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<\/a>BSOS<\/strong> \u2013 While folks came to Barcelona to show off phone stuff, it was the Bright Shiny Objects Syndrome that swept over the masses.<\/em><\/p>\nIf you weren\u2019t careful, you might have missed that Samsung introduced an awesome new smartphone at MWC (Mobile World Congress).<\/p>\n
A few others introduced some very excellent smartphones, but Samsung had come to Barcelona to play.<\/p>\n
O.K., technically, it\u2019s a phablet \u2013 larger than a smartphone, smaller than a tablet \u2013 but it was awesome.<\/p>\n
True, a few experts said phablets would fail miserably because no one would want to carry such a big stupid thing around to use for just everything.<\/p>\n
Someone forgot to tell those experts that The Vision Council says more than 75 percent of Americans need some sort of vision correction and reading the small screen isn\u2019t that easy.<\/p>\n
Even though Tim Cook wears glasses, the rumors are flying that he\u2019s going to stick with a \u201cstandard size\u201d iPhone this time around.<\/p>\n
He does have to protect their three product category offerings and Apple fans have a new love child \u2013 the OTT (Over The Top) iTV which is a $1B product in a category that is going to be even bigger.<\/p>\n
And Tim isn\u2019t worried because the Galaxy S5 is about the same as the S4 even with the freebies wrapped around it!<\/p>\n
Despite the advances, everyone was going ga-ga or ugh over the blistering array of wearables.
\nEven though they are barely in their infancy, this \u2013 according to a horde of industry analysts \u2013 is where the next gazillion is going to be made.<\/p>\n
Every day, there was a new set of projections and by the end of the show it was going to be a $70 B market by 2024 (that\u2019s far enough in the future that no one will remember the number). We\u2019re having a serious Gartner\u2019s Hype Cycle but that doesn\u2019t stop spokespersons from saying their wearable is going to have hockey stick acceptance.<\/p>\n
The big first category everyone is in is the wellness category.<\/p>\n
You know, wear it and you\u2019ll lose weight, gain muscle, have more stamina and achieve Adonis or Cleopatra status \u2026 BAM!!<\/strong><\/p>\n So we did some informal research:<\/p>\n –\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Spent a Saturday at the club checking out 150 people and four had a Fitbit Flex or similar wearable Wearables will be a new and energetic category and it\u2019s what the industry needs to stimulate sales because TVs, desktop\/laptop PCs, printers and even smartphones have leveled off when it comes to sales, even though engineers keep loading them up with more and more goodies.<\/p>\n Right now, they\u2019re good enough and we\u2019re hard pressed to motivate people to ditch stuff that works pretty well for something with a few more bells and whistles.<\/p>\n Since you\u2019re not doing your part, the industry has no choice to create a new family of products, develop new markets and make you realize what you\u2019ve been missing out on.<\/p>\n New Category<\/strong> Deep in their \u201cdo no harm\u201d soul, even Google realizes that because hey, they heard what Billy McMahon said in Internship<\/em> which was shot on their campus last year, \u201cNo one wears a watch anymore.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Folks made the smartphone (and phablet) too good and developers keep giving you better and better apps so you go into withdrawals if it\u2019s outta\u2019 sight or outta\u2019 reach.<\/p>\n That\u2019s probably why the first wearables connect to your smartphone to give you \u201cinformation.\u201d That doesn\u2019t require you to change your habits like eating healthy food and exercising regularly. Total Glasshole<\/strong> There are actually some intriguing potentials for Glass-like products in law enforcement, military, service\/support, healthcare\/surgery and industrial applications; but admit it, they aren\u2019t as fun to talk about as wearing your Google Glass in public.<\/p>\n There are thousands of niche markets and niche products that will use the technology and will be very profitable for firms and beneficial for the areas they serve.<\/p>\n But that kind of stuff is dull (except if you work in that area) and it\u2019s more exciting to envision Jupiter Research\u2019s view of everyone wearing a device.<\/p>\n Yep, it\u2019s easy to see that in no time at all smartwatches, glasses and other stuff will be a $19B market. Actually, that resonates better in Cisco\u2019s Chambers IoE (Internet of Everything).<\/p>\n Anything, Everything<\/strong> Of course, that doesn\u2019t stop industry experts from giving you some real mouthwatering projections for 2018–or better yet, 2024!