Are Smart Straps the Future of Smartwatches?

Posted by David Johntson on July 27th, 2017

Although smartwatches have seen a considerable surge in popularity since the introduction of the Apple Watch, there has been something of a backlash against the touch-screen devices that once dominated the market. Consumers and manufacturers alike now seem to be moving towards something more akin to the 'hybrid' watch, integrating smart technology into a watch face that looks far more like the traditional models we're used to seeing. 

Excellent examples of this are the Misfit Phase, or the new Summit and Connect from Montblanc and Movado watches respectively. There's no question that this newer generation of smartwatches are more user-friendly and much better looking, there is some evidence that the industry needs to further evolve in order to truly produce something consumers really want. 

Part of the problem with these hybrid devices is that they're likely to go out of date, making high-end purchases such as the ,500 Tambour Horizon from Louis Vuitton a more unpalattable purchase, as it's unlikely to hold its value in the same way a mechanical watch from Rolex or Omega would do. 

This problem suggests an intruiging solution - could the technology that powers these watches be moved away from the watch face, and into the strap? This would deliver an immediate advantage to watchmakers, as they could produce beautiful, investment-worthy timepieces that wouldn't go out of date, and allow users to change only the bands as technology evolves. It would also allow people to swap bands between watches, meaning they can wear any kind of timepiece with their smartwatch technology. 

To be fair, this idea isn't a radical one. As far back as 2015 Montblanc introduced an e-strap to the wearables market, suggesting the advantages we've covered. Similarly, a smart belt buckle raised over ,000 on Kickstarter recently. So the demand and technology is available, but for some reason producers haven't yet pushed this as a viable evolution to the wearables sector.