Hasta La Gadget!

If you’ve been waiting for a smartwatch ever since Apple released the super-cute iPod that fit perfectly on a wristwatch strap, you may be in luck – Google is reportedly making one running Android. But then there’ve been reports of Apple making a smartwatch too. And LG is making one as well, and Samsung, and who knows which other companies – smartwatches from every angle, I tell you! But today’s report about Google comes from the Financial Times where they’ve got an inside contact, so it’s best we listen.

If you see what the Financial Times notes, they’ve got a “person briefed on the project” who says that though larger projects like Glass are being created in the Google X laboratories, this supposed Google smartwatch is being developed for by the Google Android unit. What we must assume here is that, if the watch were real, it’d be created by one of Google’s hardware partners – perhaps Motorola? Meanwhile the Google developers on-staff creating Android would be taming a version of Android tailored specifically for an ultra-tiny display.

“While Glass is being created in its X Lab, home to experimental “moonshot” projects such as the self-driving car, Google’s smart watch is being developed by its Android unit, according to a person briefed on the project, to act as an extension to the smartphones using that operating system. The project is separate from Samsung’s efforts, the source said, although there is no indication of when it might launch.” – FT

It’s not as if it doesn’t make sense for everyone and their grandmother to be creating a smartwatch at the same time with essentially no warning and no pre-cursor or need, but what if? What if Apple and Google decided, separately, that they’d both create a wearable computer that wrapped around your wrist at once?

That once-utilized watch-loving arm will once again be home to a timepiece, only this time, you’ll be able to do a whole lot more than you were able in the past. Then it’s time again to get rid of the cellphone and the smartphone, right? Seems only logical!

Of course, then again, there’s always that Google Smartwatch patent.

Google Smartwatch is latest in essentially baseless claims of wearables is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

First it was Pebble to bring smartwatches to the mainstream, and from the looks of it, several big companies are looking to make a dent in the same market, including Apple, Samsung, Google, and now LG. It’s rumored that LG will be joining the three other companies to compete in making a next-generation smartwatch.

According to The Korea Times, not only is LG currently working on a smartwatch, but they’re also developing another wearable piece of technology, which is said to be something similar to Google Glass. This rumored smartwatch from LG would be able to sync to your smartphone and provide notifications and the like to the smartwatch.

As for the software side of things, it’s said that this supposed smartwatch will either run Android or Mozilla’s Firefox mobile operating system, both of which are tipped to be viable options for the company, although they’ve already been working with Android for a while now, so that seems like the more obvious choice at this point.

Both Apple and Samsung have been rumored to be creating their own smartwatch variants. However, Samsung has confirmed that they’re actually working on one, according to the mobile vice president of the company. The word is still out for Apple, but Google recently joined in on the rumor vine, with LG being the latest one to join the team.

[via The Korea Times]

LG rumored to be creating smartwatch contender is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Sony’s not the only manufacturer updating its smartwatch firmware this week. Pebble’s pushing an update, too, with a few changes on the way. Version 1.9, which has already begun rolling out to users, delivers a much cleaner UI. To update, head to the Pebble smartphone app and tap “check for FW update.” Once installed, you’ll find a cleaner menu structure, which groups all watchfaces together and moves primary navigation controls to the buttons on the right side of the device. You can also cycle through faces by simply tapping the up and down buttons — there’s no need to hop into the main menu for those adjustments. There are also some new faces available for download, along with a Snake game, which is admittedly a bit awkward to play on a wristwatch, but it’s a welcome addition nonetheless. We imagine the update was released in order to prep users for an onslaught of watchfaces — a Pebble SDK is due to be released next month.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wearables, Mobile

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Now that connected watches have officially become the ‘it’ gadget to innovate (see: Pebble, I’m Watch and Apple), Sony can’t just sit back and let its SmartWatch quietly finds its footing. Which is why the company’s beefing up the user experience and issuing an app update that bolsters the Android timepiece’s functionality while also giving it several new, pretty faces. Currently live on Google Play for all users to download, the software update adds notification previews for emails, texts and social media alerts, six watch face options ranging from retro to contemporary styles, a more accurate battery gauge and streamlined search. There’s now also nearly 200 compatible apps users can choose from to extend the SmartWatch’s functionality. You can go ahead and grab the update now from Play or sit back and wait for it to hit your wrist.

