Former Intel Exec Bets on 'Wearable Tech'

Former Intel Exec Bets on 'Wearable Tech'

WIMM Labs, a company out of stealth mode today, is launching an Android-based technology platform designed to be used on everything from watches to necklaces and beyond.

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By David Pierce

August 2, 2011 09:00am

Our technology use is shifting. Rather than spending long periods of time with our devices several times a day, we instead use them in short bursts throughout the day. Newly launched WIMM Labs hopes to take advantage of this trend via "wearable technology."

WIMM Labs has essentially built an Android-based platform optimized for a small screen, as well as a small, modular hardware component—a 1.4-inch screen, in the hardware demo they showed me—both of which are designed for extremely simple interaction. WIMM doesn't imagine you'll want to compose emails from your device, but you could read that email, check the weather, or even use your watch to pay for your Starbucks coffee.

The company developed a series of dead-simple apps, from a World clock to the aforementioned Starbucks payment system, all of which share small bits of useful information with only a couple of taps. The company's plan is to license every piece of its technology—from the software to the Web-based app store to the small hardware console—to interested companies, which can add custom software, accessories, and the like.

Examples WIMM reps shared ranged from the simple (watchbands and custom watch faces) to the very complex (a phone companion that can read your texts, tell you who's calling, and show you your calendar). The modular system allows for much more than wristwatches, too: From necklace pendants to bike-mounted displays, the use cases for WIMM's products seem to run the gamut of users. Having Android as the backbone of the software makes it easy for developers to write apps for the WIMM platform, and integrating Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS make the customization possibilities nearly endless.

Of course, there are trade-offs. Instead of buying a watch and never thinking about its battery again, you'll likely need to charge your WIMM-powered device daily. It's also likely to be fairly expensive.

The first WIMM devices will be available to developers at the end of August, but WIMM reps were careful to note that their devices will not be the ones you'll see on shelves. CEO Dave Mooring is a former Intel executive, and he likened WIMM's approach to Intel Inside, where it was clear who supplied the technology but the product itself was made by a separate party.

WIMM is betting big that having small bits of information a tap or a swipe away is compelling for people who want more from their wristwatch than the time. With the runaway Kickstarter success of the TikTok, a watchband for the iPod Nano, that might not be such a huge gamble. But the relative complexity of the iPod-as-watch created problems for buyers, as did the bugginess of competitors like the Sony Ericsson Live View. Whether WIMM Labs can solve those problems remains to be seen, and will be an interesting ride to watch in the coming months.