Ever since Dick Tracy comics came out, multi-functional watches have fascinated people with wonder and intrigue. These watches became somewhat real with digital watches, which included timers, alarms, and other such conveniences. Now, a new technological tend is surfacing—the “true” smartwatch.
This trend began back in April 2012, when a company called Pebble raised hype about the idea of a smartwatch. Pebble gained momentum for their idea on Kickstarter, a website for crowd-funding ideas and projects. The response was overwhelming, with $1 million in funds in just 28 hours.
The idea behind the Pebble watch is that it would connect to a smartphone via Bluetooth and display notifications such as emails and text messages on an e-ink face.
A smartwatch would take away the need for you to ever check your phone for notifications. It doesn’t stop there; there would be apps such as a pedometer and timer (in addition to an app store) to download more watch faces. The idea works perfectly with Android and iPhone and this brings up the question that all Apple fans will ask; when is Apple going to come out with a smartwatch?
“I heard that Apple is going to make an ‘iWatch’ that’s going to look like the iPod Nano. I think this will be really cool and, hopefully, very different from the other smartwatches, since they don’t do much,” said junior Jordan Cohen.
Fear not Apple-haters, there are other options! The Sony SmartWatch is in the forefront of smartwatch technology and is unique for its color touchscreen and the ability to read social updates from Facebook and Twitter. Another watch is the Motorola MotoACTV, which is geared towards runners and athletes since it has a GPS to track the course, in addition to the “regular” smartwatch functions.
Smart watches are not the only wearable tech out there. Google recently announced its own wearable device, the Google Glass. Set to look like wire frame glasses, just without the glass, the Google Glass has a tiny glass box that goes in front of your eyes, allowing you to see what Glass is projecting. The projections can be of notifications, a viewfinder for a picture, or a map for directions. Videos and pictures come from a camera located just next to the glass box.
This feature has caused a great deal of controversy and some places are already banning Google Glass. StopTheCyborgs.org has listed reasons why Google Glass should be banned in addition to distributing printable signs calling for a ban of Google Glass.
If the smartwatch technology is advanced and unique enough, in comparison to the other smartwatches, we will all be living in a Dick Tracy comic book.