The Black Eyed Peas’ Will.i.am first jumped from music into the world of wearables in 2014 with the introduction of the i.am+ Puls. He followed that up with a Gucci partnership announced at Baselworld 2015. Reviews for the Puls (now described by its own creator as a “beta gadget”) were overwhelmingly negative but that has not deterred him from coming up with a successor. The Dial is a fully 4G connected smartwatch designed to be used primarily using voice commands.
With its cellular connection, the dial is also designed to be used without a smartphone. “It is not tethered to a device, it is the device,” explained Will.i.am to The Telegraph. “The reason we built the platform this way is that it is for areas you are truly mobile – in the gym, in a car, on a bike, on a hike, areas where the phone really isn’t meant for. The phone isn’t really meant for a bike in New York. It certainly isn’t meant for a gym where, you have a phone in your pocket, wires everywhere, as you are jump roping.”
Looking much like a wider fitness band, the dial closely resembles the Puls. It comes with a slightly larger 1.63-inch display, 32GB of storage and a 2MP front-facing camera. It is powered by an operating system called AneedA which also acts as your voice assistant and an unspecified Qualcomm processor. With cellular connectivity, it will be able to send emails and texts without a paired smartphone as well as track your fitness and play music via a streaming service yet to be named.
The dial will go on sale exclusively in the UK through mobile carrier Three with a two-year contract. Pricing was not announced but it is expected to sell for an initial payment of £20 to £25 (about US$30 to US$36 or about CA$40 to CA$50) and subsequent monthly costs of about £20 (about US$30 or CA$40).
It remains to be seen if the dial will help Will.i.am a serious contender in the world of smartwatches.
Source : The Telegraph