Microsoft Rumoured to be Working on a Surface SmartWatch

Just days after we heard whispers of a Microsoft Surface Mini tablet, the rumour mill is turning again: now a reliable newspaper is reporting that the software giant is working on its own smartwatch to take on the likes of Apple and Samsung. Will it be the Microsoft Surface Watch?

The Wall Street Journal’s sources at manufacturing suppliers for Microsoft say that the Washington company is designing a smartwatch. Though it’s not clear if Microsoft plans to release the product, it has asked for 1.5-inch displays – just the right size for your wrist, wouldn’t you say?

The smartwatch space is hotting up right now: Samsung has confirmed it’s getting into the area, while Apple is rumoured to be working on a watch that hooks up with your iPhone too, so Microsoft’s move would make sense. If it can make a must-have smartwatch that’s easy to use and pulls in all the right information, it could make struggling Windows Phone a lot more appealing.

Microsoft’s got experience in the area too. Back in the mid 2000s, its Smart Personal Object Technology (SPOT) was used in watches from companies like Suunto (pictured above) which used MSN services to draw down data like weather over FM radio, but they weren’t a success, and the service was discontinued.

If Microsoft were to release a smartwatch for 2013, could it sport the Surface branding it’s used for its own tablets? With any luck we’ll find out soon. In the meantime share your thoughts on Microsoft’s movie in the comments below. [Source]

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Swatch CEO Nick Hayek Does Not Believe That The Rumoured iWatch is The Next Tech Wonder

Investors and tech observers are abuzz about the possibilities of a so-called Apple "iWatch," but the CEO of Swatch is skeptical about just how much such a device could replace Apple's iPhone, saying he doesn't believe such a device would be the next smart device revolution.

Speaking at a press conference on annual results in Grenchen, Switzerland, Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek said that the primary difficulty in having a watch replace a smartphone would be display size.

"Personally, I don't believe it's the next revolution," the head of the largest Swiss watchmaker said, according to Bloomberg . "Replacing an iPhone with an interactive terminal on your wrist is difficult. You can't have an immense display."

Hayek also noted that watch consumers often buy the items as jewelry items and often like to change them. Such behavior could represent an obstacle for Apple, as the physical style of any potential iWatch would not likely be readily changeable, though the visual possibilities enabled by a flexible display could mitigate that problem to an extent.

Swatch has had dealings with both Apple and Microsoft, consulting with the former on energy-harvesting technology and with the latter on bringing more interactive features to Swatch's watches. Bloomberg notes that Swatch, like Apple, has licensed Liquidmetal Technologies' alloys for use potential products.

The rumored iWatch is believed to consist of a flexible display that would wrap around a user's wrist, displaying information from the user's iPhone. Apple is said to have a team of about 100 product designers working on the device. [AppleInsider]

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