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The Microsoft SPOT Watch returns - and this time it’s going to be awesome!

Many years ago I ponied up for a watch. It was big, ugly, clunky, needed to be charged via USB every darned day - but it was a marvel of technology. Using FM wireless data transmission, my Microsoft SPOT Watch connected up to my MSN account, as well as a variety of news feeds to transmit messages and data to me. When I travelled it synced up to the new time zone, and I even had the option of adding new looks to it by downloading watch themes. It was a two-way radio away from being the coolest time piece since **bleep** Tracy and George Jetson.

SPOT Watches (as they were called) died a painful death. Turns out that the only people that want an excessively geeky watch were (predictably) the excessively geeky - not the type of folks that are going to carry your banner on a fashion accessory like a watch. There were a few problems - communication was only one way, the watches were power hungry (and had an incredibly bulky charging mechanism), and even with designers like FOSSIL and Tissot producing models they were still too big and just a little too ugly for mainstream use. Add in the $15/month charge for the data connection and this was a platform that had signed its own death warrant long before it came to market. I don’t suppose it helped that much of the promo material had Bill Gates rocking a SPOT; while he may be richer than cheesecake he’s still not someone I look to for style tips.

So where does that leave us? Well, if you’re part of half the planet that’s slinging a BlackBerry (woot Canada) you’re about to get a new third party option that ressurects some of the promise of SPOT without the foibles. Enter the allerta inPulse smartwatch for BlackBerry. It connects you up to your phone by Bluetooth®, giving you fast access to some really cool stuff.

Take a letter, Maria.
Just like my old SPOT, the inPulse displays messages - this time it’s all about email and SMS (no word on BlackBerry Messenger yet), letting you sneak a look at it to see who’s just dinged you (super handy at dinner! I can’t wait for the “I can’t believe you haven’t checked your BlackBerry all meal!” from friends and family).

According to allerta (a Waterloo-based start-up - where else, right?) it’ll also throw up info like caller ID, calendar alerts and more. I’m curious about the legality of this with anti-texting legislation - surely the government isn’t going to give me a ticket for checking my watch... are they?

It tingles!
The other really cool, totally must have feature for me is the vibrating alert function. I tend to stow my ‘Berry in its belt-clipped case - but sometimes it ends up in a pocket, or I ditch the case on a counter. Sometimes I flat out don’t hear it ring or ding. With the vibrating motor built into the inPulse, it looks like I’ll get a buzz right on my wrist to let me know that a crucial incoming call should be answered right away (Hi mom. Yes. Yes, I’m eating well...)

It looks like the inPulse is going to be compatible with pretty much all modern BlackBerry smartphones. The battery life is claimed at 4 days with 20-30 updates per day (hah, try per hour) but the micro-USB jack means I’ll always be close to power. I’m not going to lie, I’m a little giddy. The OLED screen looks great in the mock-ups, if they can make it a reality they’ve got a sale.

Delivery date for inPulse is February 2010. Pricing has been announced at $150US. Will you ever see it at a Future Shop? That remains to be seen.

Message Edited by Graham on 10-26-2009 01:19 PM