Oh, Apple... the excuses. iWatch technology apparently isn't smart enough

[Prastupok]

For a company that invents so much... they really don't have good results.

 

"Spend a few minutes on Indiegogo and you'll come across a series of extraordinarily ambitious wearable devices promising to detect everything from your sleep patterns, to your stress levels, to the number of calories you've burned in the past hour. They've incited plenty of skepticism and the latest report from the Wall Street Journal shows why: the Apple Watch was initially intended as exactly that sort of multifunctional health-monitoring device, but the sensors available just weren't good enough. Heart activity, blood pressure, and stress levels were among the things Apple wanted to track with the Watch, however issues of complexity and reliability — such as getting accurate readings on users with hairy arms or dry skin — forced Apple into changing its plans."

 

So... yeah. It seems as though there always is a reason that things aren't what they should be for these companies.

My biggest issue is that you don't need such ridiculous sensors... why not a smooth running device with good battery life and amazing, immersive integration between products? 

 

Guess we have to wait.

 

Source: The Verge

[minibois]

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Change font color to automatic please.

It's too soon to get a smartwatch at the moment IMHO, because they have to evolve a whole lot still.

[Guest]

Damn, I expected this though as there are many factors to consider to ensure a sub-par product is not released. 

I'd never use mine as a health monitoring device anyway, more as a watch for fashion and general use with my phone.

[DIV1D3]

I still think companies are just tipping their toes into the water. They know it's nice and warm, but diving into the deep end is a little hasty. 

 

What I think companies should be investing more time and money into is USB butt plugs, and I'm sure @LinusTech would agree. 

[Thorium19]

I'm going to sit back and wait for a bit, let the second and third gen smartwatches roll in before I grab one for myself, as I can't stand having all these monitors on them, when all I want is a watch that can give me the time (duh!), notifications for emails, calls, texts etc. and allow me to send quick pre-programmed replies to them, all whilst being waterproof and having a battery that lasts 2 days. I really don't need a watch to tell me that my heart rate is too high, I think I'll notice when my chest is thumping like mad, and I certainly don't need to be informed how long I slept for, I know if I've had enough sleep or not.

[Sauron]

If Apple thinks the lack of sensors is the problem with the iwatch they are soiling the bed hard...

[Sidiox]

I'm going to sit back and wait for a bit, let the second and third gen smartwatches roll in before I grab one for myself, as I can't stand having all these monitors on them, when all I want is a watch that can give me the time (duh!), notifications for emails, calls, texts etc. and allow me to send quick pre-programmed replies to them, all whilst being waterproof and having a battery that lasts 2 days. I really don't need a watch to tell me that my heart rate is too high, I think I'll notice when my chest is thumping like mad, and I certainly don't need to be informed how long I slept for, I know if I've had enough sleep or not.

You want the Pebble it seems. It does all of that.

[Sidiox]

I'm going to sit back and wait for a bit, let the second and third gen smartwatches roll in before I grab one for myself, as I can't stand having all these monitors on them, when all I want is a watch that can give me the time (duh!), notifications for emails, calls, texts etc. and allow me to send quick pre-programmed replies to them, all whilst being waterproof and having a battery that lasts 2 days. I really don't need a watch to tell me that my heart rate is too high, I think I'll notice when my chest is thumping like mad, and I certainly don't need to be informed how long I slept for, I know if I've had enough sleep or not.

You want the Pebble it seems. It does all of that.

[TwistedDictator]

lol thanks for posting!

[Thorium19]

You want the Pebble it seems. It does all of that.

I like the pebble and would take one if offered, but a colour display or an overlaying display on a classic timepiece, as there have been concepts of, would be more my choice.

[Sidiox]

I like the pebble and would take one if offered, but a colour display or an overlaying display on a classic timepiece, as there have been concepts of, would be more my choice.

yeah that would be very nice. For now however the Pebble is the best choice. I already bought one, but I would advise you to indeed wait a little longer

[Toddwjp]

i feel like a flexible screen still needs to be made in a smart watch, because even if its only a couple of degrees in flex (eg 15) it would allow a much larger screen, even if it costs pixel density

[Prastupok]

There are much better ways they could have gone.

Tek Syndicate (not sure how you all feel about them on here ) put it best... Apple is very good at taking ingredients that are already there, dressing them up, and making a lovely product. As far as true innovation goes... They have a long way to go.

[SpaceCore]

There are much better ways they could have gone.

Tek Syndicate (not sure how you all feel about them on here ) put it best... Apple is very good at taking ingredients that are already there, dressing them up, and making a lovely product. As far as true innovation goes... They have a long way to go.

