iwatch this space — Apple prepares its long awaited smartwatch

IT’S the best tech mystery of 2014. What exactly does Apple have up its sleeve in smartwatches? We’ve deciphered the clues.

Note: this is not an official Apple iWatch - it is an artist's idea of what an Apple iWatch might look like. Designer Todd Hamilton released his vision of an Apple iWatch on his blog in January 2014 (Source: http://toddham.com/blog/iwatch-concept/).

IT’S the best tech mystery of 2014. What exactly does Apple have up its sleeve in smartwatches?

Will we see an iWatch sold this year? Will it even be called an iWatch? What will it look like? What will it do? What will it cost?

The iWatch mystery is the technology equivalent of a classic whodunit — or who’lldoit. And the task of sifting fact from conjecture about this product is worthy of an Inspector Poirot.

Despite the avalanche of speculation in media reports and online blogs, Apple has not confirmed it is building an iWatch, health iBand — or any wearable device — but like the murderer’s footprints there are clues pointing to frenetic activity behind the scenes.

The giveaways include Apple patent and iWatch trademark ­applications, job advertisements on Apple’s websites, and staff being poached from elsewhere in design, health, fitness and luxury watch marketing.

There have been breadcrumbs of information from anonymous Apple sources in the US, and ­morsels from Taiwan’s Quanta — long-time design manufacturer of Apple’s iMac range and gearing up to make the bulk of iWatches.

Some in the industry closely follow the availability of components to assembly plants to work out what’s going on.

There seems little doubt that an iWatch is in the wings. Last month, The Wall Street Journal reported Apple was planning multiple devices, and that they would include more than 10 sensors to track and monitor health and fitness data.

The Journal quoted “people familiar with the matter”. The same story anonymously quoted one of Apple’s component suppliers saying Apple expected to ship between 10 million and 15 million smartwatches this year.

That prediction was just two months ago. Other media outlets have run similar predictions.

So what will an iWatch do?

It seems standard fare that smartwatches will display notifications you’d normally see on your phone. They typically have microphones so you can dictate emails, text messages, reminders and notes, call up your schedule, calendar and weather, and ask for directions.

However, smartwatches don’t necessarily come with cameras and speakers. The absence of speakers means you cannot use them for taking calls, but microphones, apart from allowing speech recognition, open the door to voice messaging, something Apple chief executive Tim Cook remarked on when seeing this used widely in China.

Add to this the likelihood of the iWatch having health and activity sensors and we’re coming close to a picture of what the device’s capabilities might be.

The rumours have been running since Apple began filing watch patents. In 2011, it filed one for a curved, flexible display on a wristband. Another patent filed in 2012 and granted a month ago is for a device called iTime, an ­electronic wristband capable of responding to arm and wrist movements and with straps that have in-built circuits and sensors. The band has a dock that lets you change the attached modules.

The patents were the early proof of Apple’s interest in wristbands capable of motion-sensing and an interest in curved displays.

The tie-up with activity monitoring and Nike is a big part of the iWatch/iBand story. Cook is on the Nike board, but has had no trouble enticing Nike staff to join Apple’s development team.

Staff poached to Apple include key Nike FuelBand designer Ben Schaffer and Nike fitness expert Jay Blahnik. Nike chief executive Mark Parker seems on-board. He says the company is keen to focus on software development and to enlist partners such as Apple.

Last year, Apple monitoring site 9to5 reported the company had assembled a team working away from its main campus with two dedicated groups on technologies and mechanics, and software vision with support from other Apple divisions.

As well as fitness, health and sensor experts there are designers, engineers, executives from the fashion industry and medical ­experts working on the watch.

Part of this has been revealed by Apple’s own job hires on its website. This month, it poached Patrick Pruniaix, the retail vice-president at luxury Swiss watch brand Tag Heuer. Apple’s fashion and luxury oriented hires have prompted speculation it is looking beyond Apple stores and geeks to up-market outlets.

Another rumour is that one model will have a sapphire crystal display (as would the iPhone 6). This is based on Apple’s recent ­involvement with sapphire glass plants in Massachusetts and Arizona, revealed by partners.

But in recent days there have been reports that not enough of this material is available to manufacturing factories, and sapphire crystal is out for now. Reports from Taiwan and elsewhere suggest that screens with diameters of 2.5 inches or 1.6in and 1.8in are likely — but nothing is confirmed.

We do not know for sure whether the device that Apple ­announces will be called an “iWatch”. But it’s probable, given that Apple last year sought to ­register iWatch as a trademark in countries including Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, India, Turkey and Taiwan.

It is also claimed that Apple has registered the iWatch trademark in many other countries by using a shelf company, Brightflash. Trademarking of iWatch already has led to an objection being lodged by watchmaker Swatch.

Another factor is the inclusion of Apple HealthKit API in the upcoming iOS 8 operating system, along with voice-to-text messaging — items that will fit in with its wearable regime. A heart-rate ­sensor and wireless charging are among other rumours.

One issue is whether smartwatches will be the unbridled success some manufacturers believe.

Telsyte managing director Foad Fadaghi says an iWatch would have an impact even if a small percentage of Apple users bought it. “But that will be tempered by how good an iWatch is.”

Apple might announce an iWatch in September, when it launches the iPhone 6, or later if it faces component problems, which now seems the case. It will be working hard to get the iWatch into markets before Christmas.

Rumoured pricing is all over the shop, with less than $US300 ($320) and up to $US500 possible. Any fashion-oriented iWatch could be more expensive.

As with any Inspector Poirot drama, the data might look perplexing, the evidence bamboozling, but before long it will be “case solved” regarding Apple’s ­intentions with the smart watch.