According to people familiar with the matter, Google is currently in talks to mass produce its own fancy smartwatch running Android. This is according to the Wall Street Journal, which also notes the production of the watch will have a large focus on Google Now and resolving the issue of poor battery life.
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The suspected main feature of the smartwatch, Google Now, is often referred to as the company’s answer to Apple’s voice assistant Siri and uses users’ online behaviour to “predict” your interests and keep you up-to-date with relevant and unique information.
Google Now is also very compatible with Google Voice and gives you general updates such as traffic or the weather which would work great with a smartwatch.
Samsung launched the Galaxy Gear a few weeks ago which will support only specific Samsung smart devices. Though an impressive innovation in its own right, the Gear is generally being chastised for having poor battery life, buggy and limited app performance, bulky design and for being simply way over priced. Hopefully Google can change this smartwatch stigma.
The WSJ says that, according to the mysterious source, Google is aiming to address smartwatches’ two biggest issues — the poor battery life and usefulness.
Apple, and more recently HTC and Nokia, are all rumoured to be working on smartwatches.
As tech heavyweights all seem to want in on the wearable tech scene, the technology will be experimented with and pushed to new limits. That’s something Google would be happy to oblige in. When the company announced the Nexus 7 — a quality US$250 tablet — for instance, the bar was instantly raised and others had followed suit.
It would be amazing seeing the announcement of the Nexus 5, Android KitKat and the suspected Google smartwatch being flung like candy to crowds of the next Google Play event. When this event will take place, we know not.
Image: Droid Life
