Dick Tracy, talking into his wristwatch radio, from the 1930’s comic strip. Everett Collection
When he announced the Apple Watch, CEO Tim Cook called it “the most personal device we’ve ever created.” As he paced the stage, a wide grin on his face and a white-strapped Watch on his wrist, he elaborated how that means more than personalized bands and a customizable face. He mentioned “digital touch” and how the Watch will allow people to do more than talk. “These are subtle ways to communicate that technology often inhibits rather than enables,” he said.
The best thing the first version of the Apple Watch will do is act as the world’s most powerful and expensive messaging app. When it launches in April, the Watch won’t be a great fitness device. It won’t have a huge app store. It won’t run for a week or let you leave your phone at home. That may come later, but it won’t be what decides the Watch’s fate. No, the success of the Watch may well come down to things like haptic feedback, and whether you want to share your heartbeat with another person.
Those features may be a lot more powerful than we realize, with lasting importance for Apple and every other gadget maker.
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