Would you wear a Smart Watch?

Popular culture has for decades framed the concept of a computer system that can be used on the wrist as the pinnacle of technological fantasy. As shown by new TELEVISION ads for Samsung's Galaxy Gear, the wise watch has already been brought to life on display numerous times– in The Jetsons, Star Trek, Inspector Gadget, Dick Tracy and Knight Rider, among others versions.


The Korean tech giant's ad project has actually been effective, with one of the areas on YouTube recently reaching 9.4 million views in 12 days and accomplishing a 92 percent favorable rating. Even if the item's tagline wasn't clearly mentioned in the ad, the point is apparent: After all these years, it's finally real.

Sony's SmartWatch didn't influence poetry when it was launched either, and with Apple's smart watch on the way, it will soon become clear whether this is a case of Samsung slipping up in execution, or if the principle was better matched for imaginary worlds.

While the first generation of smart watches isn't really best, the principle is solid, said IT analyst Rob Enderle. The trend in mobile phones is to go bigger, as seen with the success of tablets and gadgets like the Galaxy Note. Even the iPhone is falling back a little with its once-large but now considered modest-size screen, Enderle said. "As you start getting into larger phones, it gets really unpleasant to pull things out and chat on it," he stated. "So with the watch, it becomes what you speak with, where you get your informs and updates, and the phone remain in your purse or pocket or on your belt unless you truly require to get down and do something that needs the screen.".

Smart E Watches asked five public-sector CIOs what they consider Samsung's new product, whether they would think about using it, and if the smart watch market has a future.

Louis Carr, CIO of Clark County, Nev.
Screen shot 2013-11-03 at 7.38.25 AMThe smart watch has a place in the world, Carr said, but the technology is still a little confusing. "I think it would be great for listening to MP3 files, Pandora, that sort of thing," he said. "It will probably be good for instant messaging, Twitter, appointments and calendars, and alarms." However, for tasks like mapping and working on word processing and spreadsheets, a watch will probably be too small.
And how the watch's keyboard will work is also a mystery, Carr said. "If it's linked to your smartphone via Bluetooth, that would give you a keyboard, but if you're using your smartphone, why does it need the smart watch?"
It's an interesting device, Carr said, but it doesn't really do anything new. "The app drives the hardware," he said. "What's the killer application?"
source: Article base