Tag: wearables

According to a recent report, the so-called iWatch will finally throw the tech giant into the wearables market.

According to a report in the Japanese newspaper “Nikkei”, Apple is getting ready to take its first steps into the smartwatch marketplace with a wearable technology device that will feature an OLED curved screen and will start to ship in October.

The report stated that this device will have features that will allow the wearer to monitor and track health status.

The Nikkei report, which cited anonymous sources, said that Apple intends to manufacture between 3 and 5 million of these smartwatch wearable devices every month. This would represent more than the total global sales of wristwatch-like smart devices in 2013. This wearable device, which has been called the iWatch by those who have been waiting for its unveiling – though whether or not that will actually be its name or not is unknown – will have a range of different mhealth, tracking, and smartphone related functions.

The smartwatch will provide the wearer with health stats while connecting to an iPhone.

So far, the Nikkei source said that the touchscreen will feature a curved organic light-emitting diode (OLED), and will collect certain types of health and fitness data such as sleep activity, calorie burning, and blood oxygen and glucose levels. It will also allow messages sent over smartphones to be accessed through the wearable technology.

This report was issued just as Apple was bringing its 2014 Worldwide Developers Conference, a week-long event – to a close. During that conference, the company placed the spotlight on its newly debuted iOS 8 next generation of mobile operating system. It also brought out the OS X Yosemite for PCs.

The event indirectly brought wearable technology and the expected smartwatch into the headlines through the inclusion of the programming interfaces into iOS 8, which include the HealthKit. That would allow health and fitness applications to be able to communicate with each other, provided that the user grants permission. This type of feature would be exceptionally practical in a wearable device that could monitor and track biofeedback. Though this could be quite the coincidence, it is much more likely that this is part of the company’s build toward the wearables launch.

Smart manicures could help people remember to take medication or quit smoking

Smartwatches and ar glasses may be among the most popular gadgets as far as wearable devices are concerned, but two nail art enthusiasts are making wearable tech far more fashionable by incorporating unique digital sensors into the designs they create for finger nails.

The nail designs are not only attractive they serve a practical function.

The creators behind the project are Jenny Rodenhouse and Kristina Ortega. They believe that nail beds could be the ideal spot for digital sensors that could enable people to track their movements. It may also benefit users in other ways. For instance, if someone wanted to give up smoking, the sensors could remind them not to engage in certain actions, such as lighting a cigarette.

One of the biggest problems the wearables industry faces is that many of the gadgets, such as Google Glass, are not attractive and do not look “cool”. If this technology is to really be successful, it needs to be accepted by the average person and not just individuals who are interested in tech.

Manicures are big business in the U.S. and, presently, women across the nation are not just having their nails painted, they are having designs put on their nails that include decorative objects like rhinestones, hoops, studs and even 3D printed objects.

Ortega noted that people are “really excited about new technology for wearables.” She added that “A lot of wearables are very one-size-fits-all. But they’re meant for the body, which is very intimate, so there’s room for getting really specific and seeing what could happen from that specificity.”

The wearable tech nail designs could offer many benefits.

One of the chief benefits of focusing this technology on nails is that many people like having their nails done and they like to wear long nails despite how impractical they may be. Furthermore, unlike other wearable devices, enhanced nail art would require maintenance and regular trips to the salon for updates.

Depending on the kind of sensor that is used, Ortega and Rodenhouse hope that programmers or doctors and nail technicians will be available to assist people in perfecting their data. Since the wearable tech sensors are being designed to accommodate coding for particular behaviors, they can be programmed to suit the wearer. For instance, one person may want to have an LED light come on to remind them to take their medication, while another may want the sensor that reminds them not to smoke.