If recent reports are to be believed, Apple fanatics soon won’t even have to root around in their pockets before showing the world how cool they are. Both the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal write that Apple is currently developing a wristwatch that would operate on iOS.

One of the biggest claims is that Apple is designing the device to feature curved glass. While Apple is not commenting, their glass manufacture Corning had previously announced a new product along those lines:

Last year, Corning, the maker of the ultra-tough Gorilla Glass that is used in the iPhone, announced that it had solved the difficult engineering challenge of creating bendable glass, called Willow Glass, that can flop as easily as a piece of paper in the wind without breaking. [...]

“You can certainly make it wrap around a cylindrical object and that could be someone’s wrist,” Mr. Bocko said. “Right now, if I tried to make something that looked like a watch, that could be done using this flexible glass.”

This leaves me wondering: why would you want a watch with glass that wraps around your wrist? Generally, watches have a flexible band, and a solid (relatively flat) face. I also can’t imagine it would be easy to use a significantly curved touch screen- unless it was designed to be taken off and laid flat. But then again, Apple employs design visionaries for a reason.

Apple semi-infamously missed the boat when approached about accessories to convert the iPod Nano to a wristwatch (pictured above). Those products soon became best sellers. Meanwhile, stand-alone smart watches like Pebble, which connects to smartphones using bluetooth, are also becoming popular.

What do you think? Would you buy an iWatch?

[via TechCrunch]

Bookmark to: