Text by Masakazu Honda
Masakazu Honda is a journalist whose knowledge of technology is well-known. He talks about wearable devices. In this fifth installment, he talks about Sony's wena wrist, which takes a completely different approach to the market than display watches.
The different approaches taken by each company
When the Apple Watch Series 3 was announced, I heard from several manufacturers developing and selling smartwatches that they were "scammed. This will make it harder to go our own way." It's true that the Apple Watch has become an unprecedentedly successful display watch, but as I pointed out in my previous column, even the Apple Watch is struggling to secure high-quality apps.
I apologize for jumping in with such a rude comment, but even if you attract developers because it's an interesting platform, it won't last long if it's not profitable. Or, even if you create an app, they won't put their effort into it. It's interesting to compare this with Garmin, which has expanded its market share in the narrow world of "running" by providing in-depth features and increasing profitability by selling it as a bundle with hardware.
This is a recap because it's been a while since the last article in this series, but if you want to create a display watch with a specific purpose as in-depth as Garmin's, it's a difficult task. However, it's precisely because they're taking on such a difficult challenge that consumers want to share the fresh experience they have with their product with others.
In an age where a wide variety of information is exchanged via the internet, improving the quality of each user's experience creates a chain reaction of information spreading through social media, leading to the propagation of new brand and product value. Even if the power and propagation power of each individual is smaller than that of the media, the overlapping and chain reaction of these powers can convey the appeal of a new product.
The Apple Watch relied on its overwhelming brand power to appeal to the masses and promoted its appeal as a smartwatch, while Garmin focused on providing the best possible product for a limited user demographic of runners. Both companies have made great strides in global market share, but their approaches are different.
However, there is another manufacturer that has taken on the digital giant Apple from a completely different perspective and approach: Sony. Speaking of Sony, Sony Mobile Communications has previously released a smartwatch, but this product was born from a completely different project.
