Comment by zamalek | Hacker News Reader

Comment by zamalek | Hacker News Reader

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> too much of a gadget

I thought about it quite a bit before the launch and decided against it. The reason is the same reason I haven't gone for any of these: AW is putting all its effort into being something that it's not (a fashionable watch) instead of being the best of what it is (wearable arm tech).

The watch started out as a utility on the arm and evolved into the time masterpiece or fashion piece that it is today. These 'watches' are attempting to skip all of that evolution instead of defiantly re-evaluating what a modern utility on the arm could be.

I'm personally in agreement with the author but not for the same reasons. I think the AW, Android Gear and what-have-you are definitely going to fizzle out in face of some future revolutionary device, possibly before then: people are going to grudgingly realize that they have a phone in their pocket and that they don't need another one on their arm.

I agree. I wanted a PiP Boy 3000[1]. Apple delivered another piece of wrist jewelry, of which there are far more compelling options in the market.

I'd have camped out overnight for something like this: http://toddham.com/blog/iwatch-concept/

1) http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Pip-Boy_3000

> I'd have camped out overnight for something like this

That's technology! Exactly the type of revolution I was implying.

The problem of "more capability" is that everyone has a smartphone in their pocket. Any interaction that lasts more than 2-3 taps, or 2 seconds, is a failure because the user would have been better served by retrieving their phone. (niche "phone not accessible" situations notwithstanding)

The right answer to wearable tech is less interaction. The value has to be in the device presenting you the right 1-second functionality at the right time. (ala notification triage, Apple Pay, and the laundry list of Home Kit integration that's still TBD)

Yeah, I feel the same way, too. The watches for iOS and Android really aren't anything more than an extra notification device for me ... my phone already does that, and arguably too much. My $24 Mickey Mouse watch still tells the time when I'm not staring at my phone, and it didn't cost me $400 like the Apple Watch would.

The best features on the Watch don't exist yet. They're the passive sensors, like the heart rate monitor. I think the best Watch is yet to come, if they can make these breakthroughs in body sensors like blood glucose.

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