“The Internet has been rampant with chatter over a watch like product from Apple (AAPL), dubbed ‘the iWatch,'” Christopher Versace writes for Forbes. “As some say, where there is smoke there is usually fire but in this case Apple has filed a number of patents on wearable computing. A newer patent filing regarding a wrist mounted flexible screen — think a slap on bracelet — only adds to that speculation.”
“Wearable computing is not only not new, but it’s had its fair share of story stocks in the past. Back in the day — think more than 10 years ago — Xybernaut Corp. was working to bring wearable computing solutions to the market,” Versace writes. “Today, however, we’re seeing a new class of wearable computing products. Nike’s (NKE) FuelBand, FitBit’s products such as the Flex band and Zip activity tracker, and now Under Armour’s (UA) new E39 performance monitoring system are all examples.More than just those three companies are targeting this market — others include Jawbone, Pebble, MetaWatch and Misfit Wearables. In terms of products, the iWatch could very well be the answer to a smaller form factor, cheaper iPhone product that Wall Street is looking for Apple to deliver.”
Versace writes, “I continue to prefer the ‘bullets not the guns’ way of looking at this and that means key technology companies over device vendors. If we’re talking a new set of mobile devices, that means looking at companies like Qualcomm (QCOM), ARM Holdings (ARMH), Broadcom (BRCM), Skyworks Solutions (SWKS) and others.”
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