As of October 2013, wearable technology may have brought $4.6 billion in sales worldwide just this year, says Visiongain’s latest report. Of course, that excludes the highly anticipated Google Glass, which isn’t yet up for grabs. Who’s bought it so far? Geeks, says Inc. They noted, however, “37 percent of non-geeks were also interested in smart watches, and 35 percent were interested in smart glasses.” So either all the hipsters are also on board, or wearables are set to take the fashion/tech industries by storm.
Most of us wear glasses or watches or both already, so it’s no surprise that the wearables riding 2014’s mobile m2m wave are designed around these timeless fashions. Even though Google Glass has yet to be released, it’s still the model most picture in their minds. Smartwatches, however, run the gamut in diversity of function.
Smartwatches
Smartwatches are exactly as they sound: wristwear that tells time and does so much more. These range from Fitbit Force, designed to track and monitor fitness, to the Android-powered Neptune Pine, with “capacitive touch screen, GPS, and mobile broadband connectivity built in.” Most models offer intriguing features, such as the Filip smartwatch for kids with built in Wi-Fi, or the water-resistant Agent smartwatch with iPhone 4s or newer, Android 2.3.3+ and Windows 8 phone compatibility — meant for “makers” and open to third-party apps.
Google Glass
Google Glass gives new meaning to the term “hands-free” and also to the entire idea of multitasking. No longer will nature lovers miss the opportunity to photograph an animal before it scampers off.
Saying the words “take a picture” is exponentially faster than fumbling for the camera lost in their backpack. They also won’t need to manually upload the photos to their computer, then put them on their favorite social network. They can share what they’re looking at, while they’re looking at it.
By far, the most helpful features, though, are the directions capabilities; nobody can use the “I got lost” excuse anymore when the directions couldn’t be closer to their face.
Delightfully enough, Google Glass will translate the user’s voice into another language — the example given on Google Glass’ What it Does page being “half a pound” in Chinese. This has obvious benefits concerning travel. Perhaps a more immediate understanding of the foreign dialect will further connect users in unprecedented ways.
Will Wearable Tech Enhance or Clutter Our Lives?
”Wearable technology has the potential to enhance our surroundings, improve our health, and change the way we interact with each other,” Business Insider asserts. The potential is surely there, though skeptics will be cautious in adopting this trend. As part of the future of fashion, we’ll likely be seeing increasingly creative, personalized and variable models as the tech evolves.
