Leaked Photo of GEAK Watch2
With the boom of smart wearable concept led by smartwatches, Google recently released an operating system “Android Wear” for smart wearable gadgets, aiming to take control of the burgeoning market. The new system dedicated to make wearables awesome attracted several leading players in this battlefield onboard. Motorola and LG released products powered by the system, while Samsung and Sony are poised to follow the suit.
TechNode got a chance to talk with Mr. Xu, product manager of GEAK Watch, the smartwatch brand under Shanda and also one of the first Chinese smartwatches that are powered by Android system, about their next generation product GEAK Watch2.
The Android 4.1-enabled GEAK Watch1 recorded more than 300K shipments since its launch in June 2013. The smartwatch maker planned to stick to Android and use Android Wear system for its next generation product, he hinted, adding that the release of Android Wear will attract more smartwatch brands to the growing ecosystem.
However, there are still some hard nuts to crack before they can use the system. The user experience of Google’s service in China can not be guaranteed, because a lot of its services are blocked here, like Google Play and Google Plus. Android Wear is based on the voice control service of Google Now, which is unavailable for Chinese users due to the same reason. GEAK have two options, either to customize and adapt the system to Chinese market, or to develop a ROM based on Android Wear, he said.
According to Xu, the battery life of GEAK Watch2 will be greatly enhanced with the emergence of low battery consumption processors and operating systems. GEAK Watch2 is also expected to feature a curved screen, a camera, interchangeable wrist straps with sensors to monitor heart beats or blood pressures, etc. Moreover, the company is considering to release several versions for GEAK Watch2 to cater for the needs of different groups of people.
Putting emphasis on time management and health monitoring, GEAK Watch is developed as an independent mobile gadget with Internet connection through WiFi, rather than accessories to smartphones, said Xu.
Most of the smartwatches currently available on the market feature square screens, Xu thinks that smartwatches with round dial plates will become a trend this year.
Xu noted that all these features are still in development. Although there are already some leaked pictures of GEAK Watch2, it seems that we have to wait for its official release in Q3 this year to know what’s the smartwatch will be like exactly. The product is expected to be sold for around 2,000 yuan (around $320), the same price for its predecessor.
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