There’s a lot of talk about smartwatches recently, not just because Apple has well and truly entered the market, but because there are questions on whether or not these are actually watches. Wonder no more, because one of the originals is about to make a watch, as TAG gears up for Android Wear.
Three of the world’s most known names have assembled this week in Switzerland for Baselworld, one of the world’s largest watch expos, coming together to make an announcement about smartwatches, of all things.
The news was made at a joint press conference between TAG Heuer, Intel, and Google to say that TAG was working on a product that would bring the Android Wear smartwatch platform to a watch designed by the Swiss watch experts at TAG.
“The quality of Swiss watches is renowned worldwide,” said Guy Sémon, General Manager of TAG Heuer. “When this is allied with the creative technology and global power of two companies like Intel and Google, using the Android Wear platform and based on Intel technology, we can see the launch of a technological revolution in our industry, of which I am proud to be a pioneer today with TAG Heuer.”
From what we understand, Google and Intel will be providing the guts of this concept, while TAG will be looking at the style and design, bringing the watch together in a way we haven’t seen previously with a smartwatch, as a watch company makes a smartwatch and not a technology company.
“Swiss watchmaking and Silicon Valley is a marriage of technological innovation with watchmaking credibility,” said Jean-Claude Biver, CEO of TAG Heuer.
“Our collaboration provides a rich host of synergies, forming a win-win partnership, and the potential for our three companies is enormous.”
Google’s own people tend to agree, with the Director of Android Wear, David Singleton, using the conference to say that “by fusing beauty with technology, the Swiss watch has inspired generations of artists and engineers alike — including us at Google. So we’re thrilled to be working with TAG Heuer and Intel to bring a unique blend of emotion and innovation to the luxury market. Together, and using the Android Wear platform, we can imagine a better, beautiful, smarter watch.”
Little is known about the watch TAG, Intel, and Google will be creating, and there’s no firm release date either, though we can’t imagine it will take longer than a year or two for the three companies to put the work in and come up with a first generation of product that not only looks the part, but does what we expect big well-made watches to do, and that is outlast other products in this category.
“As we work to enable technology experiences that provide greater utility and value to people, Intel is confident that a collective approach will inspire new innovation in wearable technology,” said Michael Bell, General Manager of Intel’s New Devices Group.
“The collaboration with TAG Heuer and Google brings us closer to realising the vision of wearable technology with a distinctive smartwatch that elevates the category.”
