Friday Poll: Are smart watches finally ready for prime time?
Smart watches look to be in fashion again, but are they the real deal this time or just a passing trend? Have your say in Crave's Friday poll.
Smart watches are not a new concept.
In June 2003, Microsoft announced its grand plan to bring the Internet to wristwatches using its Smart Personal Objects Technology. The company partnered with various watchmakers, including Citizen, Fossil, and Suunto, to create timepieces that allowed you to check messages and calendar appointments, as well as weather, news, stock prices, and sports scores, all from your wrist.
While novel and interesting, the watches never took off, and in April 2008, Microsoft decided to pull the plug on the smart-watch business. But were those watches really a bad idea or simply a case of an idea being ahead of its time?
It may be the latter, as smart watches seem to be making a comeback. Just this week, Sony's SmartWatch went on sale for $150. The timepiece allows you to connect to any Android-powered phone via Bluetooth; displays your text messages, e-mails, and social updates; and lets you manage phone calls and music.
Also making news this week is the Pebble E-Paper Watch, a timepiece that promises to let you run several apps from your iPhone or Android phone and as of this writing has already raised more than $1.3 million in funding. Then, there are those, like CNET's Scott Stein, who make their own smart watches.
With this renewed interest in wearable tech and the fact that we now have the technology (smartphones) that can complement them, we have to ask: Are smart watches finally ready for prime time? Or are they another passing fad? Vote in our poll and share your thoughts in the comments section below.