Accessories

Google quietly bought smartwatch maker WIMM last year – Nexus watch almost certain

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may_startups_wimm_sf

Rumors of a Google-made “Nexus smartwatch” have been buzzing around the rumor mill for awhile now. It was back in March a source from The Financial Times allegedly confirmed the existence of such a smartwatch, one that could be released by end of this year.

You may remember back in August of 2011 a small company by the name of WIMM tried making a name for itself with a modular smartwatch product called the WIMM One. Barely a year later, it was during the summer of last year that WIMM mysteriously stopped selling the pre-release developer kit, announcing publicly that they had entered an “exclusive, private relationship” with an unnamed company. It’s only now we’re learning who that company was…

Originally speculated that it could have been Apple who bought up WIMM, but in a scoop picked up by GigaOM, it appears that “private relationship” was with none other than our friends at Google. Apparently a few of the original WIMM team actually stayed on to help Google with the project, with some of their LinkedIn profiles updated to reflect the change in employment. As an added bonus of the acquisition, Google now owns the domain: smartwatch.com.

Google Glass Timeline 2013-05-09-08-47-23

We mentioned in a previous post that the smartwatch market is about to explode. With OEM’s like Samsung, Sony, LG, and Motorola making their own smartwatches based on Google’s mobile operating system, it only makes sense that Google steps in and shows manufacturer’s how apps and services should work on the small — very small — screen. While it’s still too early to say, we’re expecting a UI similar to what we’ve already seen on Glass (picture above) with a heavy focus on quick access to Google Now, and acting a smartphone companion — not a replacement.

With Google now entering into the fray, will you jump on offerings from other OEMs, or wait around for Google to release their “Nexus” smartwatch?

Chris Chavez
I've been obsessed with consumer technology for about as long as I can remember, be it video games, photography, or mobile devices. If you can plug it in, I have to own it. Preparing for the day when Android finally becomes self-aware and I get to welcome our new robot overlords.

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32 Comments

  1. I guess they went out on a wimm not a limb.haha sorry about the bad joke

  2. One can never have too many Google accessories! I can’t wait til Google Legs come out. These human legs really suck having to walk everywhere..it’s exhausting!.. I just want Google Legs so I can Bluetooth them to my phone and navigate everywhere easier using Google Maps!

    1. no joke, let’s do body piercings that double as NFC tags. no need to use hardware buttons to unlock your phone, just lick it with your tongue ring out even rib it on your nipple ring! boom! where’s my money?

    2. See, if you were a real nerd, you wouldn’t even realize you had any legs because you’d be in front of your computer all day. You have a smartphone, not because you have any friends, but because it’s fun to root it in order to put netbsd on it.

  3. Using a smartwatch over Google Glass gives me a 99.9% better chance at finally losing my virginity :D

    1. Heard Dat!

        1. Word™

    2. I have a 2 year old that sings while I try and feed bottles to 3 screaming babies (our new triplets). …I think I will stick with Google Glass.

      1. Triplets O_o

        HOLY *#$%&!!

      2. Im sorry

    3. GET SOME CHAVEZ

    4. I thought that hair was getting you ladies on the daylee

  4. There’s something special about wearing a mechanical watch. I’d have no reason to buy another small screen to view the exact same stuff on as my phone which is probably less than 1 foot away from my watch.

  5. Got me interested. Let’s see what comes of this. Have yet to buy a nexus anything

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      One can never have too many Google accessories! I can’t wait til Google Legs come out. These human legs really suck having to walk everywhere..it’s exhausting!.. I just want Google Legs so I can Bluetooth them to my phone and navigate everywhere easier using Google Maps!

  6. It’s good that there will be a nexus watch. It keeps Samsung from being more revolutionary than the old googs itself.

  7. Google is just starting to embrace style. Their legacy is not in trendy design. Watches are jewelry and Do have a legacy of being fashionable and stylish. Can google make something fashionable looking? Google glass is not a good omen in fashion design. As others have mentioned; it makes no sense to put a second phone display on your wrist. This thing has to look like art; and give you some useful data.

    1. Yeah, the only reason I’d buy one is if it costs about $50 (yeah, 50 bucks) and can track my running/biking stuff well. Otherwise it wouldn’t be worthwhile to me.

    2. I would say the Orb was very fashion minded. Also I own the Google Pixel and yeah..

  8. is there really a large market for this? I feel like this still be reserved for just swimmers (if waterproof) and other athletes.

  9. i would settle for this if it was cheaper than Glass

    1. are you high? of course it will be cheaper than Glass.

      1. you never know. remember the Nexus Q? lol

  10. This one or Samsung for me

  11. Luckily I have not jumped to get a Pebble yet.
    Maybe I’ll wait a few years down the road and see how the smartwatch develops.

  12. Nexus smart watch you say?…

    TAKE MY MONEY!!

  13. If it were inexpensive, then I may swap one of my phone lines for this for when I ride offroad stuff (dirt bike). I have seen some folks get really effed up out on the trail, I always try and carry a phone but I hate stuffing it in the backpack.

  14. All of these smart watches are terribly ugly, and they lack a true reason for people to wear them #epicfail, I would mostly agree with this article on why they all suck: http://adamorn.tumblr.com/post/59642392509/the-fate-of-the-smart-watch-is-in-the-trash-while-still

  15. Educative article. We want to mention that some other players have also shown the signals of dominating the market like appnext, revmob, chartboost

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