Despite the lack of concrete news available on the subject, we’re hardly short of concept designs for Apple’s eventual iWatch.
This one, by San Francisco UI designer Todd Hamilton, is among the best yet — a sleek design that resembles a cross between the Nike Fuelband and an iPhone.
Apple has chosen LG Electronics as its sole manufacturing partner for the iWatch, according to a new report from Korea. The device is expected to use the same curved OLED display technology LG recently debuted with its G Flex smartphone, and production could begin during the third quarter of this year.
Tech research firm DisplaySearch has published its forecast predictions for 2014 — and among them is the suggest that the next generation iPhone will feature a dramatically larger display.
We’ve seen famed Apple concept designer Martin Hajek’s take on Cupertino’s possibly mythical, believed-to-be-forthcoming iWatch before, but that was before iOS 7 came along. So Hajek decided to adapt his design for the post-Forstall age.
The result? The iWatch S and iWatch C, which have not only been updated to support iOS 7 (at least in Hajek’s head), but which have taken some new design cues from the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c.
Wearables are all the rage at CES this week, but everyone is waiting to see what Apple does with its rumored iWatch. The mysterious device has been in the rumor mill for several years now, but reports have started picking up more frequently in the past year.
According to The Information, Apple is running into problems developing its watch-like device. Specific panel technology isn’t mentioned in the report, but Apple has apparently had problems choosing the right display. A “sizable” team is working on the project, which was reported last year. Battery issues (which are tied to the screen problems) have also been slowing development.
Today Corning announced that it’s ready to manufacture a new 3D-shaped Gorilla glass for availability this year. The new glass is designed with curved phone and wearable displays in mind.
As the main glass supplier for iOS devices, Corning’s 3D Gorilla glass could very well end up in future Apple products.
DigiTimes is reporting that Apple is experiencing difficulties in its long-rumored iWatch development — meaning that the (as yet unannounced) consumer launch may slip back further during 2014.
The not-always-reliable news site cites sources from the upstream supply chain, who report that the iWatch production slowdown is the result of the device’s body design. Apple is “reportedly seeing less than 50% yield rates due to difficulties applying surface treatments on their metal injection molded (MIM) chassis.”
Today the Chinese site C Technology published a report saying that Apple’s rumored iWatch is coming next October and will have wireless charging. C Technology has gotten stuff wrong about Apple in the past, but it has also leaked parts for future products that ended up panning out.
The point isn’t C Technology’s track record, but what its latest report says about the iWatch: no one has any real clue what Apple is up to.
While everyone seems certain that Apple is working on some sort of wearable, exact details on the mysterious ‘iWatch’ remain allusive. Publications like The New York Times have said Apple is working on a watch with a curved glass display, and Tim Cook has hinted that the wrist is “profoundly interesting” for wearables.
The latest rumor on the iWatch is that Apple is developing two sizes: a larger display to market towards men, and a slightly smaller display for women.
There have been many wearables and quantified-health applications over the past few years, but most have steered clear of proclaiming themselves medical devices. Some of the rumors about the iWatch (such as the fact that it will be able to listen to the sound blood makes as it flows through arteries, and use this to predict heart attacks) may sound a bit too good to be true. But the number of biosensor and biomedical engineers Apple has snapped up recently makes us think the iWatch could be a device that crosses over firmly into the "medical monitoring" category.
According to one recent report, a reason for the long delay before launch is that Apple is awaiting certification from the Food and Drug Administration to get the iWatch approved as medical equipment. Given Apple's recent announcement of the Health app for iOS 8 to collect and show data on calorie consumption, sleep activity, blood oxygen levels and more, plus the conspicuous absence of a health-tracking fitness band in Apple's last iPhone 5s ad, the idea that the iWatch will be geared toward health seems as close to a foregone conclusion as you get for a device that hasn't even been officially announced yet.
With all of Apple’s sales numbers save iPhone either flatlining or declining, calls are louder than ever for Apple to release a revolutionary device in an all new product category. People want the iWatch, and so does Apple.
A new rumor says that final manufacturing plans for the mythical wristmounted iDevice are underway, and LG is likely to be the main provider of Apple’s new iWatch OLED display.