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Features that would make Apple’s iWatch a killer product

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 · 6:02 pm · 33 Comments

“Both the New York Timesand the Wall Street Journal are reporting that Apple is working on a watch-like device,” Nigam Arora writes for Forbes. “iWatch has been in the rumor mill for a long time, but now the rumor has gained more credibility being spread by these august outlets.”

“If Apple were to introduce iWatch, it will be the first new category of products under Tim Cook,” Arora writes.

MacDailyNews Take: And, if it exists, it, like “Apple iTV,” was started under Steve Jobs (new product development roadmaps easily stretch back several years).

Arora writes, “Here is my list of features that will make iWatch a killer product.”

A few snippets:
• iWatch should remember all of my passwords, eliminating the need to enter the passwords on various devices.
• iWatch can act as a TV remote. Preferably using Siri as an interface.
• iWatch can speak turn by turn directions to me while walking.

Read more in the full article here.

Categories: News

Tags: iWatch, steve jobs, Tim Cook

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Comment Feed

33 Comments

1 2 Next »

Thelonious Mac

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 6:17 pm · Reply

sigh.

It’s so out of control again.
silverhawk1

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 6:18 pm · Reply

If you repeat a rumor enough times, it gains more credibility. Is that attributed to Socrates or Plato?
- chinstrap
  
  Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 10:02 pm · Reply
  
  Joseph Goebbels:
  
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Goebbels
Thelonious Mac

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 6:28 pm · Reply

Well the Nazi Propaganda mater Joseph Goebbels said If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. I think the got the idea from Hitler himself.

We just recently had the kooky rumor about the proprietary screws. Then there was something after that that the media went nuts for, in a similar way, where they’re all just repeating one another.
- hannahjs
  
  Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 7:16 pm · Reply
  
  The wise are glad to be instructed, but babbling fools fall flat on their faces. – Proverbs 10:8
- Agent Provocateur
  
  Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 8:06 am · Reply
  
  “Goebbels said If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it”
  
  Kind of like tax cuts increase revenue and stimulate growth out of proportion in the economy like a perpetual motion machine.
Dean

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 7:51 pm · Reply

I just bought an arm band and wear my ipod on my wrist. Besides, wasn’t the old ipod mini/shuffle (the square one with the screen) practically an iwatch if you had the watch band accessory?
- kingmel
  
  Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 10:54 pm · Reply
  
  That was a version of the iPod nano. If it had included wireless connectivity and Siri voice control, then it would, indeed, be much like the rumored iWatch.
jer

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 7:53 pm · Reply

iWatch must come with matching iRing and iBracelet.
- silverhawk1
  
  Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 8:43 pm · Reply
  
  Don’t forget iPukka beads.
TowerTone

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 8:17 pm · Reply

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-12/apple-said-to-have-team-developing-wristwatch-computer.html
Mike

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 8:46 pm · Reply

oooh, braindead journalist deploys the trigger term, “killer”. that must be code for “speculation straight from my ass”. Common usage: that was a killer blast, son. Now open a window and turn on the fan pronto!”

now these are truly amazing watch features:

1) an attractive face
2) a strap
3) an engraved signature: “Rorex”

the only vaporware to get this much press is the Apple television that was going to change all our lives… still waiting for Cook and Co to shit or get off the can.
Anton Dubinski

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 9:01 pm · Reply

Gee, will it actually be able to tell you the time at a glance?
- Weekend
  
  Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 10:13 pm · Reply
  
  No. No it can’t do that! What the hell do you think it is anyway?
Incarnato

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 9:45 pm · Reply

Off topic. HBO go now on Apple TV and can be air played. Sweetness!
- Incarnato
  
  Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 10:11 pm · Reply
  
  I meant airplay only
Harry

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 11:08 pm · Reply

I’ll wait for the 17″ Retina Display one.
ChrissyOne

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 11:15 pm · Reply

Really? Those are the killerest features you can come up with? Congratulations, you’re where the puck was when Gretsky hit puberty.
Daggar

