Remember last month when The New York Times and other sources said Apple might be looking to develop a new product dubbed the 'iWatch'? Well, Bloomberg today backed that still-unconfirmed report by saying Apple will be looking to release that very same product by the end of this year.
So why is the media buzzing about a still-unconfirmed product? As Citigroup analyst Oliver Chen told Bloomberg, it's because the profit margin could be huge for Apple. So despite the fact that Apple has been working on an HDTV for some time, their biggest push could be for high-tech wrist wear.
To demonstrate just how huge it would be for Apple, Macgasm broke down the difference between the TV and watch profit margins:
"The profit margins for watches are significantly higher than TVs, with Apple taking in 60% of a watch’s retail price in profit as opposed to only 15% for a TV. If Apple came into the watch market in 2013 and was able to capture 10% of that entire market, they would take in $3.6 billion in the first year alone. This is compared to the $1.79 billion that would be earned if they captured 10% of the TV market in 2013."
Also, CEO Tim Cook may well be ready to prove his worth in the company. CNET makes a good point in saying Cook "has been criticized by some for not bringing out new products fast enough, with many eager to see an iTV. But the iWatch, at least according to the various reports out there, may make it out of the gates first."
And of course coming from Apple, this would be no ordinary watch. TechCrunch says the speculated iWatch “... would be able to make calls, check caller ID, relay map coordinates and carry a built-in pedometer and health monitoring sensors, according to the news publication’s source."
As always, let's take this rumor with a grain of salt until confirmed by Apple. But TechCrunch offers a glimmer of hope in pointing out that Google is looking at launching their own wearable product by the end of the year as well, so Apple would have good reason to aim for that same time frame.
via Examiner National Edition Gadgets & Tech Channel Articles http://www.examiner.com/article/bloomberg-apple-could-release-iwatch-by-end-of-2013?cid=roadrunner