7 ms·

Matt Cutts: One of the more fun gadgets I've been playing with lately…

116 points by pg 15y ago

hndl 15y ago
inPulse should consider teaming up with ifttt. Now that'll be amazing!
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
kevinburke 15y ago
Can someone post the text of this article here, for those of us on mobile phones who don't want to log in, or don't have Google accounts? Thanks
- grecy 15y ago
  "One of the more fun gadgets I've been playing with lately is the inPulse smartwatch. It can silently buzz when you get a new email and show a preview of your email. It's has an API that works with many Android and Blackberry phones, so you can program your own custom apps to do things like move forward in a PowerPoint presentation or show stock quotes. It's pretty geeky, but in a very space-age way. I can see a lot of people wearing watches like this in a few years." With a link to: http://www.getinpulse.com/ http://www.getinpulse.com/
- amirmc 15y ago
  edit: already posted. Odd that a public G+ post is not visible from a mobile device without logging into Google.
  - falling 15y ago
    without logging into Google and creating a public profile if you don’t have one.
jey 15y ago
If the iPad is a hip flask[1], this must be an intravenous line. (And soon we'll have augmented reality glasses providing a central line to the heart.) 1. http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2012/03/10/ipad-as-hip-flask/ http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2012/03/10/ipad-as-hip-flask/
amirmc 15y ago
I already have my phone in my pocket and I expect it to do all the things mentioned (via interacting directly). I also have too many devices that beep/vibrate at me so another one that does alerts seems unnecessary (one in my pocket and another on my wrist?). If it was voice controlled however, that would be cool. The range of interaction would be far greater. note: I gave up wearing wristwatches some time ago, if I did still wear them, this would be pretty interesting.
- vibrunazo 15y ago
  What if you could replace the device in your pocket with one in your wrist? I would love to free a pocket slot. And a Bluetooth headset could take care of phone calls.
  - ConstantineXVI 15y ago
    Screw the headset, put a speaker in your palm. Add in a camera, NFC, etc. and move the display to the other side, we have a smart glove.
    - vibrunazo 15y ago
      "Talk to the hand"
- corin_ 15y ago
  I'm not a huge fan of inPulse - not because of what they do, which I think is awesome, but because of their size - if I could get the watch of my preference (random example, but here's the kind of watch I personally like http://s7ondemand4.scene7.com/is/image/Signet/8349614?$detail475$ http://s7ondemand4.scene7.com/is/image/Signet/8349614?$detai... ) with a few of these features, such as vibration in patterns to show the difference between a call, an SMS, an email... then I'd jump all over it. As to the screen, I can see many people in the near future being sold on this - hell, it's a cool thing in principle, as a kid my two favourite watches (one of which I had), were one that was a calculator (http://retrothing.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83452989a69e201156f35715b970b-800wi http://retrothing.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83452989a69e201156f357...) and one that was a TV remote (http://www.calculatorwatch.net/wp-content/uploads/Digital-calculator-watch-tv-remote.jpg http://www.calculatorwatch.net/wp-content/uploads/Digital-ca...), and many of my friends thought they were awesome too. Personally I'm quite happy taking my phone out to actually read stuff - though on a small watch a display for calls would be great if/when using a wireless headset.
ecommercematt 15y ago
Interesting that this works with Blackberry and not iOS devices. Is this because the app store specifically rejected their app? If so, why?
- dgl 15y ago
  Most likely that Apple don't provide access to the Bluetooth layer; there's also no bluetooth file transfer apps available.
- thought_alarm 15y ago
  It meshes well with the way Blackberry handles incoming messages (email, IM, etc.) and the Blackberry has a public API to allow 3rd-party access to such incoming messages. iOS has no such public API, and the various types of incoming messages (email/SMS/IM) are not unified in iOS like they are on BB. It's always been a weak spot on iOS. The iOS 5 notification center improves the situation quite a bit, but there's still no public API to enable a device like this watch.
spacesuit 15y ago
I bought one of these during the sale they had last year. I'm running CyanogenMod (Android) and everything works as described. It's most useful when looking at one's phone would be considered rude, but looking at one's watch would not. I haven't built any faces for mine (yet), but having the watch definitely makes me want to learn more Python/C.
mindslight 15y ago
