Apple iWatch due in October 2014, to wirelessly charge from one metre away – report

Re: When I were a lad ...

You can still buy wristwatches with tritium markers, but the tritium is usually contained in tiny glass vials on the hands and hour markers. The half-life of tritium is such that your grandfather could read the watch in the dark, but you probably can't. In addition, the radiation degrades the phosphorescent material into dust, which isn't good for the watch mechanism, or for anyone who services it without a fume cabinet.

T Swiss Made T

Re: When I were a lad ...

"Back in the 1970s, I had a wristwatch that wound itself up using energy from the motion of my wrist."

That would do for adolescent males, what about everyone else ?

Re: When I were a lad ...

@Nick

My Omega does that too, my general movement during the day easily keeps it going, and it lasts for about three days if I forget to wear it.

A quick word if you still have yours, and I have no idea how true this, is but when I last had it serviced the chap told me that should it "go flat" start it by winding rather than rotating. Apparently the mechanism will take less damage that way.

Re: When I were a lad ...

Even if you don't want a smart watch - at least if Apple do it then it will be done well rather than that Samsung monstrosity they hurried out. Wireless charging up to 1m away sounds good.

The end of the Cold War

Get the opposing forces to think you have better technology so that they spend themselves into a corner playing catch up. Distribute rumours and innuendo so that they devise technology for a market that doesn't exist.

Then announce to the world you are not pursuing such technology.

Watch as the opposition have bankrupted themselves at the bottom of a dead end alley.

Re: One meter charging is a bit more useful

>If your keyboard could act as a charger

The Reg reported on an Apple patent about a year ago for magnetic charging, including daisy chaining and a way of switching between which device to charge first (i.e prioritise a phone over a mouse or keyboard).

The Reg has also reported on Apple patents for a micro-deflection control surface that looks like aluminium, but can be used as a display thanks to tiny perforations.

Add to that their investment in sapphire manufacturing, and the ingredients for a smart watch are coming into focus.

Re: One meter charging is a bit more useful

If you happen to work in a boring office job chained to your key board then great, but many of us have much more fulfilling jobs and lives that keyboards are only a minor feature in them.

Re: One meter charging is a bit more useful

"Hopefully the charger can be made very compact, because no one is going to want to bring something bulky with them when they travel. That no one wants to bring a charging mat with them when they travel is one of the (several) reasons wireless charging has been a flop so far."

The wireless charging option exists now, i use it daily. Most people are not bothered or totally unaware the it exists because Apple haven't released their copy yet. Of course once they do, their cult will snap it up.

Doesn't shine a positive light on consumers as a whole.

Re: Just add crystals for healing

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resonant_inductive_coupling

It's effectively a tuned transformer with a large (and variable) air gap between primary and secondary. The idea is to improve the power transfer efficiency compared to a non-tuned gapped transformer; though it would be nowhere near as efficient as plugging a power cable in. For such small levels of power and bearing in mind the application, that isn't really a consideration.

Magnetic Resonance

It's a Tesla thing, isn't it? If it's what I'm thinking, you need a stupidly high voltage to make it work.

Re: Just add crystals for healing

"Just add crystals for healing

So what is "magnetic resonance"? Sounds appropriately Guru Level for Apple."

Wrong! Hardly Guru when wiki can tell you.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

>Who in their right mind wears watches^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hchronographs these days ?

People who don't want to fumble in their pockets every time they wish to know the time.

People who wish to turn their phones off, from time to time.

People at work who need to time an operation, but don't want a manager to think they're texting their friends - or reading The Reg.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

Wristwatches came in because pulling a pocket watch was too much hassle in a busy environment. Pulling a phone out my pocket is just as inconvienent when I'm busy and I think a lot of people find that. I don't use a chonograph (not even digital), just a plain "old-school" watch that shows the date as well as time. Much more convienient than fumbling in my pocket and pressing buttons to find out the time or date.

As for "tech-watches", not my cup of tea but who knows.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

>Right, so I cannot believe Apple are going that route, I mean, Samsung have made idiots out of themselves with their sCrapWatch, why would Apple follow [?]

There were mobile phones before the iPhone, and MP3 players before the iPod.

The iPhone is an interesting case, since it is telling what Apple left out - 3G. If they had included 3G, the battery wouldn't have lasted long enough to be practical, and bad press would have followed. This was mitigated by having an app to fetch, for example, train times, which more data-efficient than having the user hunt down the same information on a browser.

Samsung's smartwatch has taken the 'throw everything in it' approach - it can even run normal Android apps -but it doesn't really know what it is for. Apple are likely to focus in on a few core applications - simple alerts and media remote control, perhaps - and then expand the capabilities over time as improved chips and batteries allow it.

Oh, and a geek watch doesn't have to look like a geek watch. Tissot make a model with thermometer, compass and barometer which is indistinguishable from a a normal 3-hand wristwatch; touching the face at 12, 3, 6,or 9 causes the hands to display that information instead of the time.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

Gadget freaks who want to have an idea of elevation (for instance) without worrying about their phone running out of power or being lost or broken or stolen.

Sometimes this stuff matters.

Also, knowing the time quickly and without fuss is worth lugging less than an ounce around, locked, safe on the hand, waterproof, in the shower, available at night without fumbling, okay to peek at in the cinema, especially since the battery lasts years not hours.

Jesus wept, when did having a wristwatch - a brilliant development saving people from having to reach into their pockets all the time - become so old-fashioned?.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

> Who in their right mind wears watches^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hchronographs these days ?

My watch is waterproof. Even without iOS7.

That's pretty handy when I go diving...

Vic.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

"Listen, watches are old-school, vintage crap we used to have to wear so we could see what time it was. Since the 90's we have had cellphones to do that."

So you'd rather have an inconvenient "smart" pocket watch than a convenient wristwatch? How quaint.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

Now if I could have a Thunderbirds video watch (remember them? Good old 60s technology) I'd probably go for it. Otherwise I just rely on my internal clock most of the time, which is usually accurate to within 15 minutes and is good enough for most things. If I really need a more accurate reminder then yes, the phone in my pocket can be told to alert me at the correct time. I haven't worn a watch for many years, ever since the battery in it went flat (and the watch itself is 30 years old.)

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

Hans, Hans, Hans, Hans...

Do please try to grow up and stop being a childish twat.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

"Listen, watches are old-school, vintage crap we used to have to wear so we could see what time it was. Since the 90's we have had cellphones to do that.""

Sad youth! No wonder they have a poor rep.

Re: iWatch ? I cannot believe

"Apple are leaders, not followers." - posted in 2007!

Can't be (nearly) 2014!