The pros and cons to consider before buying a smart watch

The pros and cons to consider before buying a smart watch





Wearable technology and smartwatches in particu lar have just taken their baby steps. Glass isn't yet available for consumers (in fact, it's use is also being banned in certain areas for privacy concerns) and others have yet to play catch up, but various types of smartwatches are. A Swedish telecom market researcher called Berg Insight has however predicted that smartwatches are going to “explode in popularity over the next few years“ as they become more common, more affordable and benefit from better battery life, which is incidentally a big gripe regarding current models. 

 

THE UPSIDES:

THE CONVENIENCE FACTOR
Smartwatches are best suited for p Smartwatches are best suited for people who don't like to miss any calls or messages and also like to be well-informed. They are for people who don't need to reach into their pockets and check their phone when ever it buzzes with a new notification. Some smartwatches are a hybrid of an analogue watch and a digital notifier that alerts you via custom vibration patterns and visual alerts for texts, mails, calls and so on. This can be of use when you're in, for example, a cinema and want to check your messages discreetly, or when you're on a date and don't want to look rude by fishing out your phone every now and then!

THE COST FACTOR
Some new phone models cost an arm and a leg.
However, smartwatches, wrist bands (such as fitness trackers) and notifiers vary enormously in cost. Most of them are quite pocket friendly . Some models are offered in tandem with companion smartphones. In any case, in the coming months and years we can, as men tioned earlier, only expect their price to drop and their fea tures to increase. Which brings us to the next point.

FEATURE SETS
Certain models can be used in the same manner as portable flash drives. Others pack in features like controlling the device with hand movements and voice, in the same manner you probably do with your smartphone. Syncing with cloud data and activity trackers (essentially a digital pedometer). Using the voice control functions, you can quickly reply to texts with short messages. This can be of use for when you're out for a jog and don't want to break your rhythm by fetching your phone from your pocket.

THE STYLE FACTOR
While some smartwatches look a bit ungainly and `plastic', some other models look undeniably stylish and can blend in with formal wear (see picture on left) as well as casual wear. In future, when smartwatches can accept nano SIM cards, you might not even have to carry your phone with you when you step out.

CUSTOMISATION
You won't need to get fed up with the way this device looks. There are a bunch of apps available that allow you to change the `skin' of your phone. Expect the number of these customisations to only increase over time.

THE DOWNSIDES:
Security is perhaps the biggest challenge. That's true, of course, for an individual whose financial information such as netbank ing passwords or debit card pin numbers are on a wearable device for easy reference, can have their bank accounts breached if the said device ends up in the wrong hands. And since these devices are fairly new, it is unclear as to how secure they are. After all, if a free service like iCloud can allegedly be hacked into (as was recently reported in the case of the Hollywood nude pictures leak) then it sure is food for thought.
Wearable technology such as heart rate monitors, diet trackers and so on, by their very nature, are meant to collect personal data. As it becomes cheaper to manufature these devices over time, their functions and features will also grow and they will become more complex. As they become more complex, security will become a bigger concern.


FAST FACTS
By 2017, according to a market research firm, 35 million smart watches are predicted to go into production. This signifies a mas sive increase from the 400,000 that are expected to be sold this year.
The utilities they offer to wearers will also be updated exponentially .
In plain speak, if you buy one today, don't be surprised if it's antiquated in three years' time.
High-end smartwatches feature AMOLED technology for their screens -the same kind used in high-end smartphones.