HOT Smartwatch: Turns Your Hand Into A Mobile Phone

While smartwatches from big brands like Apple and Google are rumoured to be in the works, others like Pebble and Sony Smartwatch have already hit store shelves. However, the existing smartwatches haven't been very successful at attracting consumers. This may soon change as a slew of smartwatches are said to be in the pipeline. One such upcoming smart watch is really "hot".

The developers at PH Technical Labs designed the watch primarily around their patent-pending Hands-On Talk technology, which is where the HOT Watch gets its name. The HOT Watch connects to your smartphone via Bluetooth and lets a user send and receive messages and make private calls without having to touch the phone. The Bluetooth connection between a phone and the watch usually ranges from 20 to 30 ft (6.1 to 9.1 m).

It has a directional speaker and microphone embedded in the wrist, allowing the wearer to answer phone calls just by cupping their hand to their ear.

The sound is generated by a directional speaker at the bottom of the wrist. It is projected to the palm, which reflects and amplifies it to the user’s ear for a private, crystal-clear phone call.

The sound is generated by a directional speaker at the bottom of the wrist. It is projected to the palm, which reflects and amplifies it to the user’s ear for a private, crystal-clear phone call

The microphone is located on the same module, opposite of the speaker, for echo-free, clear sound.

"Essentially your hand/palm acts like a phone receiver," said PHTL, the watch's maker that is trying to raise funds for making the gadget via Kickstarter.

Aside from this unusual method for answering phone calls, the watch comes packed with almost as many features as a full smartphone. From the HOT Watch, users will be able to access their contacts for caller ID and text messaging, read their email, and even listen to music through their phone's native player. It will also come equipped with some basic apps for checking the weather, stocks, calendar, news, Facebook, and Twitter, amongst many others. PHTL is also planning to provide an SDK so programmers can create their own third-party apps.

A basic HOT Watch measures just 34 x 42 x 8 mm (1.3 x 1.7 x 0.3 in), with a Sharp 1.26-inch E-paper display on the front. The capacitive screen uses multi-touch controls and is made of a smudge-proof, anti-reflective glass that's easy to read even in bright sunlight. Four shortcut buttons are located along the top of the screen, which can be customized to open specific programs. An energy efficient Cortex M3 processor handles most of the watch's basic functions, along with a separate DSP processor just for Bluetooth, call controls, and any audio enhancements. The final design will be water resistant as well, though the developers haven't revealed how much pressure it will be able to withstand.

A basic HOT Watch measures just 34 x 42 x 8 mm (1.3 x 1.7 x 0.3 in), with a Sharp 1.26-inch E-paper display on the front

The capacitive screen uses multi-touch controls and is made of a smudge-proof, anti-reflective glass that's easy to read even in bright sunlight

The watch is also equipped with a vibration motor as well as a six-axis accelerometer and gyroscope, which opens the door for some unique controls and functions. With the optional HOT Gestures activated, the smartwatch will respond to specific hand motions and touch commands. Moving you hand toward your ear while receiving an incoming call will automatically answer it, while shaking your hand will send it to voice mail, for example. You can also draw letters on the screen to unlock it to specific programs, like "C" for the clock or "D" for the dialpad. There's even an optional program that will detect if the wearer has fallen down suddenly and then automatically text a pre-set emergency number, unless it's canceled within 30 seconds.

The smartwatch is sleek and stylish, available in four designs – Basic, Edge, Classic and Curve with either a gold or silver finish. It promises a far better interactive experience than other smartwatches currently available in the market. All watches will be compatible with Android and iOS phones at launch, with similar support for Windows phones expected for March of next year.

The smartwatch is sleek and stylish, available in four designs – Basic, Edge, Classic and Curve with either a gold or silver finish

FEATURES:

>>Water-resistant design

>>Bluetooth 4.0 Dual mode

>>Energy Efficient Cortex M3 processor

>>Secondary DSP processor for Bluetooth, Call control and Audio Enhancements

>>Vibration motor with tactile touch function

>>Built-in LED Flashlight (ONLY in Curve)

The "Hot Watch" has reached its sizable $150,000 Kickstarter funding target in just a single day. As an early bird offer, it is priced for just $109, and expected to start shipping in December.

It’ll be interesting to see what people think of this thing when it starts shipping in December.

What are your thoughts on the HOT Watch so far?

Future Trends

HOT Smartwatch: Turns Your Hand Into A Mobile Phone