The $76bn wearable technology market and the new Timex smart watch
Aoû 28, 2014
Analysts IDTechEx are unique in having six up-to-date reports with ten year forecasts on the wearable technology market. It is set to be over $76 billion in 2025, with wearable electronics for animals being a significant minor part. The IDTechEx reports variously cover wearable technology in general and for animals in particular. Then there are reports on e-textiles/e-fibers and the closely linked topics of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the Internet of People (IoP).
One prediction has been that devices that work through a phone in your pocket are only transition products as we await devices that have independent mobile phone and other functionality but are not a nightmare to use. For example, it has been pointed out that smart wristwatches submit you to something like assembling an ocean liner through a keyhole. Google Glass is a useful step forward with new, simple, intuitive human interfaces. However a mobile phone it is not, though it is WiFi enabled. Little known names have made wristwatches into, usually large and heavy mobile phone but they have found it tough to sell many. Now a big name, Timex, has entered the fray with the Ironman One GPS+, and Sony, Google and others are rumored to be near to following.
So is the Timex watch the next big thing? Dr Peter Harrop, leader of the IDTechEx wearable technology team, advises;
"Timex is pricing this watch high and clearly targeting fitness and adventurer markets not mainstream. For Timex this could well become a profitable niche business with the watch having valuable features for the targeted users such as sending location coordinates to a chosen party in emergency and acting as a fitness monitor. However it lacks the new simpler human interfaces demanded by most of us for general mobile phone and tablet types of use. It is a step in the right direction and Timex is to be congratulated for that. However, for mainstream use, it is not even clear what format will dominate - internet enabled glasses, wrist-wear or something else? And what will be the most acceptable human interfaces? The market is in ferment. It is an exciting time."
For more information see the following IDTechEx reports:
Top image: Timex Ironman One GPS+
Source: Timex