<\/p>\n Wearable technology isn\u2019t the gimmick stuff you see today, even though you can expect to see a herd of startups grabbing mindboggling sums of money from MBA VCs (venture capitalists). Apple, Samsung and the firms that are already heavily involved in the healthcare industry are camped out on the FDA\u2019s (Food and Drug Administration) doorsteps to develop wearables for our increasingly aging society (globally) that will feature biometric sensors that can monitor \u2026 everything.<\/p>\n It can quickly change the entire health reporting\/response\/care area.<\/p>\n Public safety \u2013 all first responders \u2013 will be changed as officers wear modified glasses that tap into police records in near realtime and build blueprints that can be sent to the responder so he\/she can properly assess situations.<\/p>\n Other wearable items can monitor the individual to determining how the individual is handling the developing situation and even monitor his\/her equipment.<\/p>\n A Natural<\/strong> Intel introduced their Smart Onesie, an all-enveloping baby monitor that got an \u201coh isn\u2019t that cute reaction\u201d but will sell to every concerned mom.<\/p>\n The OhMiBod vibrating underpants got a wet reception but dads will snap them up to keep the kids\u2019 buns dry.<\/p>\n Identification and tracking wearables are something every parent will invest in, considering the exposure to violence youngsters encounter everywhere.<\/p>\n
\n–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Spent the following day at a large mall in the area in the fatfood court. Saw more than 50 of the brightly colored bands on people they really weren\u2019t helping
\n–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Talked to a lady who received a fitness band for Christmas. It hangs on the treadmill she also uses to hang clothes on<\/p>\n<\/a>Second Generation<\/strong> \u2013 Samsung not only introduced new families of smartphones and phablets, they proudly showed the world how much they had improved their wrist wearables. As long as you keep buying, they\u2019ll keep making \u2018em better.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nDon\u2019t get me wrong, wearables will be big \u2013 really big \u2013 just not what you\u2019re getting excited about today.<\/p>\n<\/a>One Device<\/strong> \u2013 Today\u2019s smartphone is the one device almost everyone has with them all of the time to stay in touch with the world around them. That\u2019s why the initial families of wearables send news\/alerts to your phone rather than force you to learn new habits.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nBut that\u2019s going to be tough as Bob O\u2019Donnell, chief analyst at TechAnalysis, noted that changing the size of the smartphone (phablet) was going to have a major impact on all areas \u2013 computers, smartphones and yes, the early wearables.<\/p>\n
\nYou know, the things you swear to gawd you\u2019re going to do every New Years Eve.<\/p>\n
\nGoogle started it a while back with Google Glass but they have a ways to go. That\u2019s probably why they issued guidelines on how not to be a pretentious \u201cglasshole.\u201d\u00a0 You might get beaten up because you\u2019re spying on someone or you could get rousted by the FBI for stealing a movie in a theater.<\/p>\n<\/a>Eyes of the Beholder<\/strong> \u2013 I don\u2019t care how attractive a Google Glass wearer is; admit it, the sight sorta\u2019 creeps you out. You\u2019re not sure if they\u2019re watching a video, checking out your background or searching for their own identity.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/a>Don\u2019t Get Wet<\/strong> \u2013 Forecasters see the emerging market for personal wearables on virtually every part of your person. You can monitor, but so can they. Think about it, when you go to bed at night you can plug yourself in for a recharge just like you do your car.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nWearable technology right now means so many different things it doesn\u2019t mean anything.
\nThe noise right now is focused on gadgets or as TeleAnalysis\u2019 O\u2019Donnell speculated, the announcements could easily outnumber shipments.<\/p>\n<\/a>All Over the Chart<\/strong> \u2013 Industry analysts everywhere were quick to show they were on top of the situation and could see the future with wearable projects for the years ahead that ranged from cautious optimism to unabashed gushing.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nThe real potential applications and benefits will emerge quietly, with little or no fanfare.<\/p>\n<\/a>More than Bling<\/strong> \u2013 The world of wearables will look a lot different from the stuff you see, buy, show off and brag about today and set aside tomorrow. There are hundreds\/thousands of serious applications for the technology that will be felt in almost every market segment.<\/em><\/p>\n
\nWhile infotainment wearables get kids hearts fluttering, there are some naturals that can be quickly developed that will have widespread appeal.<\/p>\n