One to watch? Samsung's new wearable tech

Dick Tracy, the iconic comic-strip detective, used a high-tech wristwatch to call for help chasing down gangsters. For decades, people could only fantasize about owning a similar device.

But recently, technology companies have started to see a big future in so-called smartwatches and are pushing to capitalize. A handful of firms, including Sony and Pebble Technology, a Silicon Valley start-up, already sell time pieces that let people check their email, follow friends on Facebook and track the how far they jog.

Samsung on Wednesday became the latest to join the nascent smartwatch field by unveiling Galaxy Gear, a time piece that Dick Tracy would hardly recognize. The device can be used to answer phone calls, take and share photos and check the weather. It comes with a $299 price tag.

The question remains whether consumers share the technology industry’s enthusiasm for smartwatches. Do people really want to spend hundreds of dollars for yet another device – one with a tiny screen (a 1.63-inch watch face) and fewer features than a mobile phone?

Smartwatches are designed to free users from having to constantly pull out their phones to check email, for example. Rather, with a smartwatch, you’d simply glance at your wrist and press a button or two to see if any new messages have arrived.

“We’ll be able to live with our hands free and our heads up,” said Angela McIntyre, an analyst for Gartner.

But they can also be a bit clunky. Take those with built-in cameras, such as Samsung’s, in which the lens is located on the wrist strap. To snap a photo or shoot video, you have to point your wrist ever-so precisely – not exactly the most natural method of taking family snapshots or memorializing a trip to the Grand Canyon.

Furthermore, people with smartwatches must still carry a phone with them, as they only work when connected to a phone via Bluetooth.

Smartwatches are part of a larger category of emerging electronics known as wearable technology. They include fitness trackers, such as FitBit, which automatically logs the wearer’s heart rate and other health data, and Google Glass, the futuristic eyewear with a built-in camera and tiny computer display.

Samsung’s smartwatch runs on Android, will be available in the United States in October. The device will come loaded with roughly 70 apps, such as eBay, the online memo service Evernote and the RunKeeper fitness tracker. Because of compatibility issues, the watch only works in conjunction with Samsung mobile phones and tablets. Battery life for the watch is 25 hours, according to Samsung.

The adoption of smartwatches will ultimately depend on whether companies can make the technology simple, reliable and useful, McIntyre said. With good voice recognition, users can dictate emails and make calls by merely saying the name of a contact out loud. Sales will also hinge on aesthetics, she warned. Many people consider smartwatch designs to be too ugly and are waiting for something more stylish.

Smartwatches aren’t entirely new. For years, companies have been experimenting with and a few have been selling the devices, albeit with limited success. What’s different now is that the components are cheap enough and technology good enough for a wider audience.

At least that’s what the companies betting on smartwatches are hoping.

Sales of mobile phones and tablets – which have propelled the technology industry in recent years – are expected to eventually slow. Finding the next big thing is therefore critical. Both Apple and Google, among the biggest beneficiaries of the boom in mobile devices, are believed to be developing smartwatches. It’s unclear how far along they are or whether they’ll ever make any devices available to the public.

Pranav Mistry, head of Samsung America’s think tank team, used a press conference on Wednesday to hammer home the idea that his company’s smartwatch is more than just a novelty. He spoke of how the watch lets people interact with the world in ways that are impossible with a smartphone. At the same time, he pitched the device as easy to use by showing how people can swipe the watch’s screen to access different features and, in some cases, use voice commands to navigate.

“Welcome to the future,” Mistry said. “We wanted to make a wearable of tomorrow that is designed for everyone.”

We’ll soon see whether the world is ready.

Al Jazeera