It could be quite interesting to replace the medium-sized smartphone (that doesn't really want to be in your pocket, run a real OS, or accept much user input) with a watch+earbud+netbook combo. Stow the netbook in a small bag, controlled with the body-based devices for on-the-go communication, and whip out the actual computer to get something done/kill time/etc.
ldayley 15y ago
"Siri, read me my email."
johnyzee 15y ago
I have long been convinced that smart watches are the next huge thing. For my money they can even be a phone, optionally with a detachable bluetooth ear plug/mic. I don't know if they will go full monty and get big fold-out screens and physical keyboards but I could see it, particularly for the geekier among us. That, and AR headgear. People already wear wristwatches and glasses so it should be a smooth transition.
orblivion 15y ago
I've wanted something like this for a while, but I'm worried that easier access to notifications is going to just make me more neurotic.
praptak 15y ago
The cool factor is definitely there but I am not buying one of these devices unless they figured out how to charge it without any help from the user. I do not want another device I have to remember to connect to its charger and given its functionality I don't think its battery life is stellar.
Steko 15y ago
The global watch industry is pushing $50 billion and very few people wear them anymore. With the mobile revolution this category is really ripe for a complete overhaul. This isn't it but it's one of several starts in that direction. People talk about how phones are getting more powerful processors each year and extrapolate that out but what's also going to happen is that the current slab phone paradigm will be challenged strongly by a combination of lighter tablets at the high end and even more miniaturized devices -- glasses, watches, headsets, armbands, etc. on the low end. Advances in LTE networks mean your mobile chip really only has to be good enough to decode audio and video at a low ping. Those chips are going to get tiny indeed and run extremely power light. 3D printing advances continue to astonish, check out this 330x130x100µm3 racecar: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y0j191H0kY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y0j191H0kY Voice and Kinect-style motion controls are rapidly maturing as alternatives to touch input. Eye movement and thought control perhaps not that far off. Flexible screens, projection and very high density VR screens are also maturing and offer alternatives to the current slab phone screen.
- InclinedPlane 15y ago
  Something that's already possible today: an ensemble for mobile computing instead of a monolithic device. You have a 4G wifi hotspot, a bluetooth headset, a tablet, etc. I'm curious how you could evolve that idea. Maybe with wearable computers, maybe something else.
  - Steko 15y ago
    My wife took my 3GS iphone last year when she lost her phone and for a few months I used a 3G iPad and a prepaid dumbphone we had lying around. It was a surprisingly decent setup. Because I do so much of my phoning on Skype the actual monthly charges were about half of what they were with my 3GS plan. One thing I realized was the iPad plan is the dumb pipe plan we've all been waiting for. It's really a neat trojan horse Apple's set up with the carriers for some future disruption like an iphone nano where the bluetooth headset is the whole phone and they can sell the thing for $149 without a subsidy.
- rogerbinns 15y ago
unicornporn 15y ago
Has anyone else noticed these posts can't be viewed on mobile devices without logging in to a Google account? I'm on latest Opera Mobile for Android.
nabilt 15y ago
Here is a 15 min talk were the founder talks about the challenges of building a hardware startup http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afH8KGv0W24 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afH8KGv0W24
KeyBoardG 15y ago
This is a pretty neat gadget, but the last thing I want is another email distraction while I'm trying to work.
pieter 15y ago
Anyone got a mirror of the contents? It requires me to log into Google before I can read the post.
- joenathan 15y ago
  Screenshot http://i.minus.com/iPG7fjox3BalE.PNG http://i.minus.com/iPG7fjox3BalE.PNG
- mcpherrinm 15y ago
  Matt Cutts posts: One of the more fun gadgets I've been playing with lately is the inPulse smartwatch. It can silently buzz when you get a new email and show a preview of your email. It's has an API that works with many Android and Blackberry phones, so you can program your own custom apps to do things like move forward in a PowerPoint presentation or show stock quotes. It's pretty geeky, but in a very space-age way. I can see a lot of people wearing watches like this in a few years. http://www.getinpulse.com/ http://www.getinpulse.com/
dminor 15y ago
I'd pay lots of money for a stylish watch or bracelet for my wife that would alert her to incoming calls and texts. She (like many women) keeps her phone in her purse and rarely answers because she doesn't know it's ringing.
