Browsing the web from a smartwatch

How many of them can browse independently?

It seems that the major phone makers have decided now is the time for us to all buy smart watches but what do they actually do for the consumer. They are supposed to make our lives easier by placing all the information that we were getting from our pocket and phones on to our wrist. But will this effect the way we browse the Internet?

The idea of the smart watch is not a new idea, one of the first smart watches was the Seiko RC series which was released in 1984. These watches would connect to a pc and allow you to take your schedule, memos and calculator on the move. The principle has largely not changed since then but now it is wireless and connecting to your smart phone or tablet. This can be seen in this table of top smart watches.

Some devices can operate using their own SIM or by connecting to a phone, like the Samsung Gear S but most choose one or the other. It should also be noted that the apple watch only has WiFi and no 3G or 4G connectivity, but was counted as independent.

As you can see the table shows that very few smart watches actually function independently and require another smart device for connectivity.

The reliance on the smart phone for functionality makes you question the need for smart watches, and if the expense of smart watch is worth the small amount of time saved from raising your wrist to raising your wrist after grabbing your phone.

This means that the main purpose of the smart watch is still to update you of what is on your phone and in reality direct you to your phone, where you will still do your tasks and importantly your browsing of the web.

How this effects 51 Degrees

With very few smart watches actually having their own connection to the Internet, they do not show up in user-agents just the device used to access the Internet. This makes detecting smart watches tricky and means that very few smart watches get added to the database.

51Degrees is THE fastest and most accurate device detection solution for your website today, tomorrow and for the future. If you'd like to find out more please contact us and we'll be happy to discuss, how we will maximise your Internet potential.

"Smartwatches" photo courtesy of TechStage