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Sony, Google

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Source: Sony, Google Play

All eyes may be on Samsung’s smartwatch plans, confirmed by the company’s mobile EVP today, but it’s not the first time the Korean firm has made a play – albeit underwhelming – for our wrists. Back in 2009 the company’s goal was to put an entire phone on your arm, in the shape of the S9110 watch phone. Faced with a 1.76-inch touchscreen – complete with a fake analog watchface, naturally – the Dick Tracy timepiece saw a limited, expensive launch and then swiftly sank from sight.

Mediocre specifications – even by the state of the 2009 marketplace – didn’t help. By trying to fit an entire phone into an 11.89mm thick watch, Samsung could only really accomodate the most basic of features: Bluetooth 2.1, 40MB of internal storage – enough for maybe ten MP3s for its onboard music player – and dualband GPRS data. You could scan your through email on the 176 x 220 display, thanks to Outlook sync, but the S9110 was really more of a terminal for calls and texts.

Of course, the S9110 looked like a powerhouse in comparison to Samsung’s first watch phone attempt, a full decade earlier with the SPH-WP10. That stood a towering two centimeters off your wrist, and offered such magic as voice dialing and a battery good for 90 minutes of talktime.

So what’s changed between 2009 and today? For a start, there’s been a backlash of sorts against convergence: the idea that a single device must satisfy our every need. Instead, the mobile industry has rediscovered specificity, with gadgets that do one or two things especially well, rather than making a hash at everything. We’ve seen that with Samsung’s own S Band, announced alongside the GALAXY S 4, following the fitness-tracking wearables trend to monitor your movements and squirt that data via Bluetooth to your phone or tablet.

That data sharing is the other big advance, or more accurately the efficiency of the wireless links we can now spread across our distributed tech. Bluetooth low energy, a feature of Bluetooth 4.0, slims its power requirements by a factor of a hundred compared to the greedy Bluetooth of the S9110, while still maintaining a 1Mbps transfer speed and a 50m range. Where the watch phone’s 630 mAh battery couldn’t really hope to keep the short-range wireless link active for more than a little hands-free kit use before the battery was extinguished, today’s devices can afford to maintain a persistent web of networking while still sipping power.

There’s a more obvious reason for the failure of watch phones to take off, despite their classic sci-fi appeal. Mobile displays have been getting progressively larger as the years have gone on; a year after the S9110 was announced, Samsung launched the original Galaxy S. At the time, its 4-inch screen seemed vast; now, the GALAXY S 4 is up to 5-inches, and those who want more screen space can slake their thirst with the 5.5-inch Galaxy Note II. In contrast, a phone on your wrist needs to be small enough to be unobtrusive, something at odds with the pleasures of an expansive panel for your browsing, multimedia, messaging, and everything else your phone today can do.

We’re yet to see a fully convincing smartwatch. Pebble has perhaps come closest, but it’s still flawed – more around software than hardware, admittedly – and the Kickstarter-funded business model means general availability is still waiting on backer rewards being fulfilled. It’s not just a question of making the hardware sleek enough (though, when your natural watch-wearing audience is fond of their Rolex, Omega, IWC, or other brand-name timepiece, you really need to make sure your smartwatch can compete. People may stomach carrying two phones, but they probably won’t wear two watches) but delivering the right mixture of usability.

Too ambitious, and you lose the immediacy and at-a-glance convenience having a screen on your wrist delivers; you also start to encounter input and control issues. Too humble, and users may decide there’s not quite enough to warrant actually strapping your gadget on in the first place.

Samsung won’t talk specifics for functionality, though a previous leak describing a so-called GALAXY Altius hinted at a mixture of maps, music, messaging, and more. In short, we’re a long way from seeing whether it can crack the smartwatch conundrum, and a patchy track record in tech for your wrist suggests there’s plenty of work to be done before the Galaxy brand spreads to our arms.

Let’s hope Samsung’s Galaxy Watch is better than its old watch-phone is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.