacturer in this case seems to have this in its favor and that is Samsung but I am their built quality has never been impressive.
At the IFA 2013, both Sony and Samsung launched their 2013-2014 smart watch range with apple like key note speeches. Sony did launch a 2nd generation smart watch which is claimed to be better than the last one and Samsung also did launch a smart watch (Galaxy Gear) complete with a camera. I will await to see which one shall reach my market first but thanks to my country's recent taxation measures, I might as well not be able to afford any of this watches.
Below are some videos of the smart watches of both Samsung and Sony.
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