Apple Has Team of 100 Product Designers Working on a Smart Watch

[Feed Me]

Originally Posted by iMikeT

I'd get one if my iWatch can call my iCar over like Michael Knight did with KITT in Knight Rider.

Christ, I miss that show.

[Sedrick]

Let me guess. They pulled them all off the iPhone/iOS design team.

[mtneer]

Originally Posted by Idgit

Maybe this watch thing is actually a rumour misdirect from Apple. Cook did say they were going to "double down" on secrecy. If he was telling the truth, then why so many stories about this watch? Maybe the smart watch rumours are a lie, planted to satisfy the rumour mongers and to keep them off the scent of what Apple is really working on.

I certainly hope that's the case. However apple's secrecy record with the last few iPads and iPhone has been a little off the shine.

[blucurv]

Originally Posted by arn

It'll be a "watch" as much as the iPhone is a phone -- which is to say, that wont be its compelling purpose.

I think there's some potential in this. My wife currently uses the previous gen silver nano with some thin black bracelet straps and it looks quite chic. Coolest watch she's ever had.

Now if they pushed the concept further, we can see the evolution of the iPod, in which it's more wearable.

Here's what Nokia had as a concept a while ago. Shame it never materialized.

[turtlez]

Originally Posted by Feed Me

A team of 100? Do you think we: Samsung, feel remotely scared now? Is that your tactic? I've yet to see a mortal man beat the power of the beast contained within our headquarters.

classic

[Mistrblank]

No thanks, one of the best things about the cell phone age was ridding myself of that band around my wrist.

There's nothing they can put on that screen that I wouldn't just rather look at my cell phone screen.

[ghost187]

Lol, "focus on products that people want"??? I thought Apple's claim to fame was coming up with "products that you didn't know you wanted" till Apple introduced it? iWatch, iGlasses, iTV, iPhone Pro, iPhone Nano (budget), Macbook Air w/ARM Processor (under $500) are all coming. This is the "Calm B4 The STORM"!!!

[avro707]

This is one area where Apple will not win. People buy a Rolex, Jager le Coultre or Patek for its design and engineering, or perhaps a Richard Mille.

Not a disposable Apple product. And for others, they'll just buy a relatively inexpensive watch like a Citizen or something like that.

And more and more people tend to be wearing complications or grand-complications rather than a common-garden watch, and they might have been made for that person only.

They are style statements. It's like when you go to a tailor to have a suit and shirt made for you. You've done that because you want something a bit more special and individual, rather than something simply off-the-shelf.

While there is some merit in Apple diversifying, eg, the Ferdinand Piech statement about catching more fish if you take more fishing rods (in reference to the VW over-diversification), I don't think the watch idea will do much good, except giving Apple a bad case of indigestion.

Apple - take note of Porsche when they did a 924, 944, 968 and 928. 944, 968 might have been decent enough, and the 928 was truly magnificent, they weren't the core product and ultimately didn't do Porsche much good.

[mentholiptus]

Originally Posted by ob81

I kind of want them focused on products that people actually want. I am not sure this watch is that big of a deal.

Brilliant point. With their entire staff of 100 on this, it'll be forever until they can work on anything else.

This project must be the reason they're building that new campus.

[deconstruct60]

Originally Posted by MacRumors

that Apple has a team of about 100 product designers working on a wristwatch computer,

What???????? Why would they need more than single digits? Maybe they are sweeping in software and all the engineering R&D staff but even still. It is a watch.

Was there even 100 folks on the original Mac team?

ed: No. "... It took forty minutes or so for around thirty-five team members to sign. Steve waited until last, when he picked a spot near the upper center and signed his name with a flourish. ... "
http://www.folklore.org/StoryView.py...ning_Party.txt

[Idgit]

Originally Posted by avro707

Apple - take note of Porsche when they did a 924, 944, 968 and 928. 944, 968 might have been decent enough, and the 928 was truly magnificent, they weren't the core product and ultimately didn't do Porsche much good.

I love the 928. I think they still look fantastic after all these years.

[bt2184]

Originally Posted by avro707

This is one area where Apple will not win. People buy a Rolex, Jager le Coultre or Patek for its design and engineering, or perhaps a Richard Mille.

Not a disposable Apple product. And for others, they'll just buy a relatively inexpensive watch like a Citizen or something like that.

And more and more people tend to be wearing complications or grand-complications rather than a common-garden watch, and they might have been made for that person only.

They are style statements. It's like when you go to a tailor to have a suit and shirt made for you. You've done that because you want something a bit more special and individual, rather than something simply off-the-shelf.

While there is some merit in Apple diversifying, eg, the Ferdinand Piech statement about catching more fish if you take more fishing rods (in reference to the VW over-diversification), I don't think the watch idea will do much good, except giving Apple a bad case of indigestion.

