Facebook Working on Smart Watch to Compete With Apple Watch
Facebook is developing a smart watch that will focus on messaging and health features, according to a new report from The Information. Wearers will be able to send messages with Facebook services like Messenger and WhatsApp, and it will work with a cellular connection without a tethered smartphone.
Health features like options to track workouts with friends or communicate with trainers will be included, and the watch will be able to connect to services provided by health and fitness companies like Peloton. Facebook's upcoming watch is said to run a version of Google's Android software.
Facebook plans to sell the smart watch at close to its production cost, which is also what it does with the Oculus headset. There's no word on what pricing will be, but competing products range in price from $150 to $400+.
It's not likely a smart watch will go over well with those who have concerns about Facebook's data collection. Amazon recently released a "Halo" fitness band that has been derided for its invasiveness. Facebook already makes some consumer hardware products including the aforementioned Oculus and Portal camera and tablet devices.
A Facebook smart watch would need to compete with the Apple Watch, which is one of the best selling wearables on the market. Just this morning, a report suggested that more than 100 million people globally own an Apple Watch. Facebook is also working on its own Ray-Ban branded smart glasses that would compete with rumored products coming from Apple in the next few years.
Facebook is aiming to start selling its smart watch next year, with a second-generation planned for as soon as 2023. The Information says that development is "far along," but there's always still a chance the product could be scrapped.
Popular Stories
Apple has announced it will be holding a special event on Tuesday, May 7 at 7 a.m. Pacific Time (10 a.m. Eastern Time), with a live stream to be available on Apple.com and on YouTube as usual. The event invitation has a tagline of "Let Loose" and shows an artistic render of an Apple Pencil, suggesting that iPads will be a focus of the event. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
Apple has dropped the number of Vision Pro units that it plans to ship in 2024, going from an expected 700 to 800k units to just 400k to 450k units, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Orders have been scaled back before the Vision Pro has launched in markets outside of the United States, which Kuo says is a sign that demand in the U.S. has "fallen sharply beyond expectations." As a...
Apple has stopped production of FineWoven accessories, according to the Apple leaker and prototype collector known as "Kosutami." In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kosutami explained that Apple has stopped production of FineWoven accessories due to its poor durability. The company may move to another non-leather material for its premium accessories in the future. Kosutami has revealed...
The upcoming iOS 17.5 update for the iPhone includes only a few new user-facing features, but hidden code changes reveal some additional possibilities. Below, we have recapped everything new in the iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 beta so far. Web Distribution Starting with the second beta of iOS 17.5, eligible developers are able to distribute their iOS apps to iPhone users located in the EU...
Apple is finally planning a Calculator app for the iPad, over 14 years after launching the device, according to a source familiar with the matter. iPadOS 18 will include a built-in Calculator app for all iPad models that are compatible with the software update, which is expected to be unveiled during the opening keynote of Apple's annual developers conference WWDC on June 10. AppleInsider...
Top Rated Comments