musicMagpie Blog

As much as we love Apple, they've been coasting off the success of about 4 products for years now.

Yeah, alright, the iPad, iPod, iPhone and MacBook have all changed society and the way we live our lives. But surely the technical geniuses at Apple have got something else up their sleeve?

Well, it turns out they do. Except it's not up their sleeve; it's on it.

The iWatch is (apparently) the latest addition to the Apple family, with rumours rife that the company are producing it right now for a launch in the 2nd half of the year.

There are no images of the watch yet, and no-one from Apple has said a word about it. The only real evidence that it exists is a recently-filed patent (which doesn't even necessarily mean it'll go into production), Apple trademarking the iWatch name in a few countries and a report by the China Times.

That said, with Samsung recently entering the market with the Galaxy Gear, it'd massively surprising if Apple didn't try and get one over on their mortal enemies with a better-designed product.

So, what will the iWatch do if it ever comes to light? Well…erm, no-one actually knows. Presumably it'll let you tell the time, but we've no idea what other features will be included. We're personally hoping for Bond-like lasers and a handy little compartment for breath mints, but we're probably a bit off the mark.

There are some rumoured features doing the rounds, most of which focus on health and fitness. These include a pedometer and integration with iOS8's rumoured wellness app Healthbook. More excitingly, it's been suggested that Apple are going to team up with Nike to offer Nike's existing fitness products on the watch.

Beyond health and fitness, you can probably expect Apple's usual combination of apps, games and media in a handy interface, which is more than enough to sell us on the concept.

The only potential spanner in the works for Apple is a potential legal tussle with Swatch, the watchmakers. They have a range called iSwatch, and they aren't too happy about Apple marching onto their turf with a similar name. They're so unhappy, in fact, that they're trying to trademark the name themselves, just so Apple can't have it.

Whatever happens, the earliest we can expect to hear an announcement on the iWatch (or whatever it ends up being called) is at Apple's Worldwide Developer's Convention in June, with a release planned for later this year. Best get saving (and selling your Apple goods) just in case, eh?