2017 is set to be a big year for smartwatches. Android Wear 2.0 has finally landed, we’re expecting to see even more hybrid smartwatches, and you can bet your money we’ll be seeing follow-ups to the Apple Watch Series 2 and the Samsung Gear S3. Hey, we might even finally see a Fitbit smartwatch.
Some companies have already laid out their plans while others are just hoping to get those MIA devices out after delaying them in 2016.
Essential reading: The best smartwatches currently on sale
We’ve updated our watchlist of the smartwatches that are set to land this year, along with details of when we can expect to be wearing them.
Here’s the state of smartwatch play for 2017.
Movado/Hugo Boss/Tommy Hilfiger
ETA: August 2017
Movado Group recently announced a trio of new Android Wear 2.0 smartwatches, including its very own, a Hugo Boss and a Tommy Hilfiger.
The Connect will be Movado’s flagship, featuring watch faces inspired by the watchmaker’s iconic Museum Dial design and support for Android Pay. It’ll launch in US, UK, Canada and Caribbean for $495.
Hands on: Movado Connect review
The strangely named TH24/7You is Tommy Hilfiger’s entrance into the Android Wear game. There’s no heart rate monitoring, NFC or GPS though. Instead, it’s just Android Wear in a stainless steel case. For $299, to boot.
And then there’s the more business-like and classy Hugo Boss Touch, which does come with Android Pay support. It’s a little hefty in size. Oh, it also sports a $395 price tag.
Misfit Vapor
ETA: Late Summer 2017
After launching the Misfit Phase hybrid smartwatch, the Fossil-owned company has turned its attention to a genuine Apple Watch and Samsung Gear rival with the Vapor.
The circular smartwatch features a vibrant 1.39-inch OLED display with a barely visible touch bezel to navigate Android Wear 2.0. There’s built-in GPS, an optical heart rate monitor and it’s waterproof so you can take it for a dip in the pool. Unlike Misfit’s fitness trackers though, battery life is just a couple of days.
Misfit was all set to debut a proprietary operating system with the Vapor, but it instead chose to join the herds turning to Google’s Android Wear.
Have a read of our Misfit Vapor hands on review to see what we make of the sporty smartwatch so far.
Fitbit smartwatch
ETA: Fall 2017
Recent reports have revealed some details of what we can expect from Fitbit’s first smartwatch and we’ve done our own bit of digging and found some answers in our Fitbit smartwatch investigation. We’re expecting it to land in the fall (yes, that rumoured Apple Watch Series 3 launch time) with a design that follows in the footsteps of the Fitbit Blaze.
Read this: Samsung Gear S4 – The story so far
Other rumoured features include waterproofing, GPS, a colour display, heart rate monitor and a built-in music player to store and stream music. We can expect payments too given that Fitbit also bought startup Coin in 2016.
Fitbit CEO James Park has already confirmed that the company is going to launch an app store, so we can expect this thing to be more akin to the Apple Watch.
Tag Heuer Connected Modular 39
ETA: October 2017
Tag once again teamed up with the folks at Intel and Google to make its Tag Heuer Connected Modular 45. Unfortunately, there’s only one model, aimed at men, right now. But that is going to change.
Women will have to wait all the way until October for the 39mm Connected Modular. We don’t yet know what kind of pricing we can expect for the 39mm, but the 45mm is priced at $1,650. Here’s hoping it doesn’t miss out on the waterproof design, NFC support and built-in GPS featured on the current Modular smartwatch.
Fossil Q Venture and Q Explorist
ETA: Fall 2017
Fossil Group is going big on smartwatches this year and is sticking with Android Wear for the Q Venture and Q Explorist.
First impressions: Fossil Q Venture review
The pair are Fossil’s slimmest smartwatches to date – there are no specifics but they will certainly be slimmer than the 13.5mm Q Wander – yet they don’t hold back on features. Screen tech looks to have been upgraded to lose the flat-tyre at the bottom, while the watches also boast AMOLED screens to show off “millions” of branded dials, according to Fossil.
The pair will be available from autumn 2017, though pricing is not yet known.
Michael Kors Access Sofie & Grayson
ETA: Holiday 2017
Michael Kors dropped a pair of Android Wear-powered smartwatches at Baselworld 2017. There’s the Access Grayson, aimed at men, and the Access Sofie, aimed at women.
