News & Reviews:   SmartWatch

Coming from the makers of the first successful consumer smartwatch is the Pebble Steel smartwatch. Essentially the same Pebble bluetooth notifications smartwatch, the new Steel offers a more stylish and sturdy look with premium materials that include a Corning Gorilla Glass panel and all metal materials. The Steel definitely looks and handles nicer than the original plastic Pebble smartwatch but it still runs the same Pebble apps and notifications as before. The Steel will not replace the original though as it will be priced at a higher-end $249 (RM817) price tag. As far as Malaysia release dates go, the Pebble Steel smartwatch will be available worldwide on 28 January 2014 but you can still go to the Pebble Steel site to pre-order as stocks are limited.

CES 2014 continues to shape up as the place for everyone to announce their tech wearables and LG is no exception as they have gone and announced their Lifeband Touch smartband along with Heart Rate Earphones. Initially designed for the fitness inclined, the two devices connect wirelessly to each other and to both Android and iOS smartphones. The Lifeband Touch is a smart bangle with a touch OLED display showing the time, notifications, biometric data and music controls with a built in accelerometer and altimeter for the measurment of distance, speed, steps taken, calories burned and much more. The device is motion controlled as well, turning on or off when you rotate your wrist. The LG Heart Rate Earphones use PerformTek sensors to measure blood flow from your ears, allowing it to measure your heart rate and oxygen consumption. LG have made the design for the earphone comfortable and clip-on while being lightweight enough to go for a run without too much danger of falling off. Still not much news on exact Malaysia release dates or pricing but these devices should be expected after Q2 2014 when they will be released for the US.

Archos is usually better known for their affordable tablets but they have recently announced that they will be bringing a number of new and affordable devices to CES 2014. This includes a number of Archos smartwatches that may cost less than $50 (RM164). The Archos smartwatch in the picture looks a lot like the pebble smartwatch but there is no news on other tech specs, features or functions available for these supposedly affordable smartwatches. In related news, Archos will also be bringing a 7-inch tablet called the Smart Home tablet, an activity tracker, a blood pressure monitor, a home camera and a weather station to the show under a main theme called Archos Connected Home. All of these Archos devices will use Bluetooth LE and should be compatible with Android and iOS devices. Check out the devices in the article.

The first generation Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch really didn't wow us despite it currently being the most feature-filled consumer smartwatch available. It cost too much, lasted just a bit more than 24 hours and still had to rely on your smartphone to use most of the apps. So when rumours that Samsung could be coming out with a 2nd version surfaced we're still a bit skeptical about the whole Samsung smartwatch thing. As it is, rumours are saying that the Samsung Galaxy Gear 2 and another wearable to be called the Samsung Galaxy Band could be revealed at MWC 2014 in February. Tech specs and features are very limited but the Galaxy Gear 2 is expected to have a flexible screen while the Galaxy Band would be a health tracker much like the Nike FuelBand. No details on pricing or Malaysia release dates but if they do get revealed at MWC 2014, we'll probably see them in Malaysia sometime in 2014. For now, check out the whole bunch of flexible display tech from Samsung's own Display group below. Do watch out for a FuelBand like bangle smartwatch in the video.

Rumours have come up stating that LG may soon come out with not one but two wearable devices for your wrist at the MWC Expo 2014. The LG smartwatch could be called the LG G Arch while the wristband could be a bluetooth health tracker called the LG G Health. Unfortunately, there aren't any other tech specs available or details like Malaysia pricing or release dates but we'll keep you updated as soon as we get some more information.

While Motorola have yet to show off any smartwatch, much less a flexible display smartwatch they seem like one of the more likely companies to do so. Not only is Motorola responsible for many of the world's firsts in the mobile phone industry, they also have big pockets Google backing them up. Recent patent applications from Motorola suggest that we could see a flexible display smartwatch from them before long. The patent looks like a standard interlinked metal watch band with a flexible display overlay but there don't seem to be any other tech specs or features that may make it more unique. Since this is still just a patent application there are no Malaysia release dates yet, but it does mean that Motorola are planning something in the smartwatch department, so stay tuned.

Smartwatch devices are on the rise and it doesn't come as a surprise that rumours have popped up saying that Nokia will come out with a smartwatch of their own. What does come as a surprise is that the rumours say that the new smartwatch will use Morph technology which involves the use of smart nanotechnology materials. Bear in mind that Nokia's Morph tech isn't something new and was first demoed as concept renders way back in 2008. It was futuristic then and it remains so now, so we're rather skeptical that a Nokia Morph smartwatch could come anytime soon. Be that as it may, the Nokia smartwatch is rumoured to arrive in after Q2 of 2014. The actual quote referring the Nokia Morph is listed below:

"nanoscale technologies that will potentially create a world of radically different devices that open up an entirely new spectrum of possibilities"

As always, take this rumour with a pinch of salt but do check out the pics and videos of Nokia Morph and other Nokia flexible display technologies in this article as well.

Reports from China have leaked some possible tech specs of the rumoured Apple iWatch along with a possible release date. These tech specs include a 100 mAh battery for two prototype iWatch devices which matches earlier reports that the iWatch would come in His and Her versions. Do bear in mind that a 100 mAh battery is barely even a third of the 315 mAh battery on the Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatch and that that only lasts a little more than a day. Apple will supposedly solve this by using a wireless charging technology capable of charging the iWatch from 3.2 feet away. The report goes on to say that the Apple iWatch will come in October 2014 again matching earlier rumours that it would come in late 2014. The report comes from a fairly accurate source when it comes to Apple leaks but do take this rumour with a healthy pinch of salt as it involves a so far yet to be seen magnetic resonance wireless charging technology that hasn't been completely confirmed in itself yet.

If you're thinking about getting a bluetooth wearable notifications device then perhaps you'd consider getting the Smarty Ring instead of a regular old smartwatch. While it could just as likely be vapourware, the Smarty Ring is one of those crowd funded projects where you get email, social media and other app notifications directly to your finger where the bluetooth enabled Smarty Ring is worn. It can also be used to tell time, accept or reject calls, make outgoing calls (but not directly), trigger the camera, control music and change your profile through buttons on the side of the ring. The ring itself is a rather thick stainless steel device with embedded circuitry and has a 24-hour battery life. It can be charged wirelessly.

While the Nike FuelBand isn't really a smartwatch, in terms of design it does look a lot better than any other smartwatch currently on the market. Rumours are swirling that Nike may soon change this perception by coming out with a smartwatch of their own with rumours saying that Nike are currently testing it under trial production. Unfortunately, there aren't any other tech specs or features available but it would likely offer standard Bluetooth synced notifications like other smartwatches. The source report goes on to say that it could arrive in Q1 or Q2 of 2014. Hopefully, the Nike smartwatch won't be limited to just Nike apps but then again do remember to take this rumour with a big pinch of salt as the source of the rumour isn't really the most accurate.