During his whirlwind tour of the Middle East and Europe, Apple CEO Tim Cook has been leaving little breadcrumbs of Apple Watch revelations.
There was the confirmation that the Watch will be showerproof in Germany, and now Cook has said it will eventually replace your car keys.
Cook was greeted with a very warm welcome from employees at London’s Covent Garden Apple store on Friday. “The staff gasped, and then burst into spontaneous, loud applause as soon as they spotted Cook, who walked in behind them,” reports The Telegraph.
One of the first questions Cook was asked related to Apple Watch. He showed the retail team his white Sport model.
“This will be just like the iPhone: people wanted it and bought for a particular reason, perhaps for browsing, but then found out that they loved it for all sorts of other reasons,” said Cook.
One of those reasons will apparently be unlocking your car. Cook said that Watch is designed to “replace car keys and the clumsy, large fobs that are now used by many vehicles,” according to The Telegraph.
Apple has a patent for unlocking a car via an iPhone app, so the idea doesn’t come from complete left field. There are also the rumors that Apple is working on its own car, codenamed project “Titan.”
“We’ve never sold anything as a company that people could try on before”, Cook said, adding that Apple is “tweaking the experience in the store” for the upcoming Watch. The New Yorker’s recent profile of Jony Ive revealed that Ive is helping design a new store layout.
Apple is expected to announce more details about the Watch, including pricing, at its upcoming March 9 event. Cook has already said that the product will ship in April.
Some other tidbits from The Telegraph’s interview:
- The Apple Watch “will make it much easier to prioritise, spot and react to urgent messages, such as a family emergency.”
- “The watch’s battery life will last the whole day, Cook says, in another revelation that will please potential users, and it won’t take as long to charge as an iPhone.”
- Cook is proud of Apple staying “true to our North Star.” That includes three pillars: pro-privacy, pro-environment and pro-human rights.
- Putting the Apple Watch on his wrist is the first thing he does when he gets up at 3:45 AM every morning. Why? “I want to make sure I measure all my activity.”
- He goes to the gym around 5 AM and to work at 6:30 AM. A downside of being such an early bird is that, “I miss the late night shows.”
Alex Heath is a journalist who works for Tech Insider. He’s the former co-host of The CultCast. He has been quoted by the likes of the BBC, KRON 4 News, and books like “ICONIC: A Photographic Tribute to Apple Innovation.” He lives in Lexington, Kentucky. If you want to pitch a story, share a tip, or just get in touch, additional contact information is available on his personal site. Follow him on Twitter.
18 responses to “Apple Watch will eventually replace your car keys”
What do we hand the valet?
good call.
The car will park itself and then come to you when you summon it, via the watch.
I’m ready for the day… “Apple Watch, fetch me my car…”
But who is going to move my car seat all the way forward and tune the radio to the christian ministry station? Who? Who?
When the car sees you via the watch it will remember your settings.
The valet will get a vehicle from you that is still open. Once they edit it locks. If the valet tries to make a run to steal or joy ride your vehicle the car will shut down If it attempts to exit the lot. Alarms will go off and notify you.
You clearly have never had your car valet and do not understand the parking business. Pray tell who is going to define a “lot” when it’s residential street, open field, or most likely street parking in old urban area. Have you ever seen them pack it 3 cars deep so they are constantly moving cars around?
That candy has given you a sugar rush hasn’t it? You are all over this topic posting “helpful” advice. Get your head out of the jar and lookup dimwit. Do something useful for a change.
You asked a stupid question so I gave you you the answer you reserved. You being so smart should have actually been able to provide an answer rather than a personal
attack.
Your reading comprehension is poor to be generous. I didn’t ask a silly question; I told a funny joke. Other people did too, but you were too busy being “helpful” to stop and think. BTW, what does rugby have to do with laying carpet? I am not sure, but I will bet either one will come up with better solutions than what you have posted so far. They, after all, do things during the day.
No actually in my opinion you asked a number of silly questions. And I gave an answer that wasn’t just for you but to stimulate future thought . All those things I mentioned are possible now. Maybe not in the grassy or dirt fields where you find parking valets where you spend your free time fighting over a over a ball. You being so up on parking would know that there are sensors right in the blacktop or concrete that detects vehicles parked over them. At least in the higher end of town. Now I don’t know but I am sure there are even sensors that could be put in carpets… :)
Yes, you are quite the commodian.
Thats fine for when they park your car but what happens when they go to retrieve your car? Do you hand them your watch?
I see this as something that is more of a gimmick than a real world problem solver.
Still this is nothing new, Android is already doing this, it is my understanding you can buy aftermarket alarm systems that work with your phone or watch to open and start your car.
The likelihood of Apple making an aftermarket system that works with the Apple Watch are very small and it will be YEARS before anything like this will be built into cars and then it will only be the high end luxury brands that have it. On the other hand, Hyundai just announced plans to add Android Wear support for their cars.
And what if the valet is a robot?
as long as you’re note away from your car for more than the 4 hour battery life.
Noted. But phones can also be used to unlock cars.
So can keys and the batteries never go dead.
What if I’m not taking a shower in Germany? :)