Facebook is certainly a tech giant when it comes to their online presence and their use of our data, however unlike some of the other big tech giants, the company hasn’t dabbled too much in the wearable or smart device market, outside of their VR headsets. According to a new report from The Verge, however, the company is looking to step into the hardware game a little more through a smartwatch that is in development.
The planned device – at least as things are currently detailed, with changes always likely during an R&D phase of any project – will include a camera on the front of the watch for video calling, with a second 1080p, an auto-focus camera on the back for capturing footage when detached from the stainless steel frame – akin to a GoPro. Apparently, Facebook is also looking for other companies to create accessories for attaching the camera hub to things like backpacks, to help expand how it can be used.
Whereas most smartwatches try and attract the fitness market, Facebook’s approach is looking to attract people with a need to capture the many moments of their life and allow them the flexibility of filming footage wherever they are without needing to hold out their camera all the time/ The report doesn’t detail any other hardware or software features coming to the device, though expect it to try and support a wide variety of fitness features and other apps found on similar devices.
This rumoured smartwatch is part of Facebook’s plan to step further into the hardware game and circumvent the dominance of Apple and Google in the mobile game, with Facebook wanting to also create an OS and hardware products that can capture that same market. And ultimately add even further into the extensive amount of data they already have on you from all of their existing apps.
These details are leaks from people who work at the company and not anything official from the company, so take the information with some helpings of salt, though the ideas do make a lot of sense for a company like Facebook that wants to find new markets to expand to. The reports claim that Facebook is planning to release this device sometime next year, so expect to hear any official information on the project towards the end of this year if it is all true.
Last Updated: June 14, 2021
