Wearables Expanding into Communication Devices
Wearables have taken a huge leap in the marketplace over the last year. These devices continue to make inroads in domains such as fitness, health, and entertainment, but a new segment wearables are beginning to focus on is communication.
While this may be a topic that people have been thinking of and talking about for the last few years, there have not been many wearables that have seen the light of day yet. Artist Kate Hartman gave a TED talk in 2011 on the creativity behind wearable communication devices. She introduced some interesting ideas, but they were nowhere close to market acceptance because fashion appeal is a huge criterion in determining the success of a wearable.
Enter Onyx, a wearable communicator entering the market that looks like a simple badge. Users pair them with their iPhones or Androids via Bluetooth to communicate with other Onyx contacts.
At first glance, one may question the value of such a device, given that we already have successful messenger apps that let you communicate with people without having to wear anything extra and at no additional cost. However, Onyx offers benefits in terms of on-the-go communication at the push of a button. The startup that created Onyx is marketing it as a workplace walkie-talkie, promoting better collaboration among multiple users at once and capitalizing on the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) trend.
The market for wearables is expected to reach $30 billion by 2018. As this trend continues, wearables solely focused on communication is an exciting set to watch.
As the first offering in the domain of communication wearables, Onyx will be the one to test the waters and see how the market reacts. We’ll see whether people buy in to the trend—and if they do, how these new devices will be used.