- seclorum 15y ago
  Maybe she needs an HTC Rhyme phone, with its dongle^Wcharm thingy: https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&hl=en&source=hp&biw=1333&bih=665&q=htc+rhyme+charm&g https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&hl=en&source=... Its a dongle^Wcharm thingy that plugs into the phone and acts as visible alert for phone state while its buried in a purse. Pretty funny toy.
  - mclin 15y ago
    Wow, genius. Good point, it doesn't need to be wireless to look good.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
- stjarnljuset 15y ago
  This is exactly my use case and I was excited when I saw inPulse posted on HN a couple months ago [0] until I realized my phone can't run cyanogenmod. Also, at the time I thought $200 (for the black watch) was a bit expensive until I found out that my coworkers are wearing $600 watches. [0] http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3290884 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3290884
- kalleboo 15y ago
  The Sony Ericsson MBW200-series are probably the least "techy-looking" bluetooth watches http://www.inglue.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/sony-ericsson-mbw-200-2-08.jpg http://www.inglue.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/sony-ericss...
- nl 15y ago
  This one is $18: http://www.dealextreme.com/p/bluetooth-incoming-call-vibrate-alert-bracelet-black-25723 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/bluetooth-incoming-call-vibrate... $35: http://www.dealextreme.com/p/stylish-bluetooth-v2-1-bracelet-w-vibration-function-digital-time-white-81187 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/stylish-bluetooth-v2-1-bracelet... $35 (in red) http://www.dealextreme.com/p/stylish-bluetooth-v2-1-bracelet-w-vibration-function-digital-time-red-81189 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/stylish-bluetooth-v2-1-bracelet... As a (man's) watch, $54: http://www.dealextreme.com/p/0-8-oled-bluetooth-wrist-watch-with-caller-id-display-and-vibrating-alert-23915 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/0-8-oled-bluetooth-wrist-watch-... I'm sure there are more on Alibaba.
ChuckMcM 15y ago
Would be awesome Wish they had Win7/64 support. Need to push on Broadcom for that.
Jimmie 15y ago
Where can I get a Matt Cutts of my very own? I like fun gadgets too.
FiddlerClamp 15y ago
There are three or four watches out, and probably more in the planning phase. InPulse, WIMM (http://www.wimm.com/platform-concepts.html http://www.wimm.com/platform-concepts.html) are the two that spring to mind...anyone have any idea which is better in terms of battery life, small size, expandability? Edit: Sony SmartWatch should be coming soon, too (http://androidandme.com/2012/01/news/hands-on-with-the-sony-smartwatch/ http://androidandme.com/2012/01/news/hands-on-with-the-sony-...).
- ratzinho87 15y ago
  There's the Sony LiveView (http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/accessories/liveview/ http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/accessories/liv...), which looks more feature-rich than the InPulse.
highace 15y ago
One of my friends has put an ipod nano into a watch strap casing. It looks stylish and works well too. I just wish you could build apps for them, there would be a huge market for that surely.
caublestone 15y ago
This is really cool and will be useful for a niche, let's not make it out to be something else. A watch is a piece of fashion first. His assessment as pretty nerdy is correct - this isn't for the main stream user to parade around. "Hey I made this hat that can send text messages if you just think about it!" "But I'm still wearing that ugly hat"
rufugee 15y ago
I'm looking forward to the day someone puts a full-fledged Android device with a GPS capable of running most apps on my wrist. I'm an avid runner and would love to be able to use something like Runtastic and listen to podcasts without carrying my Galaxy Nexus on my arm...
- dredmorbius 15y ago
  A recent (few months ago) flight neighbor sported just such a thing. A Motorola-designed Android watch. Rather large and clunky, but it could do some apps. He was a Motorola engineer. This is where Steve Jobs would have a coronary. It's a device that screams "Tech!!!!!" (yes, with five bangs), not "style". Wouldn't swear on a large stack of bibles, but I might use strong language on a small pile of Jesus comics, that this was the MOTOACTV: http://phandroid.com/2011/10/18/motorola-actv-a-smart-fitness-watch/ http://phandroid.com/2011/10/18/motorola-actv-a-smart-fitnes...
LargeWu 15y ago
They were originally going to call it the Distract-o-Matic, but I guess inPulse has a nice ring to it too.
mark_integerdsv 15y ago
Does anyOne remember The Orb? http://www.hybratech.com/products/orb/ http://www.hybratech.com/products/orb/ ...I waited most of 2010 to see this thing hit the shelves but gave up eventually when it started looking like vapourware. Not certain what the current status is.

