This week is turning into a notable one for wearable devices thanks to a couple of announcements out of Asia. First, Xiaomi announced plans for a device that will retail for just $13 , a truly new low pricepoint for the genre, and now Razer is revealing that its upcoming new product will integrate messaging app WeChat .
The Nabu smartband borrows some functionality from a smartwatch, alongside the standard fitness and health tracking capabilities that we expect. But integrating WeChat is a very interesting move, particularly in China where the service is ubiquitously used and is even becoming a platform for developers who seek to super-charge their apps.
Razer tells Re/Code that Nabu will debut in China before the end of the year, but will make it over to the US — and, we presume, other international markets — within the next couple of months. It’s set to retail for less than $100.
The WeChat integration is something that stands out, and the company says it is exploring unique features like exchanging contact details via a high-five or handshake. They would rely on people owning a Nabu and using WeChat, of course, but it will also feature more standard stuff like on-device notifications and sharing of information via WeChat.
Nabu includes its own open platform which means that other services and apps could integrate with it too, as Tencent has done with WeChat.
The tech community is very much polarized on smartwatches. Even at TNW, some of our reporters believe the hype but others are more skeptical . With watch size, battery issues and screen real estate key concerns, I can’t help thinking that Razer is on to something here with Nabu — wearable devices skirt some of these problems and have already gained a good level of mainstream adoption.
Gramofon from Fon: A Spotify-streaming jukebox that’s also a Facebook-powered social WiFi router
There’s no shortage of video-focused, Internet-connected boxes on the market and most of them can handle music streaming too. But what if you stripped out the video and concentrated entirely on audio? That’s what ‘social WiFi’ company Fon is doing with its new Gramofon device .
Hook a Gramofon box up to your Internet connection and not only will it stream music from Spotify, but it will act as a social jukebox where your friends can sign in via Facebook to line up songs to play. Oh, and because Fon has plenty of experience in building routers, you friends can use the Gramofon to get WiFi too, without needing your password. As long as you’re friends with them on Facebook, they can get online.
Streaming works like Google’s Chromecast; you send instructions on what to stream from your phone and the device pulls the music in directly. There’s no Bluetooth or AirPlay-type activity here – the battery in your phone or tablet won’t be taxed.
Although the R&D behind Gramofon is just about complete, Fon is taking to Kickstarter to help assess demand for the device and garner ideas about software features that can be added before launch.
“We’re established in social WiFi, but we’re certainly not established in music. We’re like a startup,” Fon CEO Martin Varsavsky says in a video interview with TNW that you can watch above. “There was a lot of debate within our company as to how good our product was and how to make it better, and so Kickstarter came up as a solution.”
The campaign has just gone live today and backers will be able to pre-order a Gramofon for a discounted price of $30 for a white unit and $40 for a black version, as opposed to the proposed regular retail price of $60 in white and $80 in black. Varsavsky says that Fon hopes to ship the first Gramofon units within 60 days.
(Update: Incidentally, a rather similar – if less polished-looking – device called the Blicko is also live on Kickstarter right now).
➤ Gramofon [Kickstarter]
Leaked render reportedly outs Samsung’s Oculus-powered Gear VR headset
Samsung and Oculus VR are believed to be working on a virtual reality headset together, with Oculus providing the software and Samsung producing the hardware. SamMobile has obtained a reported render of the headset, which is said to be called the Gear VR and could launch at the IFA 2014 trade show in September.
From the looks of it, users will plug in their own Galaxy smartphones to use the device, relying on the phone’s sensors to power the head-tracking system. The headset also appears to have a trackpad on top and a “see-through button” for activating a camera to view your surroundings.
➤ Samsung’s virtual reality headset will be called Gear VR, launch at IFA 2014 [SamMobile]
Image credits: JUNG YEON-JE/AFP/GettyImages , SamMobile