The smartwatch world is like the old west, very few rules and every man or company, in this case, defining what those rules mean to them. Almost every tech company and watch maker on the planet have made or are planning to make a smartwatch. Many thought that once the Apple Watch came on the scene that it would be the watch to rule them all. After a few months in the wild, it’s clear that the Apple Watch did not solve any problems or make any significant changes in the smartwatch world. Its main problem like Samsung smartwatches or any Android Wear smartwatch is battery life and a defining feature. Most smartwatches barely can make it day without a charge, let alone two or three days without looking for a wall and have nothing to hang their smartwatch hat on as far as a signature feature. This is an opening Swatch CEO Nick Hayek Jr thinks Swatch can fill. He is claiming that the new Swatch smartwatch will be water resistant and carry no fitness app. The one feature it will carry however will be near field communication or NFC. Swatch CEO Nick Hayek Jr had this to say while speaking to Swiss publication Tages-Anzeiger; “We will bring a watch to market this year that acts as an alternative to the credit card, using near field communication. The technology works, we’re just finalising details with our partners from the credit card industry. The watch can be used for access control.”
Swatch CEO Nick Hayek Jr also had a few parting shots for the Apple Watch as well. “The Apple watch is an interesting toy, but not a revolution. These devices, which all eat so much power that they last no longer than 24 hours without needing to be plugged in. In addition, the user immediately loses control of their data. I personally don’t want my blood pressure and blood sugar values stored in the cloud, or on servers in Silicon Valley.” Swatch produced its first smartwatch in 2003 in a calibration with Microsoft but in recent years had gone away from making them. While speaking on how Swatch smartwatches will stay in line with Swatch being first and foremost Swiss watch producers, he said he can not understand why fellow Swiss watch maker TAG Heuer would partner with Google. “That for a company with a long Swiss tradition, TAG-Heuer owner LVMH is apparently not willing to invest in Switzerland in the workplace.”
Swatch CEO Nick Hayek Jr also said that the new Swatch smartwatch would cost about 150 Swiss francs that is about $160 in today’s market. If that price point stays true, coupled with a refined payment system and Swatches history of making a well-received watch. CEO Nick Hayek Jr and Swatch might just have a winner on hand.