By David Ponce

So that’s its name: “I’m.” We know, weird. Nevertheless, it’s a watch with a curved 1.5-inch, 240 x 240 TFT screen with capacitive touch capabilities. The device links up to your phone via Bluetooth for caller ID information as well as data tethering. You can also use it to do the kinds of things that fishing around in your pocket for your phone might be inconvenient. Like getting quick stock quotes, getting a preview of an email, viewing an image gallery, etc. It’s alleged to be running a modified version of Android 1.6 and has 64MB RAM and 4GB storage. It’s a bit like those watches made up of an iPod nano, only with phone features.

The watches start at €249 ($342USD) and go up from there, as there appear to be versions blinged out with some gold and jewels, although these are on pre-order at the moment. However, very little is known about this company so we’re not going to give you any go-aheads until actual products are in customers’ hands. We won’t lie though: we’d be very disappointed if any of our readers has €10,000 to spend on a fancy watch. And yes, some models cost that much. Link to website full of self-aggrandizing and barely informative videos below.

[ Product Page ] VIA [ Wired's Gadget Lab ]

By Chris Scott Barr

As the old joke goes “there are only 10 types of people in this world: Those who understand binary, and those who don’t.” If you happen to fall into the latter group (and consequently don’t get the joke), you might want to pass on this LED Binary Watch. Mostly because you aren’t going to be able to read it without a bit of studying. Otherwise, you might find this little timepiece amusing, and wear it proudly as a symbol of your geek pride.

I’ve seen a number of other binary watches before, but they usually try to hard to look futuristic for my taste. This one keeps the usual round face outlined in stainless steel with a leather band. The face is still pretty geeky, what with the exposed circuitboard and LEDs. The nice thing is that even if you’re not fluent in binary, you should be able to read the time, as they’ve conveniently placed the numbers by their respective LEDs. Just add up the numbers under the lights and you’re good. Just $70 puts one of these on your wrist.

[ ThinkGeek ]

By Chris Scott Barr

If you’ve ever shared a bed with someone who has to get out of bed hours before you, then you probably hate the sound of an alarm more than most. Not only do you have to hear it when it’s time for you to get your day started, but you get to hear it when someone else is getting up as well. The best part is when the other person likes to hit the snooze button a few times. Not that I’ve experienced this and am bitter or anything.

Anywho, back to the matter at hand. One way you can wake yourself in the morning without disturbing the other person in bed is with a vibrating watch like this Analarm Watch. This timepiece is rather simple, with just a very basic face and no frills. The only thing out of the ordinary is the alarm feature, which instead of beeping, vibrates. Well, the $450 price tag is pretty out of the ordinary too. I think I’ll find a better way to quietly get myself up in the morning.

[ RetailFacility ] VIA [ CreativeGreed ]

By Andrew Liszewski

It might share the same loud, Swatch-esque styling and colors of the recent glut of iPod Nano watch bands, but this sWaP Rebel is another one of those far more capable watch phones that I wouldn’t mind strapping to my wrist. It doesn’t look overly monstrous either, even though it’s packed to the gills with technology. Where to begin?

First and foremost it’s a GSM 850/900/1800/1900MHz phone with Bluetooth for receiving/making calls with a headset, but there’s a built-in mic too if you want to use it like Dick Tracy’s wrist communicator. The 1.46-inch touchscreen LCD is probably a bit cramped to use with your finger, but the on-screen icons look big enough that most people won’t require a special dialing wand. There’s also a built-in camera that’s photo and video capable, and while file transfers can be done over Bluetooth, the watch’s strap features a USB port for connecting it directly to a PC. Not surprisingly, that’s how you charge it too. You can expect to get about 130-160 minutes of talk time on a full charge, with 85 hours of standby, presuming you don’t play with the watch too much between calls. ~$300 (£189) unless you can maybe find one subsidized by a carrier.

[ sWaP Rebel Smart Watch And Phone ] VIA [ SlashGear ]

By Evan Ackerman

There are watches that are kinda ugly. You know, like, you probably wouldn’t buy one ugly. Then there are watches that are really ugly, as in, you wouldn’t wear one if someone gave it to you for free. And then there are watches like the newest Casio G-Shock, which are so ugly that even looking at them can cause physical pain. Apparently, this watch is called MAN BOX; feel free to amuse yourself trying to figure out why that is. And when you’re done with that, you can start pondering just who would be crazy enough to spend $225 on one of these.

Available in Japan.

VIA [ Akihabara News ]

by Shane McGlaun

I am a big fan of cool gadgets as you might imagine, but when it comes to smartphones the most money I am willing to pony up is the $300 or so the iPhone costs. There are a few phones on the market that are designed for those with wallets fatter than mine though and perhaps one of the most expensive was announced today.

Earlier this month we talked a bit about the Chairman phone from Ulysse Nardin, but at the time there were few hard specs for the device. Today a bit more on the specification side has been announced for the handset. The Chairman can be had in a few different styles including a solid gold version, a steel/gold version, and a solid steel version.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Andrew Liszewski

One of the things I really liked about the now-defunct MSN Direct service was the weather forecasts delivered directly to my over-sized watch. But I guess this Meteo Watch from Oregon Scientific might be an adequate alternative. Instead of downloading weather data from an over-the-air broadcast, the watch measures and analyzes barometric pressure trends in order to provide a somewhat accurate forecast for the next 12 to 24 hours.

The reverse LCD display will show one of 4 “easy-to-read” icons including sunny, partly cloudy, cloudy and rainy. The Meteo watch also features a stopwatch function that will run for up to 60 hours, calendar and alarm functions, a backlight and is water resistant up to 30 meters. It’s available on the Oregon Scientific website for $69.99.

[ Oregon Scientific Meteo Watch ] VIA [ The Red Ferret Journal ]

By Luke Anderson

It’s been a long time since I’ve worn a watch. Between my iPod and cellphone I always have something that can tell the time easily. I have considered getting a watch now and again, but I rarely see any that really suit me. If you’re the kind of person that’s perfectly fine with the idea of death, this watch is for you.

The only things that appear on the face of this watch are a simple second hand along with hour and minute hands that read “remember you will die.” Seriously, how morbid is that? I don’t think anyone is really going to forget the fact that they will die some day. If you need a constant reminder of that fact, you can pick one of these up for $145.

[ Watchismo ] VIA [ UberReview ]

by Shane McGlaun

Vestal has an odd looking new watch called the Grenade, which unsurprisingly looks like a hand grenade. While the Vestal site doesn’t specify how the grenade cover opens to reveal the watch face, it seems that pushing the grenade handle does the trick from the photos.

The band is made from leather and canvas while the watch face is made from stainless steel as is the buckle. The crystal is solid mineral and the movement has three hands.

In addition to the green version, you can get the Grenade in black as well. The watch is water resistant to 3ATM so it should survive sweat, swimming and hand washing. You can get the either color of the Grenade for $158. Don’t be surprised if your friends make fun of you for wearing this one or if wearing it to the airport results in a cavity search.

VIA [ Vestal ]