I'd call the leap in Music/smartphones innovative. It was thanks to Apple (although it was bound to happen, if not Apple then some other company)

in my opinion Apple was successful because it didn't compromise for their first release (ipod, then iphone)

if these companies ship smart watches that aren't 100% reliable, it might have a negative effect on the market. I wish everyone would stop taking their ideas from the Gaming Industry when it comes to software; release now, patch later. everyone wants to be first

[Prastupok]

I'd call the leap in Music/smartphones innovative. It was thanks to Apple (although it was bound to happen, if not Apple then some other company)

in my opinion Apple was successful because it didn't compromise for their first release (ipod, then iphone)

if these companies ship smart watches that aren't 100% reliable, it might have a negative effect on the market. I wish everyone would stop taking their ideas from the Gaming Industry when it comes to software; release now, patch later. everyone wants to be first

They may have brought it to the mainstream... But it wasn't their idea.

[SpaceCore]

They may have brought it to the mainstream... But it wasn't their idea.

yea its what I mean by "wanting to be first" bringing it to mainstream. because lets be honest, unless a product is brought to the mainstream it has very little chance of survival.

and if you're first, you would be able to (technically, although immoral) lock the market down with legal stuff. sad, but we live here

[Guest Kloaked]

There are much better ways they could have gone.

Tek Syndicate (not sure how you all feel about them on here ) put it best... Apple is very good at taking ingredients that are already there, dressing them up, and making a lovely product. As far as true innovation goes... They have a long way to go.

I'm personally not fond of them anymore due to <reasons>. They're right in a sense, but when Apple does something they make sure they get it closer to 100% right than everyone else the first time. So you'll likely never see Apple release some piece of shit device that doesn't do what it says it does like some devices on kickstarter and indiegogo.

Before someone yells at me about the iPhone or something stupid, I'll just go ahead and tell you to kindly shut the fuck up. Apple makes good stuff. No I don't own any of their products, but they do make some nice stuff and it all works.

[Prastupok]

Kloaked

I agree. I'm not exactly partial to them... But I own several iPads and I still have a 2012 macbook pro. They are top notch at least aesthetically. The logic board on that model had serious issues.

[snowComet]

The Apple Watch has been long rumored to have censors to track user's health and fitness data, but in a recent article from Wall Street Journal, it was reported that these features may be dropped due to consistency issue.

 

There are rumors that the Apple Watch has sensors which measured the conductivity of skin, to detect stress levels and heart-rate monitoring similar to an electrocardiogram, and Apple was experimenting different ways to detect blood pressure and blood oxygen level. But according to the article, the skin conductivity features didn't perform well with people who had hairy arms or dry skin, and results would vary depends on how tight or loose the Watch was worn on users' wrists.

 

Besides, the article also stated Apple was worried about the legal issues with the health tracking features, as if Apple decided to use the health data to provide "health or behavioral advice", they need to seek approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other regulators. Thus Apple was reported to change the focus of the device from health-related to a more general do-everything product. 

 

Although the health features may drop in the first gen Apple Watch, the article also stated these features could be featured in future generations of the Apple Watch.

 

http://www.macrumors.com/2015/02/16/apple-watch-original-health-features/

 

http://www.wsj.com/articles/challenge-of-apple-watch-defining-its-purpose-1424133615

[Dredgy]

Couldn't really care as the first gen product isn't going to be great anyway. But seems odd given Tim Cook's personal passion for health and fitness.

[Prastupok]

-snip-

 

The blood pressure cuff on the wrist thing is nothing new, but they don't have the ability to make it small enough. O₂ sensors aren't large, but being able to compute the data (from both) is very difficult.

[Victorious Secret]

The blood pressure cuff on the wrist thing is nothing new, but they don't have the ability to make it small enough. O₂ sensors aren't large, but being able to compute the data (from both) is very difficult.

 

Exactly. People are going to turn this into a "DAE APPLE IS SHITE LOLOL" but the simple fact is the sensors they want to include simply aren't compact enough to fit into a watch. Thats it. There is no conspiracy here. 

Apple either fails entirely or they nail it. They don't half ass two things, they whole ass one thing. 

[Techteen14]

I want a smartwatch to:

Tell time

Give me actionable notifications on my wrist

Let me access any information using my voice (i.e. Google Search)

Make NFC payments

Have a bright, round, high-resolution, color screen with auto brightness

Let me send texts with my voice

Look good

The Moto 360 meets all those criteria except 4 and the third part of 5. I will buy a smartwatch once a watch comes out that meets all those criteria.

Apple focuses too much on apps with their Watch. I don't want to use eBay in my wrist, or browse the web, or even use maps unless it's a situation when I can't be holding my phone to look at the map (running, biking, driving etc). Android Wear is sorta guilty of this too, with calculators, calendars and expense managers.

[euniqe]

It's just a watch. 

 

 

Try and make a digital watch before you try and make a watch-sized iPhone. Can't run before you can walk.

[Guest Kloaked]

they whole ass one thing.

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