The Sofie is slimmer and sleeker, with an embellished bezel and smaller lugs. The Grayson is beefier and all metal. Both watches will sport interchangeable bands. There’ll also be a special micro-app called My Social, which lets you customize watch faces with snaps from your Instagram.
Other than that, we don’t have too much info on the latest Access watches. Pricing is yet to be revealed.
Guess/Gc Connect
ETA: Holiday 2017
Guess and its high-end line Gc will both join the Android Wear party but are taking slightly different design approaches to house Google’s smartwatch operating system. While Guess went for variety and loud styles, Gc played it a little more safe.
Both Connects run Android Wear 2.0, but how they run it is the real story. Guess has loud, customizable watch faces. It has a variety of styles you can mix and match. Gc, again, went in the opposite direction. Everything is a little more classy, a little more subdued.
The Guess Connect will launch later this year starting at $300. We don’t know how much the Gc Connect, which also launches later this year, will launch for, but we can certainly expect it to be more than $300.
Diesel On
ETA: Late 2017
The Diesel On touchscreen formed part of Fossil Group’s mass unveiling at Baselworld, and is potentially the most exciting of the pack to rock Android Wear 2.0.
Under the hood, the watch will feature Snapdragon Wear 2100, with the AMOLED screen described as ‘high-resolution’.
The device also takes advantage of Google’s software to provide users with filters and micro-apps. The former will essentially add gimmicky overlays to enrich the experience – one, for example, shows a screen cracking animation the more notifications you receive while in ‘do not disturb’ mode. One thing we don’t know yet: pricing.
Emporio Armani Connected
ETA: September 2017
After Fossil launched it’s first Armani hybrid watches in 2016, it’s now giving the designer brand an Android Wear makeover with the Armani Connected collection.
Bearing a strong resemblance to last year’s connected timepieces, the iOS and Android-friendly Connected features a Snapdragon Wear 2100 processor, a high resolution AMOLED touchscreen display and will also bring branded micro-apps to the table.
Set to be available in a host of different shades and with interchangeable straps, we’re still waiting on confirmation of how much they’re going to cost, but we’d fully expect it to come in somewhere around the $300 mark.
Swarovoski Android Wear
ETA: 2017
We were all set to see an Android Wear smartwatch for women this year at after Qualcomm announced it’ll be powering a Swarovski smartwatch.
But that wasn’t to be as Swarovski announced before the show it wasn’t ready to debut its “smart device initiative.” The company was keen to make sure you didn’t think it was Qualcomm or Google’s fault. It just doesn’t think it’s ready for primetime yet.
The cut crystal specialist is no stranger to the world of wearables, having already partnered with Misfit for the Swarovski Shine fitness tracker and teamed up with Samsung, Polar and Huawei in the past for special editions of its wearables.
We have no idea what the Swarovski Android Wear smartwatch is going to look like, and now we don’t really know when we can expect it. Hopefully we’ll get an update before the end of 2017.
What about the rumour mill?
Samsung Gear S4
Although there’s no official word on the status of the Gear S4, we’re all looking for a September announcement at IFA in Berlin. The Gear S2 and Gear S3 both popped up at the show, and there’s no denying that the platform could use a partial refresh.
While the Gear S3 is our highly commended offering in our best smartwatches 2017 guide, we’re still bitter about the chunkiness. We’re sure a more svelte build would be a big part of the Gear S4, as well as Bixby support, Samsung’s new digital assistant.
Chances of a 2017 release: Good
Apple Watch Series 3
All eyes are on September for an Apple Watch 3 release, although we’re not confident a new smartwatch out of Cupertino will materialise. The company has got great traction with its waterproof and GPS-toting Series 2, and the latest round of rumoured improvements don’t seem to have the same impact.
Those include a better screen, FaceTime camera (the rumour that just won’t die), a slimmer build and battery improvements. However, LTE or tether-busting connectivity would certainly be a Series 3 worthy change – as would a round Apple Watch. We can dream, can’t we?
Chances of a 2017 release: Don’t bet on it
SOURCE:https://www.wareable.com/smartwatches/next-gen-smartwatches-coming-2015-2016
