Vector unveiled a new smartwatch at watch and jewelry show Baselworld. The timepiece features a battery promising to last up to 30 days — a knock on the battery life of the upcoming Apple Watch, slated to last less than a day.
The new smartwatch, which will operate on a system exclusive to Vector, comes in two form factor types and is compatible with smartphones powered by iOS, Android and Windows Phone mobile operating systems.
Customers can choose between the round-faced Luna and the rectangular Meridian designs. The smartwatches also come with options for different steel finishes and either link or leather straps. The bands for both Vector smartwatches are interchangeable.
The claimed 30-day battery life is perhaps the most impressive feature of the Vector smartwatch. That extremely long battery life is made possible by the combination of monochrome memory LCD screens, and the low-power custom OS.
The watch can seamlessly connect with iOS, Android and Windows Phone smartphones to send alarms and notifications to the smartwatch, while also integrating apps into the device.
Vector is emphasizing a "watch first" mentality, which puts the focus on the most basic feature of a watch — telling time. Following this approach, features like appointments on the user's calendar will show up on the edges of the smartwatch's analog style display.
Users of Vector smartwatches will receive notifications by the discrete alert of a small vibration. The message will only be displayed once wearers raise their watch arm, and the message will automatically be dismissed once the wearer's arm is lowered.
Vector has encouraged developers to create apps for their platform, and software from third party developers will be adjusted to the simple design language of Vector's custom operating system.
Vector smartwatches will also use IFTTT, or If This Then That — web-based service that allows owners to customize their own commands, or "recipes," to direct the functions of their smartwatches. The recipes can be created and then shared for several web-based services that include email clients, social networks and automated home systems. An example of such a recipe is defining a rule telling the smart coffee machine to brew a cup once the Vector smartwatch detects that its wearer has woken up.
The Meridian version will sell for $199 and the Luna will go for $349. The release date for the Vector smartwatches has yet to be announced.