116 points by pg 15y ago

hndl 15y ago

inPulse should consider teaming up with ifttt. Now that'll be amazing!

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]

kevinburke 15y ago

Can someone post the text of this article here, for those of us on mobile phones who don't want to log in, or don't have Google accounts? Thanks

grecy 15y ago
"One of the more fun gadgets I've been playing with lately is the inPulse smartwatch. It can silently buzz when you get a new email and show a preview of your email. It's has an API that works with many Android and Blackberry phones, so you can program your own custom apps to do things like move forward in a PowerPoint presentation or show stock quotes. It's pretty geeky, but in a very space-age way. I can see a lot of people wearing watches like this in a few years." With a link to: http://www.getinpulse.com/ http://www.getinpulse.com/
amirmc 15y ago
edit: already posted. Odd that a public G+ post is not visible from a mobile device without logging into Google.
- falling 15y ago
  without logging into Google and creating a public profile if you don’t have one.

jey 15y ago

If the iPad is a hip flask[1], this must be an intravenous line. (And soon we'll have augmented reality glasses providing a central line to the heart.) 1. http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2012/03/10/ipad-as-hip-flask/ http://www.johndcook.com/blog/2012/03/10/ipad-as-hip-flask/

amirmc 15y ago

I already have my phone in my pocket and I expect it to do all the things mentioned (via interacting directly). I also have too many devices that beep/vibrate at me so another one that does alerts seems unnecessary (one in my pocket and another on my wrist?). If it was voice controlled however, that would be cool. The range of interaction would be far greater. note: I gave up wearing wristwatches some time ago, if I did still wear them, this would be pretty interesting.

vibrunazo 15y ago
What if you could replace the device in your pocket with one in your wrist? I would love to free a pocket slot. And a Bluetooth headset could take care of phone calls.
- ConstantineXVI 15y ago
  Screw the headset, put a speaker in your palm. Add in a camera, NFC, etc. and move the display to the other side, we have a smart glove.
  - vibrunazo 15y ago
    "Talk to the hand"
corin_ 15y ago
I'm not a huge fan of inPulse - not because of what they do, which I think is awesome, but because of their size - if I could get the watch of my preference (random example, but here's the kind of watch I personally like http://s7ondemand4.scene7.com/is/image/Signet/8349614?$detail475$ http://s7ondemand4.scene7.com/is/image/Signet/8349614?$detai... ) with a few of these features, such as vibration in patterns to show the difference between a call, an SMS, an email... then I'd jump all over it. As to the screen, I can see many people in the near future being sold on this - hell, it's a cool thing in principle, as a kid my two favourite watches (one of which I had), were one that was a calculator (http://retrothing.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83452989a69e201156f35715b970b-800wi http://retrothing.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83452989a69e201156f357...) and one that was a TV remote (http://www.calculatorwatch.net/wp-content/uploads/Digital-calculator-watch-tv-remote.jpg http://www.calculatorwatch.net/wp-content/uploads/Digital-ca...), and many of my friends thought they were awesome too. Personally I'm quite happy taking my phone out to actually read stuff - though on a small watch a display for calls would be great if/when using a wireless headset.

ecommercematt 15y ago

Interesting that this works with Blackberry and not iOS devices. Is this because the app store specifically rejected their app? If so, why?

dgl 15y ago
Most likely that Apple don't provide access to the Bluetooth layer; there's also no bluetooth file transfer apps available.
thought_alarm 15y ago
It meshes well with the way Blackberry handles incoming messages (email, IM, etc.) and the Blackberry has a public API to allow 3rd-party access to such incoming messages. iOS has no such public API, and the various types of incoming messages (email/SMS/IM) are not unified in iOS like they are on BB. It's always been a weak spot on iOS. The iOS 5 notification center improves the situation quite a bit, but there's still no public API to enable a device like this watch.

spacesuit 15y ago

I bought one of these during the sale they had last year. I'm running CyanogenMod (Android) and everything works as described. It's most useful when looking at one's phone would be considered rude, but looking at one's watch would not. I haven't built any faces for mine (yet), but having the watch definitely makes me want to learn more Python/C.

