When rumors about Facebook having plans to release a smartwatch by next summer spread, many people expressed their surprise wondering why the social media giant wants to expand to the wearables space. Truth be told, this is not the first time Facebook ventures into hardware or consumer electronics products, but this time, it is very different due to the specific type of product they’re going for.
Facebook’s smartwatch is going to feature a detachable display, two cameras, a heart rate monitor sensor, and LTE connectivity for instant messaging through the platform’s app of course. Most importantly though, it’s going to have an inviting price tag that is going to leave little margin for profit for the social media company.
The main goal here isn’t to make money by selling a consumer product but by tapping onto people’s data for targeted advertising purposes. This has always been at the epicenter of Facebook’s business model, and it is being threatened by Apple’s new privacy system on the iOS, which Google is obliged to follow soon on Android. Facebook is seeking a circumvention to access and collect the data directly, and convincing people to wear its smartwatch is a great way to achieve this.
Of course, dethroning Apple in the smartwatch market isn’t going to be an easy feat, but Facebook is investing $1 billion to make sure that they are going to fight with the best possible product. In this context, they are also going to implement next-gen tech acquired from ‘CTRL-labs’, who is a specialist in wrist movement-assisted computer control. This may give the product some edge against the competition.
The estimated time of release for Facebook’s watch is the summer of 2022, and rumors claim that the company is already working on the second and third generations. That said, it is not likely that we’ll see this project getting scraped before it sees the light of day, although it hasn’t been officially confirmed by the company yet, so anything is possible.
