Nokia will make smartwatches focused on providing users with a great battery life, the company’s Vice President of Digital Health Cédric Hutchings revealed on the sidelines of Mobile World Congress (MWC) on Monday. Apart from introducing the Nokia 3310 refresh, Nokia 3, Nokia 5, and the Nokia 6, the Finnish company also arrived at MWC to showcase a new connected analog watch, though its latest wearable is basically a rebranded variant of the Withings Steel HR. The fact that Nokia decided to repackage the 2016 smartwatch isn’t surprising seeing how it acquired its creators last June. However, Hutchings’ latest comments imply that the tech giant is interested in doing much more than just rebranding old products made by its new subsidiaries.
Unfortunately, Nokia’s executive wasn’t willing to share any specifics regarding the company’s upcoming wearables, though he did comment on the general approach that the Finnish consumer electronics manufacturer decided to adopt in regards to wearables. Hutchings revealed that the company’s Digital Health division that he’s heading expanded by a significant margin since it was formed by former Withings employees in mid-2016. Furthermore, the team is currently working on a number of different products and will be making some major announcements over the course of this year. Prior to being acquired by Nokia, Withings was offering products that boasted robust health functionalities and reliable notification systems, and that focus apparently hasn’t changed after the wearable maker joined the Nokia family, Hutchings suggested.
Regarding specific technologies that Nokia’s Digital Health unit might be implementing in the future, the company’s executive admitted that he finds AMOLED panels extremely attractive seeing how they not only allow for always-on displays but can also guarantee great battery life. This no-compromise solution is something that Hutchings is interested in exploring in the future, though it remains to be seen whether that means Nokia will release a smartwatch featuring an AMOLED display panel this year. Regardless, it seems that the company is adamant to diversify its product portfolio despite the fact that it’s currently in the process of returning to the smartphone market and more information on those ambitious endeavors is bound to follow in the coming months.
