After the iPhone and Android frenzy it’s the time to usher in the next smart gizmo – the wearable device. To date the likes of Rolex, Omega, Tag Heuer, Tissot, Hugo, etc., ruled the domain of timepieces. But with the passage of time the timepiece is no longer going to simply tell the time but a lot more than that.
Hence it’s no longer just a watch but a modern-day gear in itself, as multi-faceted as the wonder gadget in your pocket – the mobile phone. The mobile phone giants like Apple (AAPL, Financial) and Samsung (SSNLF, Financial) have already become the forerunners in this section. Let us see who is the next to step into the world of wearables.
Intel inside
When the tech big wigs are all in the race to capitalize the wearable segment of mobile connectivity, how can the premier chip maker Intel Corp. (INTC, Financial) stay behind.
Its New Devices Group, run by former Apple and Palm exec Mike Bell, has been busy partnering with the likes of Fossil (FOSL, Financial) and Opening Ceremony over the last year. But it also made an acquisition of fitness tracker Basis in March 2014 to show the rest of the tech industry just how serious it was. And today Basis is announcing the next generation of its fitness and sleep tracker for your wrist –Â "Peak."
With its large screen and social media and app notifications built in, the $199 Peak is moving the product more in the direction of a smart watch than a pure health and fitness device like Basis’ first wearable, the B1, released in December 2012. But its primary focus is still to work as a health tracker.
A sneak into the ‘Peak’
Peak inherits the same set of sensors from its predecessor, the B1, though with enhanced features. The sensors can continuously track heartbeat, motion, perspiration, skin temperature and ambient temperature. A few of the prominent improvisations in the Peak are – the heart monitor, for example, is now able to track the user’s heart beat during exercise more accurately. The screen is larger and higher contrast than the B1, and is made out of Gorilla glass. Peak also has a touch screen control interface. The waterproof body of the device is metal as opposed to the plastic of the B1.
As far as Peak’s smart watch attribute is concerned it would come enabled with app notifications and social media, Basis hasn’t exactly yet decided how these notifications will work. The company is trying to figure out ways to make sure the notification system isn’t annoying when the device is officially launched in November this year. Peak comes with Bluetooth to allow persistent connectivity with your smartphone.
The wearable market
Making the Peak a smart watch with the health features puts Intel right into the wearable fore runner category alongside the tech giants like Apple, Samsung, LG (LG, Financial) and Motorola (MSI, Financial). With so many companies jumping into the category with varying degree of success now, suddenly, there’s lots of competition for your wrist around the globe.
“We’re still anchored in the health and fitness category, but we’re starting to stretch those boundaries a bit,” Jef Holove, general manager of Basis, told in a press release. “We will be able to do those essential smart watch features, such as social media and app notifications. Users can now have a health and fitness experience but they don’t have to compromise on all smart watch stuff. It doesn’t mean we’re trying to be a full-on smart watch, but we’ll do enough of it.”
One advantage Peak has over its competitors is battery life. Most of the smart watches coming out are essentially smartphones shrunk down for your wrist. This means power-hungry screens and processors, which make for around one day of battery life. Basis claims it is able to keep the same battery life in Peak as its predecessor B1 of around four to five days and will only take around an hour or two to charge. “For wearables, battery life is really fundamental,” said Holove. “Days of battery life, not a day, is key to us.”
Even the much-anticipated Apple Watch has less than a day of battery life on a full charge. By beating these smart watch makers in battery life, Peak will do a much better job gathering more data about you to keep track of your health. You won’t have to take it off at night, for example, so it can track exactly how well you sleep at night.
Peak the Basis flagship will sport advanced features like how well you’re sleeping and what phase of sleep you’re in.
Intel’s business intelligence
Intel acquired Basis while Peak was being developed in the Basis workshop. Intel has plans to use some Basis’ tech and algorithms for the partnerships it’s pursuing in its New Devices Group.
Intel has been chasing the wearable market recently largely in order to make up for the losses due to the massive smartphone and tablet market growth. It lost $3.15 billion in its mobile chip division in 2013.
Hence it will be for us to wait and watch how Intel surfs out of the losses muddle with the new wearable Peak and whether it succeeds in bringing back the bright days for the Intel investors and aficionados.
