Apple iWatch rumors

Apple is rumoured to be using flexible OLED displays for its iWatch prototypes

Apple’s iWatch to launch alongside iPhone 6 in October 2014 – new claims
We’ve heard lots about Apples’ iWatch. Lots and lots and lots, so much in fact it’s starting to get a bit like the company’s rumoured HDTV – and that’s been on the cards since 2011. But the iWatch isn’t a HDTV; it’s a smaller device that does, in some respects, better fit inside Apple’s current ecosystem of products.

Tim Cook even half-alluded to the iWatch during a Q&A session at AllThingsD’s D:11 conference, saying the wrist and wearable tech in general were very interesting areas for future product lines. And the latest rumour from China suggests Apple will debut the iWatch alongside the iPhone 6 in Q3 2014.

Apple suppliers Quanta, Inventec, and Foxconn are all believed to be competing for iWatch production orders.

Apple is said to be testing two prototype designs right now. According to the report, both units use a rather paltry 100mAh battery – Samsung’s Galaxy Gear uses a 300mAh unit, for instance – and support wireless charging capabilities.

“Battery life has previously been reported as being an issue for Apple, with iWatch prototypes lasting only 1-2 days on a charge and the company hoping to find ways to extend that to 4-5 days,” reports MacRumors.

Additional reports suggest Apple is looking at two iWatch models: a 1.3-inch version for women and a 1.7-inch for men. NPD DisplaySearch analyst Paul Gagnon also noted that Apple appears to have put its major television product plans on hold for the time being in order to focus on wearables such as the iWatch.

Wearable tech shipments to hit 180 million by 2018
Shipments of things like Google Glass and smartwatches will dramatically increased during the next several years, as more and more products hit the market from key players like Apple, Google and Samsung.

According to Juniper Research, sales of wearable technology will hit 180 million by 2018 – 10x what they are now. And the big drivers of this shift are tipped to be products like Apple’s iWatch and Google’s rumoured Gem watch – although neither has yet been officially confirmed.

“Even though wearables are relatively new in terms of market maturity, it is clear that the market, for example the smart watch in particular, will be – as per smartphones – a somewhat crowded affair,” said Juniper Research’s Nitin Bhas.

Sony, Qualcomm and Samsung have now all released smartwatches, but many industry watchers see Apple as the key to unlocking the space’s full potential. Whether Apple will release a smartwatch or not remains to be seen. Apple CEO Tim Cook has hinted strongly about his company’s interest in wearable technology, but so far we’ve seen nothing resembling a finished product.

Samsung recently confirmed it sold 800,000 Galaxy Gear smartwatches, making it the world’s number one wearable tech manufacturer. Going forwards, however, the Korean phone giant will face stiff competition in the space from some of the biggest names in technology including Apple, Google, Microsoft and LG.

iWatch patent filed?
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, it's finally happening. Or it's at least probably finally happening. That's according to the LA Times who report that the latest patent granted to Apple this week shows that they are making a curved screen iPhone - following in the footsteps of of Samsung and LG.

Plus a curved display means that Apple can utilise the technology either in the iPhone 6 or an iWatch.

Just because there's a patent, doesn't always mean they'll be a product. But as the paper points out, it might. So watch this space…

Apple iWatch entering "pilot production" but mass production delayed til Q2 2014
According to reports out of China, Apple's iWatch is now being put through pilot production runs by Inventec. Allegedly Quanta and Foxconn have been approached as manufacturing partners.

However, "low yields" have apparently meant that mass production is to be put back from Q1 of 2014 to Q2 instead, meaning we will likely see the device launching later in the year.

Quite when Apple is planning on going public remains a mystery, but as this is a brand new product it may choose to launch outside of its usual seasonal announcements which have seen previous iPhones and iPads revealed.

Apple's got an iWatch for both ladies and gents
There's a lot we think we know about the Apple iWatch - and plenty more speculation besides that. The latest rumours, however, that the smart watch will come in different size to cater for men and women have some credos.

The chatter was started by David Hsieh, president of the greater China market at DisplaySearch, who attributed it to "Apple sources" when he spoke at a conference in Taiwan. It comes as Paul Gagnon, also of DisplaySearch blogged that Apple were moving away from focusing on HD Apple TV to focus on the iWatch. "According to sources in the TV supply chain, it appears that Apple’s long-rumoured TV plans, which were far from concrete anyway, have been put on hold again, possibly to be replaced by a rollout of wearable devices.

"To offer truly unique product differentiation that would allow Apple to capture market share from existing smart TV brands, they would need to either deliver some exclusive source of content that the other brands cannot, such as a la carte pay-TV channels, or proprietary content not available on other devices", he blogged.

While DisplaySearch are worth listening to, at this stage all rumours are just that - rumours, so please take them with a pinch of salt