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Microsoft Gearing Up To Release a Smartwatch of Its Own

Posted by timothy on from the funny-how-things-catch-on dept.

SmartAboutThings writes The smartwatch market is still in its nascent form, but with Apple releasing its AppleWatch in early 2015, things are going to change. And Microsoft wants to make sure it's not late to the party, as it has been so many times in the past. That's why it plans on releasing its own smartwatch, which would be the first new category under CEO Nadella. The device could get launched with two specific features that could make it stand apart from other similar devices — much better battery life and cross-platform support for iOS and Android users. A release before this year's holiday season is in the cards, with no details on the pricing nor availability. (Also at Reuters and The Inquirer.)

9 of 172 comments (clear)

  1. I can already see it by ArcadeMan · · Score: 5, Funny

    I bet it's called the X-Watch, has an x86 CPU and tries to cram the regular version of Windows into a 2" display with a tiny cursor controlled by a Kinect camera you wear on your head via the included X-BaseballCap.

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    1. Re:I can already see it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Yep! And then they'll make force the display on Windows 10 to have a 640-480 resolution to create a familiar experience between the watch and the desktop.

    2. Re:I can already see it by tomhath · · Score: 4, Funny

      regular version of Windows into a 2" display with a tiny cursor controlled by a Kinect camera you wear on your head

      Imaging a Beowulf cluster of those.

    3. Re:I can already see it by ArcadeMan · · Score: 4, Funny

      That's great news for my dear aunt because while she's set on buying a smart watch on the double, without a killer feature to distinguish between them she's been having a hard time selecting between them all.

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    4. Re:I can already see it by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      That's silly, they'll just use their new advanced scaling and vector-based rendering engine to scale up buttons and fonts to fill an entire 4k screen.
      That way they can still claim a 4k resolution, even if you can only fit two words and an "OK" button on it.

    5. Re:I can already see it by mwvdlee · · Score: 4, Funny

      tries to cram the regular version of Windows into a 2" display.

      Ofcourse they're not THAT stupid.
      They will design a new interface specifically suited to 2" displays on one-button devices.
      It'll replace the start menu on Windows 10.

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  2. The downside is by Chrisq · · Score: 4, Funny

    Its only compatible with Microsoft time, requires network access for a license check before you can set or change any functions, and won't be supported in 7 years time.

    1. Re:The downside is by Richard_at_work · · Score: 4, Funny

      Wow, 7 years of support!

      That would out do the original iPhone (released June 2007, last software update February 2010, less than 3 years of support), the iPhone 3G (released July 2008, last software updated November 2010, less than 2.5 years of support) and the iPad 1 (released April 2010, last software update May 2012, just over 2 years of support).

      Bring on that 7 years, it sounds positively fantastic!

  3. Behold the bluescreen watch! by miknix · · Score: 5, Funny

    Wait no more, with this new windows watch you will be able to make pauses during your work and stare a wonderful 8-bit blue.
    No need to wait for the 16h to drink your tea, with the windows watch you get random bluescreens every time!

    Now available with the new RandomFunctionEx32! It is random 7.9999 times in 8!

    Call now, and get a free copy of Windows 10 Fisher price edition!