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 12:03 am · Reply

What the iWatch should be: a Bluetooth/proprietary connection accessory that would look a lot like the iPod Watch (my personal name for the old gen iPod nano). You could get it in multiple different colors and it could have interchangeable straps. It’d have a touchscreen (multitouch, ’cause that’s the only way to do it), headphone jack (possibility, but not likely given Apple’s practicality.More likely they’ll say to just plug your headphones into the phone), and microphone. You’d get a dedicated Siri button, and, with iOS 7, you’ll be able to call up passbook cards using a Siri command (Siri, would you pull up my Starbucks card, please?). You’d be able to control audio on the screen, it’d have volume buttons and you’ll be able to use it as your microphone for talking on the phone. When Apple unveils iGlasses, which will also be a peripheral connected to your iDevice, it’ll integrate seamlessly, providing your iGlasses a visual cue to lock on to to tell what gestures you’re using (you look at the iWatch with the clock on it’s screen, it’ll show you your appointments; you look at the music controller, it’ll show album artwork and the songs in the playlist; you make magic fingers, it’ll take a picture; you pretend to use the scene marker, it’ll start a video) and taking some of the load off of the feature set to prevent bloating.
What the iWatch should NOT be: a shameless rehash of the iPod watch.
- Muad'dib
  
  Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 8:24 am · Reply
  
  What about wireless headphones?
- priused
  
  Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 10:48 am · Reply
  
  Dagger,
  
  I will play along, even though this is just a rumor and I don’t like wearing watches. Here are my thoughts on the rumored iPod Watch.
  
  Apple would probably produce the watch band in a few colors, but would expect third party vendors to provide the majority of the color / style choices.
  
  I agree that the iPod Watch would have a multi-touch screen (like the magic mouse and magic trackpad). I also agree that the iPod Watch would not have a dedicated headphone jack. It would be a given that the iPod Watch would include the same gorgeous watch faces that were used in the iPod Nano but that would be were the similarities end.
  
  I suspect that the real ‘killer’ app on the iPod Watch would be AirPlay. Basically the iPod Watch would function as an additional screen to your existing iPhone/iPad/iPod allowing you to view ‘Notification Center’, Incoming call status, turn-by-turn directions, etc… just by looking at your watch (probably motion activated to turn on the screen). But the watch would only contain the circuitry to perform the airplay functionality. The GPS, Cell Connection, WiFi, Speaker/Mic, etc… would all be contained in the iPhone/iPad/iPod device (not in the watch). This arrangement would allow the watch to be a low power device that is also thin and would truly be an ‘accessory’ item for those that already own an iPhone/iPad/iPod device. You could keep your iPhone in your pocket or purse and when an incoming call came in, you could look at your watch to see who is calling and then answer or reject the call by voice command. If you answer the call, you would be using the wireless connection with your cell phone to maintain the call, the watch would only function as an indicator screen. Once the call was initiated, the iPod Watch would either switch back to the ‘Time’ display or might switch to an elapsed conversation time display. The wireless microphone/headphone would be with the iPhone.
  
  As a map, it could display the turn by turn directions while you are driving. Helping keep you focused on the road (instead of looking at a screen somewhere in your car). Even if you use the watch while walking or cycling, your attention would be focused on where you are going, not walking down the street staring at your phone.
  
  Most of the time the watch would function as a watch (to tell the date and time) and would probably also display the latest notifications from the notification center. This last feature would have to be configurable so that you could turn on/off certain notifications on the watch. Otherwise the watch would be as scattered and distracting as a Windows 8 system.
  
  I think the second ‘killer feature’ of the iPod Watch would be that it would NOT contain an iPod. Yep, thats right… no music, no photos, no videos. Instead it would only be used to AirPlay the music, photos and videos that you already have on your iPhone/iPad/iPod. If this is so, then it would not be called an ‘iPod Watch’, instead it would be called something like iWatch.
  
  Application developers could still create applications for the iWatch, but those applications would actually run on the iPhone/iPad/iPod and would simply open a window on the iWatch for display and touch input. Yes the display would be limited (by size and resolution), but there are still applications that could be developed that would take advantage of this form factor.
  
  If Apple were to add NFC (yes that would probably fit in the iWatch), then the iWatch could become an extension to Passbook and actually allow you to use NFC payment systems to complete transactions. The NFC in the watch would allow existing iPhones/iPads/iPods to get in on the NFC game, and the iWatch would be less likely to be left behind in your car/office/etc and less likely to be stolen. The watch itself would not complete the NFC transaction, but instead would be the remote antenna for the Passbook system on your phone.
  
