“...Is it time for the smartwatch?”
Just howwellwill Apple’snewgadget suit theneedsof
thebusiness traveller?asks
AlexPell
unless you live
under a socialmedia-
resistant stone, itwill havebeenhardnot to
notice thebuzz about smartwatches in
recentmonths. TheAppleWatch launched in
September andwill start hittingwristsearly
next year,whileagaggleof Android-based
models is alsodue soon.
But, asmuchas I loveagreat gadget, I’m
sceptical –at least for the timebeing–about its
businesscredentials.Don’t getmewrong. The
premiseof awatch thatworks in tandemwithmy
phone todiscreetlydrawmyattention to, say, a vital
messageduringameeting, is acompelling
proposition. After all, few things are ruder than
glancingat aphone screenwhile someone is
talking. But thencheckingawatchwouldonly
comeaclose second. Theother trouble
is, it’shardenough tocurate
notificationsonaphone screen.
Doing soonawatch seems
wildlyoptimistic.
And thesearemerely
themost obvious
practicalities.While
AndroidWear (yes, this is
themonikerGooglehas
given its software) is
largelybasedaround
fancyalerts that buzz
whenever something
arriveson your handset,
Applehasbolder
ambitions. Itswatch
will run fullyfledged
apps that youcan zoom
intowitha swipeof
the screenor a twist of
itsdial.
I can see someof these
beinghandy, suchasfitness apps
orSiri, butmost strikemeashideously
complex toget togripswith– though
business travellerswill like someof the ideasApple ispromising,
suchas theability tounlockahotel roomor pay for itemson the
hoof. There’s alsogoing tobeaWatch versionof thePassbookapp,
which storesdigital boardingpasses. But thebigquestion is:will
theseappsprovehideous tonavigateon sucha small device?
Thereareother issues aswell, suchas the fact thatmost of
thesedeviceswill need tobe rechargeddaily.
It’shardenough to keepaphone juicedupwhen
you’reout andabout– the last thing youwant is
yourwatchgoingdeadduringaworkingday.
Of course, thereare someattractive
featuresand I admit tobeing slightly seduced
by thepromiseof changingadigitalwatch faceas
themood takesme. The thing is, nomatter how
many stylemavens sayotherwise, noneof
thesegadgets strikesmeasbeing ready
to liveon thewrist of a real person.
Even theAppleWatch,
undoubtedly themost
beautifullycraftedof them,
still seems a little too thick to
slipeasilyunder a shirt cuff
–and that’sgoing toget
annoyingquickly.
Finally, there’s the
not-so-smallmatter of an
expensivewatchhaving
longbeena statement of
status amongcorporate
types. Just how they’ll
feel about swappinga
glorious, high-precision
chronograph for something
that looksmore likea
fashionaccessory remains
tobe seen.
The smartwatchmaywell
prove tobe the future, but
there iswork tobedonebefore
it evolves intoan item that isfit
for prime time.Oneday, yes. Just
not quite yet.
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APPLEWATCH
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