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Casio’s low-power Bluetooth watch runs for two years on a button cell

Casio has put Bluetooth into a wristwatch. By itself, that’s not so much to talk about. But this is the low energy variant of Bluetooth 4, which means that the watch will run for two years on a coin-cell, just like any other wristwatch.

The G-Shock Bluetooth looks a lot like you’d expect — a chunky plastic sports watch, with added Bluetooth logos. The main schtick is that the watch will sync its clock with your cellphone. Because your phone updates its clock with network time, this should mean the watch is always accurate.

You’ll also get notifications of incoming calls, SMS and email, and if you lose your phone you can use the watch to activate an alarm or make it vibrate. This may not be as useful as it sounds, though, as the maximum range of low-energy Bluetooth is just 5 meters, which means you’ll still be wandering from room to room to find it.

The biggest problem, though, will be finding a Bluetooth 4 phone to pair it with. Once these become more common, though, who wouldn’t want a watch that could do all this and run for two years on a CR2032 battery? The super low power consumption alone means that Bluetooth notifications just got a whole lot more useful.

The watch should be in stores soon, for an unknown price.

Casio G-Shock Bluetooth Watch Revealed [A Blog to Read via Oh Gizmo]

See Also:

• Casio Makes Your Eyes Water with G-Shock Man-Box
• Crazy-Rugged Casio Is a Titan Among Tough Timepieces
• $200 Watch-Phone Is a Fun, Affordable Accessory
• World's 'Most Feature-Packed Watch' is Also its Ugliest
• Why Wristwatches Are Still Worth Watching

Tunebug readies the Rumble, adds speakerphone capabilities to its SurfaceSound speakers originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Mar 2011 07:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung’s 2011 product showcase is underway in New York City and while most of these products we got a peek at during CES, it’s only finally ready to show off the new QWERTY flip remote for its smart TVs. The QWERTY TV remote is looking a lot sleeker in its glamour shot than it did in the FCC tests weeks ago, and is available in the box with all D7000 and D8000 model HDTVs, or as an add-on compatible with the D6300 line and above (no mention of the Smart Touch remote or Google TV devices in the press release we received.) Samsung’s also putting a lot of stock in its new lighter 3D glasses and officially announced the new 3D Starter Kit that includes two pairs along with a copy of Megamind and all the Shrek movies on Blu-ray 3D, along with prescription-ready models for kids and adults. Finally, an app market is nothing without apps, and there’s two new ones to announce today with HBO GO making its debut on the TV and MTV Music Meter. Check the details (Update: now including MSRPs!) in the press release after the break and the gallery for a few pictures.

Updated: We got a few minutes to play around with the new QWERTY flip remote after Samsung’s NYC press event today. It’s not exactly the most glamorous handheld keyboard remote control out there with its monochrome screen, although we do like that the center of the D-pad can me morphed into a touch sensitive mouse-like control. Okay, so this thing isn’t exactly ground breaking, but check out the shots below for a closer look.

Continue reading Samsung’s QWERTY flip Smart TV remote is official along with new TV apps and Megamind Blu-ray 3D pack-in (updated: hands-on!)

Samsung’s QWERTY flip Smart TV remote is official along with new TV apps and Megamind Blu-ray 3D pack-in (updated: hands-on!) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 11:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve seen some pretty interesting and insanely unique watches in our time, and just when we thought we’d seen it all, artist Olivier Demange whips up this timepiece concept — dubbed Konect — that packs a wide range of features and looks futuristic while doing so. Embedded in this Tron-esque gadget watch is a Bluetooth radio that’ll act as a receiver — yes, you can finally fulfill your lifelong dream of using your watch to communicate (only if you’ve strapped a paired BT headset to your skull). You’ll also find proper controls for music playback, a button to answer and end calls, a removable USB stick, and well, a way to tell the time. Judging by the renders, we’d say finding out when it is might take more than a second or two, but you can be sure that we hope to see this thing on our wrists sometime. Check out the concept in video form below the fold — and yes, we know, House!

Continue reading Konect USB watch concept is awe-inspiring, hard to tell time on (video)

Konect USB watch concept is awe-inspiring, hard to tell time on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Mar 2011 11:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ever since Allerta released an SDK for its well-hyped inPulse smartwatch, it was only a matter of time before we start seeing more practical applications that take this Bluetooth peripheral beyond the BlackBerry ecosystem. For instance, the latest example comes from the inPulse’s very own Lead Designer Eric Migicovsky, who happens to be a fan of Facebook Places and possibly an Android convert. Rather than having to pull out his Nexus One for every check-in, Migicovsky can now use his simple app on his inPulse to grab a list of nearby locations off the phone, and then check in with just a click of a button. Pretty neat, eh? For those interested, you can grab the project code off inPulse’s website and get programming.

inPulse Bluetooth smartwatch gets Facebook Places check-in app for Android (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 11:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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