Apple iWatch: Price, rumours, release date and leaks

The Apple iWatch is rumoured to be in some form of production right now – we round up the news and speculation on its specs, features and potential release date 

Apple is rumoured to be developing an iWatch, which would most likely synch up with your iPhone 5 or iPad to give you updates on you’re wrist, allow you to control other devices and pull data from the cloud. The most recent development suggests that Apple is now hiring large numbers of designers and technical experts to help the company reach its goals in creating a wrist-based Apple device, the rumour comes from the Financial Times who also report that there are concerns over whether Apple has the know-how to create such a complex device to their own extreme standards. Supposedly a team of ‘about 100 product designers’ are working on the iWatch – including managers, marketers and software and hardware engineers who previously worked on the iPhone and iPad. That’s according to two people ‘familiar with the company’s plans’, which puts them in a remarkably small category. According to the two in the know, the project is ‘beyond experimentation phase in its development.’ Apple iWatch will be called....iWatch In case you were wondering, which we're sure you weren't Apple will almost certainly be calling its Smartwatch the Apple iWatch. This comes after confirmation came in that the tech giant had filed iWatch trademarks in Japan and Russia. What you may not have been expecting however is the news that Apple may not be able to call its product the iWatch in the UK, instead having to come up with a different name after it was revealed that iWatch has already been trademarked in the UK, US and in Europe. Apple iWatch price Sadly there hasn't been much talk about what Apple's iWatch will cost, but thanks to other companies jumping on the bandwagon we can get a rough idea of what the cost will be. The Sony SmartWatch 2 is set to land in September this year with a price tag of around £150, that means that if Apple applies its usual premium price tag you could be looking at between £180-£220 for your very own iWatch. With rumours circling that Nike could be launching a new Fuelband as well all eyes will be on the company that can offer the best gadget for the cheapest price. Apple iWatch features A further two informers claiming to be au fait with Apple’s various super-plans say it is experimenting with a ‘wristwatch-like device made of curved glass’,operating on iOS. The NYT notes Corning has developed bendable glass last year called Willow Glass which could be used to wrap around something wrist, and cites Forrester’s claim that “Apple’s certainly made a lot of hiring in that area”. There are also claims Apple is in discussions with Chinese manufacturer Foxconn, which makes a large number of iPhone and iPad parts, about producing an iWatch. Foxconn are apparently working to make more power-efficient displays and stripping down chips, aimed at multiple Foxconn customers. This Wall Street Journal report also claims Apple has hired employees with backgrounds in sensors and related tecehnologies. Apple iTV, Siri and iCloud While many have dismissed the idea of a Apple iWatch in the past, some are coming around to the idea in think pieces. The Cult of Mac notes that recently Siri and iCloud has become massively important to Apple – and that these two technologies actually lend themselves very well to a wristwatch strategy. It also points out that it would be particularly well suited as a remote control to any TV that may be being worked on. The Apple iTV is an entire area of speculation in itself, which we’ve collated and summarised for you here.   It has also been pointed out that an iWatch wouldn’t be such a dramatic new area for Apple, since the square iPod Nano with watchstraps can act as, well, pretty much a watch with knobs on. A Blog To Watch also concurs that Siri integration will be key.