Sony Corp is developing a watch made out of electronic paper to be released next year in a trial of the company's new venture-style approach to creating products.
The watch's face and wrist band will be made from a patented material that allows the entire surface area to function as a display and change its appearance. The device will emphasize style, rather than trying to outdo more technological offerings like Apple Inc's watch and Sony's own SmartWatch.
At stake is more than a win against Apple and Samsung Electronics Co. A decade of cost reductions and job cuts has soured Sony's culture of innovation, once celebrated for the Walkman and the Trinitron television. Chief executive officer Kazuo Hirai formed a business creation division this year under his direct control to fast-track promising products, and the watch is one of the effort's first results.
Hirai's new division is aiming to come up with products and services that don't fit the mold of Sony's existing businesses.
Besides the e-paper watch, the group is developing technology building blocks designed to help professionals and amateurs rapidly create prototypes of new products. The MESH project - for make, experience and share - is a collection of sensors, light-emitting diodes and buttons encased in colorful blocks smaller than a pack of chewing gum. The devices are linked wirelessly and can be operated via a tablet interface, friendly to people without programming or engineering skills.
The e-paper watch will be a litmus test for Sony's new division. Though the market for wearable technology is still small, with only 22 million of the gadgets sold worldwide this fiscal year, the industry is expected to grow fivefold in the next five years.
Focusing on appearance may help distinguish Sony's new product from the crowd of devices serving as a second screen for smartphones. The company's own SmartWatch acts as a music player remote control, while Samsung's Galaxy Gear offers hands-free calls. Both push e-mail and Facebook notifications and require a phone.
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