Apple watch and the evolution of the smart wearable

Apple watch and the evolution of the smart wearable

Wearable technology has been deemed to be the next biggest thing after the smartphone. 2 years since its launch it has seen its share of mixed emotions. From some wholeheartedly accepting it for the value that it brings in healthifying your life to allowing the user to be more handsfree on the go. While on the other hand the more popular opinion lately has been of discontentment in terms of its limited capabilities and useful functionalities which could lead to its premature death. This technology begs for deeper and unique functionalities for it to be widely accepted and become as indispensable as its counterpart- the smartphone. Apple has been at the forefront in pushing technology and making it aspirational. When this big player introduces a smartwatch of its own it is imperative that the world would adopt it faster than any other competitor. It recently announced an update to the watch in terms of improved features and opening up capabilities for third party developers. This gives us immense excitement; with the recent looming cloud of negativity surrounding these devices as a whole, the apple watch update and advancement suggest that this technology has a huge potential that is yet to be tapped into. It is pleasing to see the players adapting features to the specific technology. Up to now we have seen the smartwatch do functions that a phone does exactly, without it being adapted and suited to a new form and medium. Introducing smart ways of texting and replying that are adapted to a 1 inch screen shows a shift in thinking and an appreciation of both its...
Evolution of the fitness tracker

Evolution of the fitness tracker

Activity and fitness trackers exploded within a short span of a couple of years. Today morning us wearable geeks were jolted with the news of Jawbone, one of the first companies to enter this segment, exiting the market. Being such a nascent industry, it seemed sudden that one of the founding members of the fitness band segment should leave the space. But this should not dampen the hopes on these awesome gadgets taking off, nor should it mean the death of wearables. Instead it signifies the importance of evolution and growth in functionalities of these devices. As nicely suggested by Muchaneta Kapfunde in his article – The death of the Standalone Activity Tracker, ‘With all this being said, one could agree that when it comes to fitness trackers it is more about the devices evolving rather than extinction? I feel that offering the ability to measure the key biometrics will soon be complementary.’ Fitness and activity trackers started as a beautiful example of using the wrist or body parts to map and calculate biometrics in an accessible and understandable format. Having established its efficiency and user engagement, it is time we shifted the focus towards more use-cases and functionalities, enabling the consumer to have a rich experience with their gadget. The consumer has adopted, used and gained benefits out of the first gen activity and fitness trackers. Setbacks and death of certain early competitors in this space only establishes the need for evolution. With the wrist being premium property right now, devices instead of competing with themselves with exact or similar functionalities, should chase deeper and more meaningful solutions....
Wearable ecosystem

Wearable ecosystem

Most of us have gone through a phase of aggressively chasing the insect with a snake. Left, right, up and down keys pushed animatedly to beat scores amongst our small circle of friends. With every new phone release we all waited in anticipation of a new, more updated version of the games with ‘edgier’ graphics. This was the era of Nokia and the game ‘snake’ that so consumed everyone’s attention. Our expectations and imaginations contained to the few apps preloaded on the phone. The world of phones has seen a rapid evolution in the last couple of years. With the big players, apple and samsung, revolutionising the way we interact with our phones. They have almost become an extension of our physical selves, making it almost impossible for some of us to live without them. With their advancements in technology they have made devices such as the camera and Tomtom GPS redundant. Compressing the functionality of these devices into one unit has simplified life and made content generation and navigation as simple as a click. All this and more has been made possible with the simple idea of opening up application development to the minds of a million creators. With more apps within the reach of your palm, we have become more and more dependant on this 5-inch device. Technology is extending to devices beyond the phone to objects that people wear everyday. The rapidly growing market of wearables have enabled devices such as the watch to take on new meanings. The humble watch that showed only time and date has gone onto monitoring heart rates and capturing steps...
SlamdunQ All-Stars – Coach Vijay Divecha

SlamdunQ All-Stars – Coach Vijay Divecha

Coach Divecha is the esteemed coach of the golf pros – Anirban Lahiri, Chikkarangappa and Udayan Mane. He has years of experience in the field and exudes immeasurable passion for the sport. At SlamdunQ we are proud to feature him on our blog and gain a few insights on his thoughts about the game and his view on technology in sports. A short glimpse about your journey into golf and coaching. How and why did you transition into the world of golf and coaching? From the time I was a child of 3 or 4, I have always been into sports. Cricket was my passion till I was a student. My introduction to golf was at age 7 when I went to the golf course with my father. Lived a “normal” life and discovered that I wasn’t doing what I really wanted to do.  At age 39, gave up my corporate job to follow my passion – golf. Started my life from scratch. Started my education as a golf coach. It’s been a long journey but I have enjoyed it.  It required passion, commitment and self-belief. When I see what Anirban Lahiri, Chikkarangappa and Udayan Mane are doing it makes me realise that all that passion, commitment and never-say-die attitude is starting to show results. The journey has just begun and we are sure that we will keep reaching new destinations. What are ‘Coach Divecha’ fundamentals and ideologies for golf? The first and foremost thing to remember is that it’s a game and games are supposed to be fun. One must enjoy the journey of golf, Whether you are...
Dawn of self analysis and lifestyle trackers

Dawn of self analysis and lifestyle trackers

Once upon a time… We ran with no other agenda but to stay fit. Fitness and keeping healthy were the only criterion involved in the simple morning run. The closest thing we came to cool gadgets were our uber cool touch screen phones that came with slick black velcro straps that attached to the arm giving us access to pumping music and our trusty old designer kicks from nike to adidas. One fought only to keep up with the trending neon colours & the allure of the global sneaker companies. Fast forward from the days of yore to today… Let’s take a moment to stop gazing at those walls of neon shoes to rotate our gaze to those line up of neon bands that are so taking over everyone’s life. Fitbit, Mifit, Xiaomi have all raged into the market, offering lifestyle solutions. The everyday run is no more just the average run. This everyday activity has taken on new meaning with the offer of counting those calories, mapping the route and tracking your steps / distance. Companies are clamouring to help you quantify your life. Walking to the grocer, running from the neighbourhood dogs or just tripping down those stairs, all play significant roles in the new perception of ‘healthy’ with a band that keeps track of everything. Fast forward a tiny bit more… How long before a consumer craves more from his gadget than just the number of steps he’s walked or the calories she burned over her workout. ‘Up until this point, wearable technology has been stuck in the information age. Our devices have counted our steps,...