Rumour: Apple follows Google into wearable computing

[Griffolion]

Unnamed insiders have been cited as saying that a team of 100 Apple staff - headed by senior executives - has been assembled to work on the product, implying that the iWatch is "beyond the experimentation phase".

Apple's senior director of engineering, James Foster, and another manager are part of the iWatch team, according to Bloomberg.

The latest leak comes - some would say conveniently - at a time when the Apple chief executive Tim Cook is under pressure to demonstrate, amid slowing sales and a falling share price, that the company is still innovating.

Speaking at the Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference in San Francisco yesterday, Mr Cook said the innovation culture at Apple "has never been stronger".

He added: "The boldness, ambition, belief there aren't limits, a desire to make the very best products in the world. It's the strongest ever. It?s in the DNA of the company."

Source: [a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/apple/9866999/Apple-iWatch-heading-into-production.html"]The Telegraph Online[/a]

So it looks like Apple is following Google's lead by, as a large company, taking a concerted stab at wearable computing. Granted it isn't as abitious as Googles highly impressive [a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Glass"]project Glass[/a] is, demoed last year at [a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7TB8b2t3QE"]Google's I/O conference[/a], but Apple could lay claim to a "first to market" bragging right if they can bring their more simple iWatch out at some point this year.

Would you buy this if Apple were to release the iWatch, as it's being dubbed in the rumours?

PS - Yes, I'm aware of the [a href="http://getpebble.com/"]Pebble Watch[/a]. But I'm talking in terms of one of the "big" companies bringing something to market. We can go on forever about how Apple technically has never had a first to market bragging right, but let's just keep it in this context, okay?

 

[Daystar Clarion]

The iWatch, using patended iTime measuring technology, can tell you the time of day, anywhere!

For only £9999.99!

 

[Wraith]

All these companies trying to make wearable computing seems slightly redundant. With what iPhone and Androids can do now is pretty damn impressive...plus you can make calls on the fuckers. I mean, c'mon, it's already portable, affordable, and comes pre-loaded with internet access... and I can CALL people on it. Why would I need glasses or a million dollar watch with Apple's logo on it?

OT: Apple already has wearable computing. Just put your iPhone in an arm band. BAM!

 

[Griffolion]

OT: Apple already has wearable computing. Just put your iPhone in an arm band. BAM!

Or the iPod Nano.



[QUOTE=Daystar Clarion]The iWatch, using patended iTime measuring technology, can tell you the time of day, anywhere!

For only £9999.99![/QUOTE]

That is a genuine fear of the market right now. Apple has already [a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/12/apple-patent-points-to-platform-for-wearable-sensors-internet-of-things/"]managed to patent[/a] a form of smart watch, described intentionally vaguely - [a href="http://www.macgasm.net/2011/06/22/apple-wins-pretty-vague-touch-screen-patent/"]that's how they got Samsung, after all[/a] - as a wearable device with sensors and internet access.

 

[bananafishtoday]

Well the way the Pebble is going, Apple could probably start developing something tomorrow and still beat them to market.

Anyway "wearable computing" is a silly term imo. It doesn't actually mean anything. Google Glass and a hypothetical iWatch would serve very different use cases, just like a Palm Pilot and a Game Boy filled different niches back in the old days.

Personally, I really want Apple to release a direct competitor to Google Glass. I'd never buy it--their philosophy wrt general purpose computing is abhorrent. But it'd be nice for them to enter the market: they'd make wearing that shit on your face socially acceptable, so those of us who want real devices are just judged as "not rich enough" rather than "horrifically outside the bounds of society."