Swatch CEO calls Apple Watch an 'interesting toy,' voices privacy concerns
Nick Hayek, chief executive of Swiss watch behemoth Swatch, called the Apple Watch an 'interesting toy' and expressed concern over the privacy of health and fitness data collected by modern smartwatches as his company gears up to launch its own wearable later this year.
"The Apple watch is an interesting toy, but not a revolution," Hayek told Swiss newspaper Tages Anzeiger. His comments were translated by The Guardian.
"These devices, which all eat so much power that they last no longer than 24 hours without needing to be plugged in," Hayek added. "In addition, the user immediately loses control of their data. I personally don't want my blood pressure and blood sugar values stored in the cloud, or on servers in Silicon Valley."
It's not immediately clear how familiar Hayek is with the Apple Watch's actual functionality, as the device does not measure blood sugar. Apple also encrypts all health data locally based on the user's passcode, and detailed privacy settings allow users to control where their data is shared.
Hayek then extolled the virtues of his own company's forthcoming smartwatch, saying it will compete with current wearable payment systems and contain a programmable NFC chip that can be used for access control, among other things. Swatch will not consider any form of health tracking, however.
"I cannot accept the responsibility of whether my device warns a customer in time before a heart attack," Hayek said.
"The Apple watch is an interesting toy, but not a revolution," Hayek told Swiss newspaper Tages Anzeiger. His comments were translated by The Guardian.
"These devices, which all eat so much power that they last no longer than 24 hours without needing to be plugged in," Hayek added. "In addition, the user immediately loses control of their data. I personally don't want my blood pressure and blood sugar values stored in the cloud, or on servers in Silicon Valley."
It's not immediately clear how familiar Hayek is with the Apple Watch's actual functionality, as the device does not measure blood sugar. Apple also encrypts all health data locally based on the user's passcode, and detailed privacy settings allow users to control where their data is shared.
Hayek then extolled the virtues of his own company's forthcoming smartwatch, saying it will compete with current wearable payment systems and contain a programmable NFC chip that can be used for access control, among other things. Swatch will not consider any form of health tracking, however.
"I cannot accept the responsibility of whether my device warns a customer in time before a heart attack," Hayek said.
Comments
If the way I've seen traditional watch makers tout storing your credit/debit cards for NFC-based payments is accurate then the privacy concerns fall on them, not Apple.
1) No, they don't lose control of it.
2) It would be nice to have the option to keep the data locally on the device. We wouldn't your daily step count falling into the wrong hands now, would we? Worst… Bond… Villian… EVER!
Are you taking responsibility if the data stored on the NFC chip is used by without permission? The banks are gonna love you if you do.
Bottomline: This is a lot of pooh-poohing for something that is only a 'toy' with no threat to your traditional business model.
I can get about 2 with wOS 2.0 with the current beta. With the earlier betas I wasn't even getting a full day. Still some bugs with the current beta with some freezing apps, the device occasionally restarting on its own, and sometimes needing a manual restart to get the M8(?) motion chip to register when I'm standing, but it seems like it's nearly there.
Well what did you expect him to say... Not everyone wants an Apple Watch believe it or not. I am not sold on health tracking for people that do not have a condition that needs that kind of monitoring either but to each his own. I think AW is not a fully developed product and it's usefulness (for me) is not there yet. Even Apple's own commercials are selling "lifestyle" over function, I guess if I am lost in a museum someone watching me from a distance can draw and arrow and send it to me, ahhh that is not enough for me.
With that train of thought, you shouldn't accept the responsibility of your device warning a customer of the time for any event, including a cardiologist's appointment. Maybe you shouldn't be in watch business.
This guy is starting to sound like the early CEOs of BlackBerry, and Ballmer.
Since his company is trying to play catch up to Apple, I would assume they know all about the watch functionality (know thy enemy and all that) and is just trying to paint Apple in a bad light. It would be funny if after all of his talk about Apple and privacy, that their new watch comes out running Android. We'll see.
Agreed. I'd be genuinely surprised if Swatch had the resources to build a watch OS from the ground up. Then again they've been selling toy watches for so long with an incredible mark-up maybe they have deep enough pockets?
Did you buy the original iPhone? Not many did. Many said it wasn't a fully developed product. It didn't have a physical keyboard, it didn't have 3G, cut/copy/paste, and a whole slew of HW, SW and services available on devices running BB OS and WinMo. Apple's competitors sounded just like Hayek; it was a 'toy' on a ridiculously large 3.5" display. I know I saw the brilliance of what it was going to become, the same way a parent or teacher can tell by how a 6yo asks questions and engages with the world, that despite their young age their potential far exceeds other that of the older and more experienced. I see that with Apple's latest wearable tech.
And what does he mean 'toy'? If the apple watch is a toy what is his watch? I get that an analog watch can be an engineering marvel but on the perceivable surface it just tells time. Smartphones did huge damage to traditional watch sales and the smart watch (lead by apple) will continue to push their sales to the level of a tiny cult following.
Agreed. I'd be genuinely surprised if Swatch had the resources to build a watch OS from the ground up. Then again they've been selling toy watches for so long with an incredible mark-up maybe they have deep enough pockets?
For all intents and purposes, Swatch is the Swiss watch industry. They have plenty of money and the ability to strike the right partnerships; their only problem is vision.
If you haven't already sold your Swatch stock, you might want to go ahead and do so.
Sounds like he doesn't lose any sleep over his company developing both useless and ugly products.
If I was doing the interview, I would have asked:
"Are there any Swatch models with a complication to indicate exactly how much time has literally passed your company by?"
"You've seen Apple's iPhone, why didn't your company learn anything from the 'Swiss army knife' that's made just down the road from Swatch?"
"Do you have the Swiss Miss girl's number, and would you like me to say hello for you on this Apple Watch toy?"
I understand. I'm sure they have the money but building an OS from the ground up requires an unbelievable amount of knowledge, especially when you consider everything Swatch wants to put in this "adult" product. Even if you hire people who on paper should be able to make it work doesn't necessarily mean they'll succeed as a team. Apple has an enormous head start on Swatch for Hayek to be making statements like that.
Their pricey Breitlings and Pateks will presume their rightful place in a drawer alongside pocket watches.
ah, I see you haven't used one yet. I don't need a health condition before wanting to stay on top of my daily activity goals, including standing -- the big one for me because I'm a knowledge worker seated all day, which is linked to higher mortality rates (organ squish). it's amazing how quickly the hours roll by and the reminder to stand up and walk around are killer for me.
have never needed it to get out of a museum.