Wearables: What Happens When Tech Companies Design Wearable Products

By Chris Benham, co-founder and director of Inspired Jewellery Ltd.

Wearables is a big discussion point at the moment with the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas—where the who’s who of the tech industry launched their latest products and innovations. Many people, including myself, watched with interest to see all the latest product launches. I must admit I was pretty deflated when I saw an article on all the designs of the watches. Almost as deflated as I was when the Apple Watch was launched. 

Don’t get me wrong. I’m a gadget lover. I already have visions of incorporating my wearable in my daily life. I hop into my car. It starts up with my proximity key watch with the door already opened this way. Buy my coffee by swiping my phone using NFC technology (I can’t wait to be able to ditch my wallet and keys!) Then get home and open my garage door with the watch. Then walk to my front door and open my Kevo lock with the touch of my finger. Then as I walk in the Philip Hue lights come on along with the Sonos music streaming my favorite stations … you get the idea. But no matter how cool all this is, I won’t wear it if I look like a walking computer. 

To win me over you’ve got to combine exquisite design with exceptional ease of use. An epic challenge. No doubt Apple, Samsung/Android and Withings have all nailed the software side of this. Currently I see the wearables that have been launched fall into two categories: 

The first is the phone/tablet/laptop on your wrist category. These are the ones that feel like they’ve been designed by the creators of the software who are often not inherently wearable product designers such as watch, jewelry and fashion designers. The ones that fall into this category include the major brands like the Apple Watch, Samsung and Fitbit. It feels strange adding Apple and Samsung into this category as they are arguably the best product designers in the world. 

The second category are the traditional watches that have had some “smarts” added to them but still essentially look like a regular watch to the layperson. These include examples like Withings Activate, the latest LG and Guess watches.

When designing jewelry our challenge is always to make the diamond integral to the design and not an afterthought. The most successful diamond ring designs are the ones that achieve this. Consumers inherently can feel this when they see a design that passes or fails this emotional test. I currently believe there is a gaping hole in the wearable watch between the two categories. The technological advances are not integral to the design and consumer need. They feel like someone has plunked a phone on your wrist or a diamond on a band because you’ve got to get the diamond on there somehow.

Watches, like jewelry, provide people with an outward expression of themselves, their personality and lifestyle. They buy a watch because they have an emotional connection to the design. They already have a clock on their phone so they don’t need one like they used to. But they still buy them because of this connection and expression. 

Currently one of the biggest barriers I believe in creating a successful wearable is that in order for it to be successful you need exceptional software to back it up. This can cost millions if not tens of millions to develop. No doubt when Apple’s Watch is available it will have an exceptional user experience that integrates with all the other gadgets you use in your daily life. The same with Withings Activite, which I’m sure has great health-based software that they’ve leveraged from all their existing health based products. 

The best products will be developed, I believe, when the barriers to entry are removed and watch creators can use a platform where they can quickly create apps that integrate with the wearable they’ve created to serve a niche. The Android Wear platform will likely be the best place for this. Thus ensuring they don’t have to spend all their time being distracted by creating the software. This will have its own challenges in terms of seamless experience and lack of full control of the customer experience. Apple has overcome this by keeping the ecosystem super tight. The problem that I see with this approach is that they can get away with it when it’s a phone, a MacBook Air, etc. The catch, I don’t wear any of those things. 

So to put my money where my mouth is, my prediction is that the truly cool smart watches will come when people start focusing on niches. I like surfing and I for one can’t wait until there is a surfing watch that combines all the tide information predictions, weather patterns and proactively tells me there is a pumping swell coming over the horizon arriving at 7:15 a.m. A watch that I can wear in the surf and not have to take off when I get into the office because it looks like I’ve still got the beach on my hand. But that’s just me. 

I’ll be excited when someone creates a wearable that combines form and function not a slapping together of existing technologies. If they achieve this then I’ll be the first person to line up and buy. For now my pick is the Withings Activite but maybe that’s because it embraces traditional industrial design and is not just trying to add another screen to my life. Bring on new developments and innovation—I’ll surely be watching. 

