The wearables arena – specifically smartwatches for now – is finally becoming an accepted product. While the original Sony SmartWatch was released long before the likes of Samsung and LG, it was really Samsung that made the idea of wearing a smartwatch acceptable with their Galaxy Gear in September 2013 and now its subsequent Gear 2, Gear 2 Neo and Gear Live. The same month that Samsung released their original Galaxy Gear, Sony released its upgraded SmartWatch 2 to go up against the Korean giant – neither device made a very big splash, although Samsung’s marketing and pairing with the new Galaxy Note 3 certainly helped its Galaxy Gear along.
Japanese website Digi-Wo, with a very good record of truth when it comes to Sony information, tells us that Sony is working on the third interpretation of its SmartWatch series…naturally, the SmartWatch 3. Nothing is really specifically known about the exact hardware at this point, but they have mention certain characteristics we will see when it is announced at the IFA 2014 in Berlin.
They tell us that the Sony SmartWatch 3 will retain its square design – as opposed to the other more rectangle displays, although the highly anticipated Moto 360 will be the first round smartwatch. This square display will be much improved over the current model with a higher resolution and will still use the Transflective screen technology as it is easier to see in the sunlight and is a lighter drain on the battery.
According to our source, Sony will use a completely different interface than the current model, but will not adopt the Android Wear OS – this could be a real hindrance to it being accepted as a mainstream device, but if good enough, may put it in a class of its own. The device will incorporate Wi-Fi, so it does not have to hook up with a smartphone in order to be useful. The software used on the SmartWatch 2 definitely needed a work over as it was more awkward to set up and was a little glitchy at times.
Finally, the Sony SW3 will support wireless charging and come with a higher level of waterproofing and dust resistance.
Please hit us up on our Google+ Page and let us know what you think about Sony staying away from Android Wear? Is this a good move on their part or do you think Sony would sell more SmartWatch 3’s if it came with Android Wear…as always, we would love to hear from you.