News & Reviews:   ZTE Smartwatch

Everyone seems to be getting on the smartwatch bandwagon,  including ZTE who are rumoured to be coming out with a smartwatch in Q1 of 2014. Initial rumours say that the ZTE smartwatch will only work or sync with ZTE devices and eventually work with every other Android smartphone. However, new rumours indicate that the upcoming ZTE smartwatch could be a stand alone device where it could call, SMS or connect to the Internet without having to sync with a smartphone through Bluetooth. This is because rumours say that will be able to accept a SIM or micro SIM card. These rumours go on to state that the ZTE smartwatch will be launched first in China before being rolled out internationally and reaching Malaysia. It is expected to be priced much lower than the Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch which retails at RM999 here in Malaysia. 

ZTE was recently quoted that it would be launching a smartwatch as early as 2014 with a possible release date in Q1 of 2014. Unfortunately, there were no tech specs or other feature details but if it looks to make any sort of impact they will likely have to address most of the main limitations of current smartwatches in the market. These include cripplingly short battery life, compatibility, limited features and functionality, the now standard thick slab of touchscreen design and a rather high price tag. Most smartwatches are also aiming to be little more than notification centers for your smartphone that connect via bluetooth. We're hoping more for a standalone device and there are already quite a few of those in development or recently introduced. None have answered all of the main limitations of current smartwatches but we ZTE could be the one to finally break the deadlock. As it is, the ZTE smartwatch would probably surface at CES 2014, where Samsung is also rumoured to be coming out with a better Samsung Galaxy Gear 2 smartwatch as well.