See of full list of 56 wearables from the CES conference.

It is a very subjective topic but I’d love to hear if your thoughts on whether you agree or disagree. 

Jewelry News Network columnist, Chris Benham, is co-founder and director of Inspired Jewellery Ltd., Wellington, New Zealand, a global creative studio for specialist jewelry design. 

Please join me on the Jewelry News Network Facebook Page, on Twitter @JewelryNewsNet and on the Forbes website.

LVMH is the Best Global Luxury Brand

Despite the economic downturn, several luxury companies were able to increase the value of their brands in 2010, according to the 11th annual ranking of the "Best Global Brands," by Interbrand, a global brand consulting firm.

Among luxury brands, LVMH ranked the highest on the list at 16th, followed by Gucci (44), Hermes (69), Tiffany & Co (76), Cartier (77), Armani (95). All of these brands saw growth this year because they continued to invest “in their heritage and legendary status,” Interbrand said in a statement. “Outstanding customer service and a focus on unique in-store and online experiences allowed them to stay strong, even while consumers cut back spending.”

Burberry, which ranks 100 on the list, saw no change in its brand value this year.

For the 11th year straight, Coca-Cola retains its top spot as the number one ranked brand on the list. But the bigger story is the growth of technology brands, with IBM (2), Microsoft (3), Google (4), Intel (7), HP (10), Apple (17) and BlackBerry (54).

Apple increased brand value 37 percent “through carefully controlled messaging and an endless wave of buzz surrounding new product launches,” Interbrand said. Google saw a 36 percent increase in value over last year, “bringing the brand closer than ever to rival Microsoft.” Meanwhile, HP, despite a challenging year, “made smart additions to its product portfolio and swiftly expanded the HP brand to protect its ranking on the list. BlackBerry’s brand value grew 32 percent and it remains “the most popular smartphone for business users, despite pressure from Apple as it edges into the corporate world.”

A number of prominent brands faced extraordinary crisis in 2010 resulting in stalled growth, value loss and in the case of BP, failure to make the ranking this year. BP's environmental disaster and inability to make good on its brand promise of "Beyond Petroleum" led to it falling off of the list and helped competitor Shell emerge as an industry leader, now ranked number 81, up from number 92 in 2009. Although the Toyota (11) recall caused the brand to lose -16 percent of its brand value, its long-standing reputation for reliability, efficiency and innovation helped it weather the crisis better than expected. Goldman Sachs (37) was once the envy of Wall Street, but now faces the dichotomy of strong economic results and an angry public that will continue to lash out until the company begins to demonstrate that it is making sincere efforts to better align its ethics with its brand.

During a difficult year for the auto industry, Mercedes Benz (#12) and BMW (#15) were able to sustain and build their value through innovative design and a focus on delivering premium value vehicles with luxury features. Using customer feedback, largely drawn from YouTube, Flickr, Twitter and Facebook to launch the 2009 Fiesta, Ford (50) stands out as one of the best example of how to use social media. Award-winning products like the Q5 and rich heritage help Audi (63) lead industry growth this year with a 9% increase in its brand value.

"2010 was the beginning of a long road back towards economic recovery," said Jez Frampton, group chief executive at Interbrand. "From real-time customer feedback through social media to increased transparency about corporate citizenship, brands were faced with a profound change in the way they relate to customers and demonstrate their relevance and value. Despite this new paradigm of brand management, the advantages of building a solid brand remain the same."

In the financial sector, legacy brands Citi (40) and UBS (86) lost double-digits in brand value, while Santander (68), Barclays (74) and Credit Suisse (80) made their debut on the list for the first time. “Their ability to stay true to brand promises in unsure times, and avoidance of the subprime mortgage crisis, helped them stay the course, Interbrand said.

Interbrand publishes the ranking of the top 100 brands based by analyzing the many ways a brand touches and benefits an organization, from attracting top talent to delivering on customer expectation. Three key aspects contribute to a brand's value; the financial performance of the branded products or services, the role of a brand in the purchase-decision process and the strength of the brand to continue to secure earnings for the company.