iWatch

Apple suppliers say iWatch has round face, goes into production in July/August

With five days until Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, rumors are swirling that the company could announce some new hardware at the five-day conference and pundits are holding their breath for a long-awaited iWatch announcement.

According to the latest supply chain chatter, the device will indeed resemble a traditional wrist-worn watch and will even have a rounded face. Jump past the fold for the full reveal...

Meet Kairos: the world’s first mechanical-smartwatch hybrid

The image above might look like yet another gaudy iWatch concept, but it's not. It's called the Kairos, and it's very real—well, it's not in stores yet, but the company has begun taking pre-orders and hopes to begin shipping by December.

Billed as the world's first mechanical-smartwatch hybrid, the Kairos is unlike anything we've ever seen in wearables. Featuring true, self-winding watch movements and a transparent OLED display, the watch blends both tech and fashion...

Beautiful new concept envisions iWatch as a high-end wristwatch

One of the crazier rumors we've heard thus far involving the iWatch comes from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who said the accessory may cost as much as 'several thousand dollars.' Kuo is well respected in the Apple community, but this particular prediction seemed a bit off.

That is, unless the iWatch ends up looking like this new concept from Curved/labs that surfaced earlier this week. The site envisions the rumored smartwatch looking like a high-end Rolex, with a digital chronograph face, wireless charging, and several other features...

LA Lakers’ Kobe Bryant spotted on Apple’s campus, reportedly meeting with Jony Ive

LA Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant has been photographed today along with his wife Vanessa on Apple’s 1 Infinite Loop campus in Cupertino, California. The two were reportedly meeting Apple's design guru Jony Ive to talk upcoming new products. An image a tipster sent in clearly shows Bryant and Vanessa waiting for food.

Apple's familiar corporate campus can be see in the background and image metadata confirms that the photo has indeed been taken with an iPhone on Apple’s campus...

Watch maker Swatch not happy about Apple’s yet to be announced iWatch

Swiss watch maker Swatch is not happy about Apple's iWatch. To be more specific, the company is not happy about the fact that Apple's wearable may be called iWatch, a name that definitely sounds a lot like iSwatch, a trademark registered by the watch maker for one of its lines of watches.

Nevermind the fact that Apple has yet to unveil the iWatch, which by the way might not even be called iWatch, Swatch is going on the offensive...

Don’t expect to see a new Apple TV or iWatch at WWDC

I don't think many folks were expecting Apple to unveil any exciting new hardware at WWDC this year. The company has rarely used the developer conference to unveil non-software related products, outside of maybe refreshed MacBooks and other Mac products.

But for those who were still holding out hope for a Jobs-like 'one more thing,' I have some bad news. According to a new report from Recode's John Paczkowski, the company has no intention of using WWDC to show off the long-rumored iWatch or revamped Apple TV...

Expert in ear-worn vital signs monitoring joins Apple’s iWatch team

According to a source who spoke to MacRumors, Eric Winokur who does research at MIT's Medical Electronic Devices Realization Center will be joining Apple's wearables team in the coming weeks.

He's the latest in a string of high-profile hirings of experts with diverse interests in medical devices, sleep monitoring, wearable tech and fashion design.

This isn't talent Apple typically needs so these hirings serve as the strongest indication to date that the firm is assembling a star team to take on wearables.

And why precisely should you care about this particular hire? Read on as I lay out everything for you after the break...

iWatch said to be entering production ahead of fall launch

According to a new report from the China Times, Apple's manufacturing partners have begun producing the iWatch. Citing  supply chain sources, the outlet says that the company's highly anticipated smartwatch has entered production in small quantities ahead of an expected fall launch.

The report echoes previous chatter, which has mostly pointed to a fall iWatch release up to this point. It also lines up with predictions from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo earlier this month, claiming that the wearable will be built using system-in-package modules, instead of PCBs...

Nike CEO talks new focus on software for wearables, excited about future with Apple

Following the news last week that Nike is gearing up to shutter its wearable hardware efforts, CEO Mark Parker appeared on CNBC today to talk about the new direction. Parker says the company's goal is to expand the FuelBand system, and that software and strategic partnerships will help them with that.

Obviously, he couldn't say anything directly about the rumors that Nike is teaming up with Apple on a product, but Parker did note that the two companies have been working together for a long time. And when pressed about the speculation, he said that [Nike] is 'excited' about the future of the relationship...

Analyst makes case for Apple replacing iPod touch with iWatch

Apple is planning to start production of the iWatch in multiple screen sizes during the fourth quarter of 2014, Christopher Caso, an analyst with Susquehanna Financial Group, said in a note to investors on Tuesday.

Caso is reiterating what a lot of analysts and reports have already said, adding that two versions of the iWatch are likely and that Apple is planning production targets of five million to six million units in the fourth quarter of 2014. Caso adds one other interesting bit - the iWatch could essentially replace the iPod, which may make a lot of sense...

Rumor: Apple, Nike developing sensor-laden fitness band that controls other devices via gestures

File this one under the 'Obvious' (or is it?) tab. According to a new report Tuesday by Geektime, citing sources familiar with their plans, Apple and Nike have banded together to secretly engineer a new smartband said to have been scheduled for a major announcement this Fall.

Needless to say, Geekwire doesn't have an established track record in terms of rumors so you need to take the story with a grain of salt. Of course, such a notion just makes lots of sense on many levels.

As a reminder, CNET learned last week that Nike is in the process of shuttering its wearable-hardware division that produces FuelBand-branded accessories. These things are worn on one's wrist, track one's health and fitness data and work in conjunction with a companion iPhone app.

The sportswear company reportedly let go the majority of the team responsible for the development of FuelBand hardware as it reportedly concentrates its efforts on a secretive collaboration with Apple...

‘Apple’ trademark now covers jewelry, clocks and watches

Is Apple about to enter the jewelry business? This obvious question comes to mind after realizing that the company's own trademark for the Apple name now includes protection for jewelry, clocks and watches.

I kid you not, I swear.

As noted by MacRumors, Apple's trademark now includes Class 14 specification which mainly covers "precious metals, goods in precious metals and, in general, jewelry, clocks and watches" (emphasis mine).

The wording leaves room for speculation that Apple's rumored wearable device - which may or may not be a smartwatch per se - could at the very least include parts made of precious metals because what's the alternative? Apple about to start selling necklaces, bracelets, rings, earrings and other pieces of jewelry in its stores?