From normal hours to smart: transition
In the late XIX - early XX century, the clock slowly moved from the pockets to the wrist. And already in the 1920s, the first attempt was made to make another device in the same form factor - an analog navigator, and in the second half of the last century, watch manufacturers began to supplement classic devices with new functions. They became particularly active after the appearance of the first digital devices of this type.
Let us remember what functions we tried to successfully (and not really) add to a wristwatch, including navigation, calculators, cameras and telephones. Share your experiences in the comments.
In 1920, the world's first navigator appeared in the clock form factor. It was necessary to insert a special card into the device, and then twist it manually during the trip.
')
Such wrist compasses were used by German pilots during World War II.
In modern Garmin EPIX with GPS / GLONASS and topographic map of Russia, no scrolls need to be inserted. But these watches cost more than 50,000 rubles, but they work without charging for up to 14 weeks.
Casio Prayer Compass were released specifically for Muslims. The compass helps to turn towards Mecca. In the arsenal of Casio now there are six wrist watches made specifically for traveling representatives of this religion.
Those of you who are now between 30 and 40 years old can remember school years when a watch with a calculator was considered an amazing thing. But the first watch with a calculator appeared much earlier, in 1975, but in Russia I did not see them. It was Pulsar.
And even earlier, in the XVII century, in China already made accounts in the form of a ring.
Around the display of the Citizen 9140A clock is located 41 buttons. They helped calculate the sine, cosine, tangent, and other mathematical operations. This certainly stylish gadget doesn’t have many users - several hundreds of such watches were released.
In 1985, Casio released the CFX-400 - a watch with an engineering calculator.
In 2014, you had a chance to buy a prototype HP-01 watch with a calculator for only $ 14,500. But you missed him. The clock itself was made in 1977.
At present, advanced smart watches - namely, devices on Android Wear and Apple Watch - this is rather an addition to the smartphone, simplifying some of its functions. Some will say that they satisfy a fictitious need. An important intermediate stage was the watch, which itself served as a smartphone. And the fact that this type of devices did not sell well enough led to the current state of the infrastructure of such gadgets.
In 1998, Samsung released the Samsung SPH-WP10 - the first mobile watch. In fact, it was just a small phone that was attached to the arm. It was possible to speak using a wired headset.
Another version of such a device introduced NTT in 1999.
In 2001, Samsung at CES in Las Vegas brought a new watch phone. Above the design worked well, but still the company could not win the market.
But Samsung did not want to give up, and in 2009 began selling the S9110. Again - a mobile phone, not a “mobile assistant”. Again failure.
Similar devices offered and LG. The Watch Phone device with a touchscreen display not only had a built-in speaker and MP3 player, but also supported voice activation of the call, was equipped with a VGA-camera, Bluetooth and eight dial options. The gadget supported 3G +.
Once upon a time, when Motorola had not yet made Moto 360, and Apple had not thought about developing smart watches, several famous manufacturers from the watch world and the software world tried to plug wrist devices into the infrastructure of a smart home.
Casio CMD-40 is not only avaluable fur stylish wrist watch, but also a home appliances control panel. Released in 1995. The photo shows the infrared port in the upper part of the case.
And in 2003, Bill Gates introduced a watch with the Smart Personal Object technology. This technology is designed to control home appliances and personal electronics.
In 2000, Casio built a camera into the watch. The monochrome display of the Casio WQV-1 watch with a resolution of 120x120 pixels, transmitting 16 grayscale, allowed images to be viewed.
The continuation of the line became Casio WQV-10 - already with a color screen and a color camera. The device had enough memory for 100 photos with a resolution of 176x144 pixels. The color display is 78x80 pixels. Fun function, but with the advent of mobile devices with cameras, such devices have lost their relevance.
But these were not the very first cameras in the clock form factor. In Germany in the late 1940s there was a Steineck ABC camera.
The first company in the production of heart rate monitors was Polar, which in 1977 invented a heart rate monitor for the Finnish national ski team. And she received a patent for "Optical Pulse Sensor".
Three years later, the company issued the world's first sports smart watches Polar Sport Tester PE 2000. Of the pleasant ones - the watch itself, alarm clock, heart monitor and a couple of other functions.
In 1985, Polar patented a wireless heart rate measurement and two years later released the PE 3000 - a watch that allows you to analyze the data obtained during workouts using a computer. Details about the history of the heart rate monitor at the beginning of 2014, read here . It's amazing how quickly everything changes, it's time to write a new article on this topic.
Released by Casio in 1991, the BP-400 could measure heart rate with a sensor on the front panel. And they looked more like a classic watch, not a sports one. To some, this design will seem relevant today.
Surprisingly, the first watch with a player appeared only in 2000. And again - Casio, model WMP-1V - Wrist Audio Player.
This is the Panasonic R-72S Toot-a-Loop Bracelet Radio bracelet from Japan, made in 1972. Very reminiscent of Jawbone - and color, and form, you do not find?
When writing articles on such topics, you need to constantly remember: an article where gadgets are in chronological order becomes incomplete after just a couple of months. New gadgets are constantly appearing, manufacturers are constantly (together with marketers) inventing new needs for us, which they themselves are trying to satisfy. It is difficult to say whether this is good or bad. Looking back at the story, one can think why the industry looks like this, and not otherwise, why some functions remain relevant - like heart rate monitors, while others - go away like a watch with cameras.
