The Apple Watch

It's overpriced.
It doesn't do anything.
It's a me-too product.
I don't need it.
I don't want it.

Sound familiar?

That's exactly what we heard about the iPod back in 2001. And that went on to change music forever! You overpaid, the price came down, you replaced your original, you owned multiple iterations and you never played your CDs again.

I find the Apple Watch backlash hysterical. It's as if we've got to repeat the movie endlessly, unlike in "Groundhog Day" never learning our lesson. Meanwhile, the press echoes our concerns and truth doesn't out.

Bottom line, wearables are here to stay. I go nowhere without my Fitbit, soon I'll replace it with an Apple Watch.

There goes my Rolex! Yup, the concept of wristwatch as jewelry is about to go out the window, that is if the only thing the watch does is tell time. Switzerland should be very afraid. Because youngsters have rejected it, high-priced timepieces cater to the elder classes, young people find them unnecessary.

But young people need to know the time. And for this they remove their mobile devices from their pockets in excess of a hundred times a day. You mean you don't want to eliminate this behavior?

And they're not only looking for the time. They want to read their messages, whether they be e-mail, texts, iMessages or... How convenient would it be to have all that information just a glance away?

Furthermore, applications unknown are on the horizon. What made the iPhone so great were the apps. As will be the case with the Apple Watch. It's gonna do stuff you can't contemplate.

Because you're not a techie, you can't see the future.

But you do want to be a member of the group.

So am I guaranteeing the Apple Watch will be a success? No, although I think it will be. I find it especially interesting that it only works with the iPhone for now, this is what boosted Apple to begin with, the ecosystem, sure you could eventually buy your MP3s from Amazon but why would you when iTunes featured seamless integration. Once again, Apple is going for a monopoly, and if that word scares you you haven't read Peter Thiel's recent screed, you probably have no idea who Peter Thiel even is.

So it comes with the ability to monitor your health, and to read and respond to your messages. The Apple Watch will do so much more, just wait and see.

So ignore the blowback. Ignore the press ginning up an uneducated story. Wearable devices are the next front in computing.

Oh, that's right, you didn't need a computer either. Until everybody was on AOL and you wanted to play.

It's always about the killer app. Hardware is just a gateway to software. And it's the integration of the two that ends up winning. Which is how Apple got to its vaunted position to begin with.

Sure, Samsung and Motorola can make watches. But they're ugly and hard to use. The Apple Watch improves upon them the same way the iPod improved upon the Rio and the NOMAD. You don't always have to create to break the model, sometimes redefining is just fine.

So who cares if Android ultimately competes. Who cares if Luddites don't see a need. Who cares if you can buy a digital wristwatch for much less.

You should care that you live in an era where educated people are harnessing technology to make your life easier. Sure, they're getting rich along the way, but you're the one who's paying them.

Because you need to have it. The same way you needed that Beatles album. You don't want to be left out, you want to be a member of the club. And before long, you can't live without it.

As for battery life... Let me see, my old Nokia lasted weeks and my smartphones just make it through the day. Am I really that worried that I've got to plug my watch in every night?

Pull back the lens. We're at the advent of a whole new paradigm. One in which all our information is just a glance away and we're monitoring our systems 24/7. Yup, your car's computer will tell you not only your mileage, but how far you can go until empty. Don't you want to know the same thing about your body?

You will. And so much more.


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