The people who protect your smart phone say an Apple smart wristwatch is three years away -- but it could be less than that. Curved glass is required to cover the wrist-worn companion to the iPhone 5 and iPad spotted in Apple patents, and different glass makers are racing get ahead of the curve.
Glass manufacturer Corning expects a three year wait before it's ready to reveal a curved display like the Apple smart watch, inevitably nicknamed in rumours as the iWatch. But LG has already said it will have curved screens by the end of this year.
Corning is the glass maker that makes the super-tough Gorilla Glass protecting many smart phones. And it's also working on Willow Glass, a bendy-flexy display that could appear on devices as soon as this year.
The purported Apple iWatch is a different kettle of fish, however, and Willow Glass isn't ready for such a sophisticated design. Speaking to Bloomberg, Corning boss James Clappin says an Apple iWatch could be as many as three years away.
But according to an interview with Korean Times highlighted by Patently Apple, LG expects to have curved glass displays this year, ready to mass-produce in 2014.
Apple is reported to have as many as 100 staff working on a smart watch.
Of course, all of this is base rumour and conjecture. But Apple is looking to diversify, and smart watches are already making waves, like the Kickstarter-funded Pebble and I'm Watch.
The point of a smart watch is to give you quick access to your phone without fishing it out of your pocket, which is less effort and also makes it less likely that your phone will be snatched from your hand by opportunistic wrong'uns. The Apple wristwatch is tipped to offer at-a-glance messages and alerts by wirelessly syncing with your iPhone. It'll also put voice-controlled personal assistant Siri on your wrist.
Are you excited by the iWatch? What smart watch features are you watching out for? Tell me your thoughts in the comments or on our Facebook page.
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Comments 13
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anonymous 4 March, 2013 09:28
A bit pointless of an accessory I think, its just another way to make money for the likes of Apple and Samsung. The smartphones have peaked in the way of function and now these companies need to find another area to exploit and make products for.
anonymous 4 March, 2013 09:35
I think this is an excellent idea. If it is tough enough to take a few bashes then this is something that I would certainly consider. I do hate the phone in the pocket.
shauney3 4 March, 2013 11:17
Said this before. It's been done already on Android, 2 years ago: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-Generation-SmartWatch-Smartphone-Accessory/dp/B006RJR62I
I'm sure Apple will realise one in a years time and claim they invented it.
anonymous 4 March, 2013 11:31
Doesnt the galaxy nexus have a curved glass screen?!
anonymous 4 March, 2013 13:16
I've got one of the 2nd generation Sony Android smart watches and i love it. (that's right 2nd generation they have already been around that long although they never get mentioned here). Having used the pebble it is better than that as it has a touch screen and is full color supporting some quite cool apps. They have a way to go yet but i'm happy with this one and will defiantly get a gen 3 when it comes out.
Peter Hudson 4 March, 2013 13:22
Yeah Shauney, but then a year after that, Samsung will copy it, change it slightly, and then claim superiority.
shauney3 4 March, 2013 13:27
Exactly my point...
anonymous 4 March, 2013 13:30
and then get sued based on patents that should never have been granted due to prior art
anonymous 4 March, 2013 13:44
I wonder when CNET is going to report that Apple's iCloud mail service has been censoring users by using arbitrary filters. Probably not any time soon. Sigh.
CaptainPicard 4 March, 2013 15:24
Smartwatches have been around for a long time and the Sony Smart Watch is the perfect example;
the problem is marketing. Sony simply didn't advertise or really try to sell its Smart Watch properly compared to its smartphones - that is what Apple and now Samsung are really good at, marketing and making things mainstream, like tablets and big smartphones.
anonymous 4 March, 2013 20:24
Some really stupid comments, yeah but Samsung......
Tired of this crap not saying no names, Peter Hudson
anonymous 4 March, 2013 21:11
@shauney3
Yeah just like when google stole the base of android from apple, whole stole it from unix. You android fanbois are more annoying than apple ones.
anonymous 5 March, 2013 06:22
As a thought, could the iWatch attract more in the way of wrong'uns attention. It is basically a flag to say the wearer not only has an iPhone but probably has more money than sense.