  The entire AirPlay connection could be done over low-power bluetooth with your other iDevice and would not be a huge battery drain. By putting all the smarts in your existing iDevice and positioning the iWatch as an accessory… Apple with further differentiate itself from it’s competitors and will drive more development to the Apple ecosystem.
  
  In the future, the iWatch could also function as part of Apples future computer systems. Have you ever watched the ‘Future Shock’ video that Apple produced in the late 1980′s? (you can watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcYrPkFe2J0). Pay attention and you will see the ‘Mom’ in this video, wearing a watch like device. The camera on top of the computer screen is tracking her wrist motions allowing her to control the computer by voice and by gesture (decades before Microsoft Connect). And while this is only a concept video, it does show that Apple has been thinking about a possible watch type accessory for many years.
  
  Perhaps with a curved glass multi-touch screen and low power usage (induction charging would be a plus), this will turn out to be a real device that people will want to have and will actually use. Assuming, of course, that this isn’t just a rumor.
Wingsy

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 1:09 am · Reply

Turn-by-turn directions? Really? And where is the battery that will power this little GPS receiver? To use GPS to navigate the receiver must be running almost continuously… battery life would be measured in minutes.

And a multi-touch screen on a watch? How does one get more than one finger on a screen the size of a watch?

And to use this thing as a phone? Imagine how ridiculous you would look holding your wrist up to your ear. And using it in Dick Tracy mode means everyone nearby would hear both sides of your conversation.

I don’t see much practical use for an iWatch other than for telling the time. And if you’ve got to have your iPhone in your pocket to use the iWatch, I can’t see a big advantage in using the small screen iWatch vs taking my iPhone out of my shirt pocket.
- sdfg
  
  Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 1:22 am · Reply
  
  Bingo.
  
  Remember the year ago iPod Nano? Well, that thing makes all the hipster iwatches look like shxt. And it still sucked as a watch. The idea of a watch is dated. And you point out many uses that an iwatch is worse at than a smartphone.
  
  Here’s another for more fuel against this absurd rumor. Imagine watching video on it?
  
  In other words, there’s a long list of things that an iwatch is really bad at compared to a smartphone… and a very short list of things it’s good it.
  
  An. iWatch. will. never. happen.
I love Apple

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 1:42 am · Reply

A watch? Why? I had no watch since ages. My iPhone is my watch when I am on a way. My Mac Pro is my watch in my office. My Retina 15″ is my watch in my home office. My iPad is my watch on the couch. Do I need more watches? Don’t think so. Need a new MacPro and a new Pages and Numbers, Tim.
- Tyler
  
  Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 7:05 am · Reply
  
  I’ve waited for a James Bond watch my whole life. Technology is finally getting there. Don’t ruin this for me
Clasqm

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 2:33 am · Reply

NFC? Doesn’t that require a really long antenna? As in, won’t fit in a watch?
currentinterest

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 2:53 am · Reply

Interesting coincidence given the timing of this new Sharp display: http://www.bigbrownboxblog.com.au/av-talk/sharp-presents-wrist-sized-display-prototype
crisrod63

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 7:28 am · Reply

Speculation. Just like the Apple Phone, all the rumors started about two years before the thing was released. Then again, the iTV, never released, or at least not yet. Now this.
HD Boy

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 7:37 am · Reply

C’mon. Surely Apple — and this group — can come with better ideas than this. Besides a Dick Tracy, two-way (FaceTime) radio watch, an iWatch needs a few James Bond features too. A library of most-wanted posters paired with a facial recognition camera. A laser, to boil tea or cut yourself free if your hands are bound together by someone’s gruff henchmen. A rear-facing X-Ray camera. Maybe even an audio database of clever pickup lines in various languages to use on beautiful spies around the globe. Where is “Q” when we really need him?
tincan2012

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 7:56 am · Reply

Do you think Apple’s design team meetings are a lot like the comment thread on this article? LOL
- ChrissyOne
  
  Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 9:24 am · Reply
  
  They’re likely very intelligent and focussed.
  
  So no.
tbone

Wednesday, February 13, 2013 - 10:11 am · Reply

The latest I hear from my very reliable sources, or as we like to say, “people familiar with the situation”, the new iWatch will be able, with a seven finger tap, turn into a 60″ Apple TV, giving new mean into the term, “iWatch TV”.