Sony (FES) eInk Watch Concept

I've long been a fan of eInk technology and like everyone else have been following the various offerings into the new eWatch space. The problem is that all of the Android and AppleWear watches seem to try to be being too clever and missing the main point of a watch which is to reliably tell the time. Now, when I mean reliably, I mean it has power. The problem with most of the offerings is that they have minimal life, which means that they can't meet the basic purpose without a lot of hassle.

Now, here is the FES Watch prototype that has come out of Sony. There are a couple of things I really like about this and it particularly marks a return to form for Sony with something clearly innovative and with a good understanding of what the user might want. Kind of like the first inkling that made them famous, understanding the need for personal audio and matching that.

Firstly, I love the clean design. Simple, minimalist, I could see myself wearing this. I particularly like that they have looked at what eInk and an eWatch could do that is different from a normal watch. Yes, you can choose a customised design for the face and the strap. Neat!

The battery life is purported to be 60 hours. Again, I like that. No chance of starting a 13 hour flight to Tokyo and then finding out just as the watch is about to adjust timezones that the thing is dead due to the short battery life of the 'smart' watches. Sure, I'm certain they will solve some of these loop-holes, but I really hope Sony get this out and give a sense of some alternatives at the 'low-tech' meets the purpose of the device end. Kind of like phones that can reliably make phone calls.

The other thing I liked about this and some might baulk that this was a device by Sony, is that they tried this out on the world through a separate subsidiary and looked at getting some test input via a Japanese croud-funding site. Is this disingenuous for a large multinational to do this? I'm not so sure. Does it meet the purpose, e.g. trying out something new and innovative on the market-place, yes. Does it allow steerage and feedback on the concepts much more directly, yes. And finally, does it allow companies to take a chance on such things, yes. Back in the day, some will remember the Sony only cautiously broke into the video-games market with the original PlayStation. Known as an AV manufacturer there was concern that this would potentially damage the brand, so the original PlayStation launched without a Sony logo, and the same for the original PS2.

Would I like to see more technology chances? Yes! Is is fair for large companies to try this? I think so, otherwise we're going to see concepts stifled as marketing and brand-police prevent companies taking chances..... good on you Sony..... let's hope we see more. Not so sure about the eInk bow-tie designs though.