A guide to smartwatches
<p>Smartwatches aren’t your ordinary wristwatch and they’ve come a long way since those nifty calculator watches. As we all have seen, technology keeps advancing at lightning speeds so now we have watches that not only tell the time but serve a whole host of other functions. Think a computerised watch or a mini-smartphone on your wrist! The past few weeks has seen many smartwatches introduced to the market with Apple making the biggest splash with the launch of their Apple Watch. But what exactly are smartwatches? We look into what all the fuss is about.</p><p><strong>Features</strong></p><p>Like any other watch, a smartwatch straps to your wrist and tells you the time. But it can do much more than that! It has an interactive touchscreen display just like your smartphone or tablet. However, most smartwatches are not standalone pieces as they lack Internet connection, so they work when linked to your smartphone. This means they provide notifications from your phone about calls, emails, and calendar appointments as well as providing things such as weather conditions. Instead of pulling out your phone, you can just look at your watch. Some also work as fitness trackers acting as pedometers and heart-rate monitors.</p><p>They don’t call it smart for nothing – most of the smartwatches also play music as well by either controlling the music on your phone or storing music so you can play it using Bluetooth headphones. The smartwatches which run on Android program also support Google’s voice technology so you can use voice commands to tell your smartwatch to look things up on the internet, check the weather or navigate to a particular location.</p><p><strong>Cons</strong></p><p>Most current smartwatches don’t do anything more than your smartphone can do so it is not exactly ground-breaking technology. You are generally limited to using your smartwatch only if your phone is nearby. Smartwatches still work without phones but will be limited to offline functions. However, the main aim of smartwatches currently is to be a more convenient and hands-free way to access your technology. </p><p>Smartwatches are also bulkier and less stylish than your traditional wristwatch. However, many people predict that technological advances in future years will mean the smartwatch may replace our smartphones so keep a look out.</p><p><strong>Popular models</strong></p><p><a href="http://www.dicksmith.com.au/health-fitness/pebble-smrtwatch-ios-andrd-red-dsau-se5061" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Pebble </span></strong></a></p><p>The original smartwatch, Pebble, connects to all Apple and Android phones. Pebble displays email, SMS, Caller ID and notifications from your apps. It has one of the best batteries out there lasting about a week without a charge.</p><p><a href="http://www.dicksmith.com.au/home-appliances/samsung-galaxy-gear-2-neo-black-dsau-se5067" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Samsung Galaxy Gear 2 </span></strong></a></p><p>A stylishly designed watch notifies you of incoming calls, texts, emails and alerts and eve shows you preview of those messages on the screen. With an in-built heart rate monitor and pedometer, this smartwatch will help you achieve your fitness goals.</p><p><a href="http://www.dicksmith.com.au/health-fitness/magellan-echo-gps-fitness-watch-black-dsau-se5039"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Magellan Echo Smart Sports Watch </span></strong></a></p><p>The first smart sports watch in Australia lets you view and control distance, time, pace, heart rate and any other stat your fitness app captures.</p><p><a href="http://www.kogan.com/au/buy/motorola-moto-360-dark-stainless-steel-case-black-leather-band/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Motorola Moto 360 </span></strong></a></p><p>Unlike other smartwatches which look like mini rectangular computers, the Moto 360 has the sleek round face of a wristwatch. Connected to your phone, the watch will update you on your Google Calendar and Gmail. Due out in Australia by Christmas but can be purchased online from overseas.</p><p><a href="http://www.apple.com/au/pr/products/apple-watch/Apple-Watch.html" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Apple Watch </span></strong></a></p><p>The most stylish smartwatch on the market, the Apple Watch is customisable so you can choose between two different sizes in three different materials and a variety of straps. The best feature of the Apple Watch is the health and fitness capabilities. It tracks your steps, heartbeats and calories, as well as helps you set fitness goals and reminds you when to stand up. It only works with an iPhone.</p>