mindslight 15y ago

It could be quite interesting to replace the medium-sized smartphone (that doesn't really want to be in your pocket, run a real OS, or accept much user input) with a watch+earbud+netbook combo. Stow the netbook in a small bag, controlled with the body-based devices for on-the-go communication, and whip out the actual computer to get something done/kill time/etc.

ldayley 15y ago

"Siri, read me my email."

johnyzee 15y ago

I have long been convinced that smart watches are the next huge thing. For my money they can even be a phone, optionally with a detachable bluetooth ear plug/mic. I don't know if they will go full monty and get big fold-out screens and physical keyboards but I could see it, particularly for the geekier among us. That, and AR headgear. People already wear wristwatches and glasses so it should be a smooth transition.

orblivion 15y ago

I've wanted something like this for a while, but I'm worried that easier access to notifications is going to just make me more neurotic.

praptak 15y ago

The cool factor is definitely there but I am not buying one of these devices unless they figured out how to charge it without any help from the user. I do not want another device I have to remember to connect to its charger and given its functionality I don't think its battery life is stellar.

Steko 15y ago

The global watch industry is pushing $50 billion and very few people wear them anymore. With the mobile revolution this category is really ripe for a complete overhaul. This isn't it but it's one of several starts in that direction. People talk about how phones are getting more powerful processors each year and extrapolate that out but what's also going to happen is that the current slab phone paradigm will be challenged strongly by a combination of lighter tablets at the high end and even more miniaturized devices -- glasses, watches, headsets, armbands, etc. on the low end. Advances in LTE networks mean your mobile chip really only has to be good enough to decode audio and video at a low ping. Those chips are going to get tiny indeed and run extremely power light. 3D printing advances continue to astonish, check out this 330x130x100µm3 racecar: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y0j191H0kY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y0j191H0kY Voice and Kinect-style motion controls are rapidly maturing as alternatives to touch input. Eye movement and thought control perhaps not that far off. Flexible screens, projection and very high density VR screens are also maturing and offer alternatives to the current slab phone screen.

InclinedPlane 15y ago
Something that's already possible today: an ensemble for mobile computing instead of a monolithic device. You have a 4G wifi hotspot, a bluetooth headset, a tablet, etc. I'm curious how you could evolve that idea. Maybe with wearable computers, maybe something else.
- Steko 15y ago
  My wife took my 3GS iphone last year when she lost her phone and for a few months I used a 3G iPad and a prepaid dumbphone we had lying around. It was a surprisingly decent setup. Because I do so much of my phoning on Skype the actual monthly charges were about half of what they were with my 3GS plan. One thing I realized was the iPad plan is the dumb pipe plan we've all been waiting for. It's really a neat trojan horse Apple's set up with the carriers for some future disruption like an iphone nano where the bluetooth headset is the whole phone and they can sell the thing for $149 without a subsidy.
rogerbinns 15y ago

unicornporn 15y ago

Has anyone else noticed these posts can't be viewed on mobile devices without logging in to a Google account? I'm on latest Opera Mobile for Android.

nabilt 15y ago

Here is a 15 min talk were the founder talks about the challenges of building a hardware startup http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afH8KGv0W24 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afH8KGv0W24

KeyBoardG 15y ago

This is a pretty neat gadget, but the last thing I want is another email distraction while I'm trying to work.

pieter 15y ago

Anyone got a mirror of the contents? It requires me to log into Google before I can read the post.

joenathan 15y ago
Screenshot http://i.minus.com/iPG7fjox3BalE.PNG http://i.minus.com/iPG7fjox3BalE.PNG
mcpherrinm 15y ago
Matt Cutts posts: One of the more fun gadgets I've been playing with lately is the inPulse smartwatch. It can silently buzz when you get a new email and show a preview of your email. It's has an API that works with many Android and Blackberry phones, so you can program your own custom apps to do things like move forward in a PowerPoint presentation or show stock quotes. It's pretty geeky, but in a very space-age way. I can see a lot of people wearing watches like this in a few years. http://www.getinpulse.com/ http://www.getinpulse.com/

dminor 15y ago

I'd pay lots of money for a stylish watch or bracelet for my wife that would alert her to incoming calls and texts. She (like many women) keeps her phone in her purse and rarely answers because she doesn't know it's ringing.

