The next tech battleground may be on your wrist, as major device makers prepare to introduce smartwatches. Research firm Canalys is predicting a 900 percent growth in smartwatch shipments next year, jumping from 500,000 units this year to 5 million in 2014. Who’s going to be making the devices An easier question to answer might be: Who isn’t Companies with announced or rumored smartwatches include Sony, Apple, Microsoft, Google and Dell.
Sony is the current smartwatch sales leader, with a refreshed version expected in September. Google’s Motorola subsidiary already has the MotoACTV and is rumored to be working on a completely new product, perhaps building on what the company has learned from Google Glass. Microsoft is rumored to be working on a smartwatch that connects directly to the web with no need for a smartphone nearby. Apple’s iWatch is also rumored, with the company even filing a trademark on the name.
One thing that is a near-certainty: Games will be an important product category on smartwatches, if not the leading category. That’s been true with every other multipurpose information processing device introduced in the last few decades, and it’s unlikely to change now. The introduction of a new device category is a terrific opportunity for a developer with a great game to generate substantial press and a market-leading position. We will probably see some new smartwatches this fall from major companies –and any new smartwatch will probably have a game on it if an App Store of some kind is included.
Source: GigaOm