Let's discuss in the comments which devices in the clock form factor were most relevant to you.
Let us remember what functions we tried to successfully (and not really) add to a wristwatch, including navigation, calculators, cameras and telephones. Share your experiences in the comments.
Navigation
In 1920, the world's first navigator appeared in the clock form factor. It was necessary to insert a special card into the device, and then twist it manually during the trip.
')
Such wrist compasses were used by German pilots during World War II.
In modern Garmin EPIX with GPS / GLONASS and topographic map of Russia, no scrolls need to be inserted. But these watches cost more than 50,000 rubles, but they work without charging for up to 14 weeks.
Casio Prayer Compass were released specifically for Muslims. The compass helps to turn towards Mecca. In the arsenal of Casio now there are six wrist watches made specifically for traveling representatives of this religion.
Engineering Calculators
Those of you who are now between 30 and 40 years old can remember school years when a watch with a calculator was considered an amazing thing. But the first watch with a calculator appeared much earlier, in 1975, but in Russia I did not see them. It was Pulsar.
And even earlier, in the XVII century, in China already made accounts in the form of a ring.
Around the display of the Citizen 9140A clock is located 41 buttons. They helped calculate the sine, cosine, tangent, and other mathematical operations. This certainly stylish gadget doesn’t have many users - several hundreds of such watches were released.
In 1985, Casio released the CFX-400 - a watch with an engineering calculator.
In 2014, you had a chance to buy a prototype HP-01 watch with a calculator for only $ 14,500. But you missed him. The clock itself was made in 1977.
Phone
At present, advanced smart watches - namely, devices on Android Wear and Apple Watch - this is rather an addition to the smartphone, simplifying some of its functions. Some will say that they satisfy a fictitious need. An important intermediate stage was the watch, which itself served as a smartphone. And the fact that this type of devices did not sell well enough led to the current state of the infrastructure of such gadgets.
In 1998, Samsung released the Samsung SPH-WP10 - the first mobile watch. In fact, it was just a small phone that was attached to the arm. It was possible to speak using a wired headset.
Another version of such a device introduced NTT in 1999.
In 2001, Samsung at CES in Las Vegas brought a new watch phone. Above the design worked well, but still the company could not win the market.
But Samsung did not want to give up, and in 2009 began selling the S9110. Again - a mobile phone, not a “mobile assistant”. Again failure.
Similar devices offered and LG. The Watch Phone device with a touchscreen display not only had a built-in speaker and MP3 player, but also supported voice activation of the call, was equipped with a VGA-camera, Bluetooth and eight dial options. The gadget supported 3G +.
Home appliances control
Once upon a time, when Motorola had not yet made Moto 360, and Apple had not thought about developing smart watches, several famous manufacturers from the watch world and the software world tried to plug wrist devices into the infrastructure of a smart home.
Casio CMD-40 is not only a
And in 2003, Bill Gates introduced a watch with the Smart Personal Object technology. This technology is designed to control home appliances and personal electronics.
Camera
In 2000, Casio built a camera into the watch. The monochrome display of the Casio WQV-1 watch with a resolution of 120x120 pixels, transmitting 16 grayscale, allowed images to be viewed.
The continuation of the line became Casio WQV-10 - already with a color screen and a color camera. The device had enough memory for 100 photos with a resolution of 176x144 pixels. The color display is 78x80 pixels. Fun function, but with the advent of mobile devices with cameras, such devices have lost their relevance.
But these were not the very first cameras in the clock form factor. In Germany in the late 1940s there was a Steineck ABC camera.
Sport
The first company in the production of heart rate monitors was Polar, which in 1977 invented a heart rate monitor for the Finnish national ski team. And she received a patent for "Optical Pulse Sensor".
Three years later, the company issued the world's first sports smart watches Polar Sport Tester PE 2000. Of the pleasant ones - the watch itself, alarm clock, heart monitor and a couple of other functions.
In 1985, Polar patented a wireless heart rate measurement and two years later released the PE 3000 - a watch that allows you to analyze the data obtained during workouts using a computer. Details about the history of the heart rate monitor at the beginning of 2014, read here . It's amazing how quickly everything changes, it's time to write a new article on this topic.
Released by Casio in 1991, the BP-400 could measure heart rate with a sensor on the front panel. And they looked more like a classic watch, not a sports one. To some, this design will seem relevant today.
Music
Surprisingly, the first watch with a player appeared only in 2000. And again - Casio, model WMP-1V - Wrist Audio Player.
This is the Panasonic R-72S Toot-a-Loop Bracelet Radio bracelet from Japan, made in 1972. Very reminiscent of Jawbone - and color, and form, you do not find?
Conclusion
When writing articles on such topics, you need to constantly remember: an article where gadgets are in chronological order becomes incomplete after just a couple of months. New gadgets are constantly appearing, manufacturers are constantly (together with marketers) inventing new needs for us, which they themselves are trying to satisfy. It is difficult to say whether this is good or bad. Looking back at the story, one can think why the industry looks like this, and not otherwise, why some functions remain relevant - like heart rate monitors, while others - go away like a watch with cameras.
Let's discuss in the comments which devices in the clock form factor were most relevant to you.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/372141/
All Articles