Apple - take note of Porsche when they did a 924, 944, 968 and 928. 944, 968 might have been decent enough, and the 928 was truly magnificent, they weren't the core product and ultimately didn't do Porsche much good.

It will be a stylish watch, but it will not be a "watch". Sure it will tell time but that will be the least of its abilities. There will be apps and uses for this we haven't even dreamed of yet. And yes, they will sell millions upon millions. It will be an interface to display information from your phone, it will be a fitness tracker, it will control your phone through Siri, it will be immensely useful.

[apolloa]

Originally Posted by Sedrick

Let me guess. They pulled them all off the iPhone/iOS design team.

If they pulled them from the iOS team then the thing is brocken before launch!.

Erm yeah, this is my lovely new iWatch, faults? Well it gets a bit annoying that the alarm doesn't work for the first week of every year, Apple tell me it's a design feature!!!!!!!!

[xkmxkmxlmx]

Originally Posted by mtneer

Wow.. Lost are the days when you would not even know what product was coming out, let alone how many employees are working on a product along with their manager.

Every single thread.

Get. Off. Macrumors.

[doubleaa]

Meh, I'll stick to my Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean. I prefer real watches.

[nagromme]

Originally Posted by avro707

This is one area where Apple will not win. People buy a Rolex, Jager le Coultre or Patek for its design and engineering, or perhaps a Richard Mille.

Not a disposable Apple product. And for others, they'll just buy a relatively inexpensive watch like a Citizen or something like that.

Good point. Even though "disposable" Apple products last for years and have massive mindshare, and even though an Apple watch (if there ever is one) will be functionally nothing at all to do with those time displays you list, I still have to agree: PC and phone and tablet and media guys are not going to "just walk in" and have ANY success in the wearable electronics market

[OtherJesus]

Hey guys!!!! Samsung just tweeted that they've been working on a watch too... except they started their development WAY WAY WAY before Apple. I mean, Samsung had an idea for a watch before Steve Jobs was even born.

[Zaqfalcon]

Sounds like a ruse to unmask informants to me.

I'd prefer they employed people to work on Aperture 4 personally.

[apolloa]

Originally Posted by doubleaa

Meh, I'll stick to my Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean. I prefer real watches.

Yeah, the kind of watch you want as it doesn't run our of power! Interesting that the article notes a challenge is to make a watch that lasts more then a day!!
Doesn't bode very well does it?

[Drunken Master]

Originally Posted by avro707

This is one area where Apple will not win. People buy a Rolex, Jager le Coultre or Patek for its design and engineering, or perhaps a Richard Mille.

Not a disposable Apple product. And for others, they'll just buy a relatively inexpensive watch like a Citizen or something like that.

And more and more people tend to be wearing complications or grand-complications rather than a common-garden watch, and they might have been made for that person only.

They are style statements. It's like when you go to a tailor to have a suit and shirt made for you. You've done that because you want something a bit more special and individual, rather than something simply off-the-shelf.

While there is some merit in Apple diversifying, eg, the Ferdinand Piech statement about catching more fish if you take more fishing rods (in reference to the VW over-diversification), I don't think the watch idea will do much good, except giving Apple a bad case of indigestion.

Apple - take note of Porsche when they did a 924, 944, 968 and 928. 944, 968 might have been decent enough, and the 928 was truly magnificent, they weren't the core product and ultimately didn't do Porsche much good.

Can a Patek watch load up Pornhub.com while reminding people to do the dishes?

[Spink10]

Originally Posted by robjulo

Sight unseen, you'll buy one.

There was a little sarcasm in my post.

[avro707]

Originally Posted by Idgit

I love the 928. I think they still look fantastic after all these years.

Yes, it might not have been totally successful (the purist customers declared war on it because they saw it as a threat to the 911), but it turned out to be a fine machine, especially the last 5.4L GTS. And the planned 6.0L V8 would have been even better.

But Herr Falk who worked on it (along with many other Porsche products) remembered the GTS as a really great car, but that the people there didn't have the passion to work on it like they did the 911.

In contrast, I see the Apple watch idea as little more than a distraction from the main game, unless they can somehow price it at $1000 and get people to part with that kind of enormous money for what would hopefully be an inexpensive to produce product.

[xVeinx]

Originally Posted by Sedrick

Let me guess. They pulled them all off the iPhone/iOS design team.

Nope. OS X

[knemonic]

Baaa! I haven't even gotten my pebble yet.

[KylePowers]

I figured this was extremely obvious when they changed the Nano design to no longer be watch-like. Wearable computing is the next big thing, and if you don't agree, then you're probably in the same group that complained about the industry moving away from physical media.