seclorum 15y ago
Maybe she needs an HTC Rhyme phone, with its dongle^Wcharm thingy: https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&hl=en&source=hp&biw=1333&bih=665&q=htc+rhyme+charm&g https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&hl=en&source=... Its a dongle^Wcharm thingy that plugs into the phone and acts as visible alert for phone state while its buried in a purse. Pretty funny toy.
- mclin 15y ago
  Wow, genius. Good point, it doesn't need to be wireless to look good.
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
stjarnljuset 15y ago
This is exactly my use case and I was excited when I saw inPulse posted on HN a couple months ago [0] until I realized my phone can't run cyanogenmod. Also, at the time I thought $200 (for the black watch) was a bit expensive until I found out that my coworkers are wearing $600 watches. [0] http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3290884 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3290884
kalleboo 15y ago
The Sony Ericsson MBW200-series are probably the least "techy-looking" bluetooth watches http://www.inglue.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/sony-ericsson-mbw-200-2-08.jpg http://www.inglue.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/sony-ericss...
nl 15y ago
This one is $18: http://www.dealextreme.com/p/bluetooth-incoming-call-vibrate-alert-bracelet-black-25723 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/bluetooth-incoming-call-vibrate... $35: http://www.dealextreme.com/p/stylish-bluetooth-v2-1-bracelet-w-vibration-function-digital-time-white-81187 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/stylish-bluetooth-v2-1-bracelet... $35 (in red) http://www.dealextreme.com/p/stylish-bluetooth-v2-1-bracelet-w-vibration-function-digital-time-red-81189 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/stylish-bluetooth-v2-1-bracelet... As a (man's) watch, $54: http://www.dealextreme.com/p/0-8-oled-bluetooth-wrist-watch-with-caller-id-display-and-vibrating-alert-23915 http://www.dealextreme.com/p/0-8-oled-bluetooth-wrist-watch-... I'm sure there are more on Alibaba.

ChuckMcM 15y ago

Would be awesome Wish they had Win7/64 support. Need to push on Broadcom for that.

Jimmie 15y ago

Where can I get a Matt Cutts of my very own? I like fun gadgets too.

FiddlerClamp 15y ago

There are three or four watches out, and probably more in the planning phase. InPulse, WIMM (http://www.wimm.com/platform-concepts.html http://www.wimm.com/platform-concepts.html) are the two that spring to mind...anyone have any idea which is better in terms of battery life, small size, expandability? Edit: Sony SmartWatch should be coming soon, too (http://androidandme.com/2012/01/news/hands-on-with-the-sony-smartwatch/ http://androidandme.com/2012/01/news/hands-on-with-the-sony-...).

ratzinho87 15y ago
There's the Sony LiveView (http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/accessories/liveview/ http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/accessories/liv...), which looks more feature-rich than the InPulse.

highace 15y ago

One of my friends has put an ipod nano into a watch strap casing. It looks stylish and works well too. I just wish you could build apps for them, there would be a huge market for that surely.

caublestone 15y ago

This is really cool and will be useful for a niche, let's not make it out to be something else. A watch is a piece of fashion first. His assessment as pretty nerdy is correct - this isn't for the main stream user to parade around. "Hey I made this hat that can send text messages if you just think about it!" "But I'm still wearing that ugly hat"

rufugee 15y ago

I'm looking forward to the day someone puts a full-fledged Android device with a GPS capable of running most apps on my wrist. I'm an avid runner and would love to be able to use something like Runtastic and listen to podcasts without carrying my Galaxy Nexus on my arm...

dredmorbius 15y ago
A recent (few months ago) flight neighbor sported just such a thing. A Motorola-designed Android watch. Rather large and clunky, but it could do some apps. He was a Motorola engineer. This is where Steve Jobs would have a coronary. It's a device that screams "Tech!!!!!" (yes, with five bangs), not "style". Wouldn't swear on a large stack of bibles, but I might use strong language on a small pile of Jesus comics, that this was the MOTOACTV: http://phandroid.com/2011/10/18/motorola-actv-a-smart-fitness-watch/ http://phandroid.com/2011/10/18/motorola-actv-a-smart-fitnes...

LargeWu 15y ago

They were originally going to call it the Distract-o-Matic, but I guess inPulse has a nice ring to it too.

mark_integerdsv 15y ago

Does anyOne remember The Orb? http://www.hybratech.com/products/orb/ http://www.hybratech.com/products/orb/ ...I waited most of 2010 to see this thing hit the shelves but gave up eventually when it started looking like vapourware. Not certain what the current status is.