A daily digest of IT news, curated from blogs, forums and news sites around the web each morning. We highlight the key commentary and demystify the real story.
Psst! Can I interest you in a BlackBerry watch? We're told that the RIM platform might get a Dick Tracy accessory "soon". In IT Blogwatch, bloggers check their wrists.
Your humble blogwatcher selected these bloggy morsels for your enjoyment. Not to mention a Swedish VW spot...
Kevin Michaluk is excited:
Remember that story about a Bluetooth BlackBerry Watch accessory being in the works? ... Today we can say with certainty that it's happening, it's getting announced soon, and ... [these images] are actual renderings of the real deal. ... It features an OLED screen ... to show you notifications and previews of messages arriving. ... We're thinking it's going to be branded the inPulse smartwatch.
...
The intent of the watch isn't to replace using your BlackBerry. ... Rather, it's for those occasions when your BlackBerry is tucked away. ... Now you can quickly glance over at your inPulse and decide if you need to pull out your BlackBerry to address that message now or if it can wait fifteen minutes you're free. ... .
Chris Scott Barr makes the obvious fictional detective reference:
Ever since Dick Tracy, people have been wanting phones on their wrist. ... One of the biggest hurdles in crafting the perfect wrist-mounted phone is that its tough to cram everything you need in a tiny watch. So what if you had your regular phone, and the watch merely complemented it, and gave you easy access to core functions?
...
The inPulse ... doesnt appear to give you control of your BlackBerry per se, but it does do something rather useful. When a new message (or perhaps phone call?) comes in, it will appear on the screen of your watch. This lets you check the message with just a quick glance to your wrist. If its nothing important, you can go about your business. ... If this thing could let you make phone calls, Id say its the perfect accessory.
The so-called BlackBerry Wristwatch would be something akin to the Palm Foleo, the ill-fated netbook that required a Palm Treo for Internet connectivity. Why? Because here you have a wristwatch cell phone with no built-in cell phone (just as the Foleo was a netbook with no "net" beyond what was provided via a nearby Palm phone.)
...
On the other hand, this is RIM we're talking about. Like the iPhone, the BlackBerry is a religion, with a devoted following. I can easily see die-hard CrackBerry addicts clamoring for a peripheral device for their phones.
James Kendrick runs with it:
Admit it, when you see photos of watch phones you get all weak in the knees. OK, maybe thats just me, but one day someone is going to make a watch phone that is something wed actually want to wear in public. ... [It's] vying for a place on the wrists of crackberries everywhere. This watch is reported to be a concept produced by none other than Research In Motion itself, based on the BlackBerry platform.
But Chris Ziegler sounds a note of caution:
As far as we know, Sony Ericsson's watches -- which arguably look nicer on account of their analog / digital hybrid design -- haven't been hot sellers, but who knows, maybe RIM's got some neat tricks up its sleeve with this one.
Todd Ogasawara agrees:
There are some ideas that never die even though they don't seem to succeed after many tries. The phone built into a watch concept is usually credited to cartoonist Chester Gould. ... I recall seeing a gigantic watch with a built-in phone at Comdex from, if I recall correctly, Seiko at Comdex in 1999. And, I saw a prototype Bluetooth watch accessory that worked with Windows Mobile smartphones a few years ago.
...
I've been watching [it] being reimplemented in various forms for a decade now. I hope this idea takes off someday because I want one for either the iPhone or Windows Mobile phone (or maybe an Android).
Aaron Baker quips:
Now, I'll have an excuse to "check the time" more often.
Richi Jennings is an independent analyst/consultant, specializing in blogging, email, and security. A cross-functional IT geek since 1985, he is also an analyst at Ferris Research. You can follow him as @richi on Twitter, or richij on FriendFeed, pretend to be richij's friend on Facebook, or just use good old email: itblogwatch@richij.com.
