Review: Apple Watch will re-define future of wearable tech segment

The last time Apple had an event at 'The Flint Center', it was Steve Jobs back in 1999 announcing the iMac SE. On September 9, Tim Cook stood at the same platform while the crowd witnessed the dawn of a new era. An era that marks the tech giant’s entry into the world of wearables and where credit cards will only find their place in some old drawer.

As anticipated and predicted, thanks to the numerous leaks online, Apple announced two versions of its new flagship phone, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6-plus.  The former has a 4.7 inch retina display (at 1334x750) and the latter boasts of a 5.5 inch Full HD retina display (at 1920x1080). These are the thinnest iPhones Apple has ever made, each being 6.9mm and 7.1mm respectively.

Powering these devices is Apple’s A8 processor coupled with the M8 processor, giving Apple’s HealthKit some nifty features such as counting steps and telling you how many flight of stairs you’ve taken in a day. The future of health wearable startups such as the 'FitBit' doesn’t seem to be very promising after this.

Apple also claimed drastic improvements in battery and highlighted the cameras in the new range of iPhones. They are still 8MP as in the previous iPhone 5S, but Apple claims to have improved image quality without necessarily bumping up the pixel count.

The rear camera has, what Apple calls “phase detection”, which improves and speeds up auto-focusing. It can also shoot slow-motion videos at 240 frames per second. Additionally, the iPhone 6 plus has optical image stabilisation, which helps reduce the blur introduced by shakiness. Apple also kicked up the maximum possible storage option to 128GB. These go on sale on September 19 in the United States and are priced as below. However, there is no news on specifications for India yet.

The star of the show had to be Apple’s whole new revolutionised payment service: ApplePay. Imagine this, you are at your local department store doing your weekly round of groceries. You load up the cart, come to the counter, pull out your phone and gently place it against the billing counter or just hover your watch over the counter, that’s it, you payment is done. This is exactly what Apple Pay is about. Cash-less payments are old, it’s now time for card-less payments. You can add all your credit cards but just taking a photograph of the card using your iPhone and all the details are securely stored in your phone.The best part - the experience is even better. When using it online, if you like a book on Amazon, you don't have to fill endless forms, one click and your purchase is complete.

The privacy aspect has been taken care of as the merchant / seller gets absolutely no information about your card number, expiry or CVV - nothing is shared with any third-party. Apple has partnered with some big names such as McDonald’s, Subway, Disney and Target. Walgreens and others also have Apple Pay integrated, although this feature will only be available in the US to start off with.

Also, putting an end to all rumours and speculations, Apple unveiled it’s first ever Apple Watch as it enters into the hot segment of wearables. Apple has not just taken the iPhone and crunched it onto a smaller screen, the entire interface and software has been specifically designed for the watch. The Apple Watch comes in three editions -The regular watch, the Watch Edition made of 18K gold and Watch Sport, which is light and comes in bright colours.

Apple has put a huge emphasis on fitness enthusiasts with features like counting your steps, tracking your hear-beat, calories burned, minutes you have spent standing throughout the day. The Watch can also learn your daily routine and set up fitness goals for you. As stated earlier, it is integrated with ApplePay as well. 

The Watch houses a touchscreen along with an innovative scroll wheel that Apple calls as the “digital crown”. The display can also recognise pressure and act accordingly. It starts at $349 and will be available starting early 2015.

Apple closed their event with a live performance from the band U2 and announcing the launch of their new album - “Songs of Innocence” available for free exclusively on iTunes.