The recent launch of Samsung’s Galaxy Gear smartwatch has turned the spotlight on the wearable technology segment in general and the smartwatch segment in particular. Wearable technology is not a recent trend – a Visiongain report estimates that the value of the global wearable technology market in 2013 will reach USD 4.6 billion. Further it is projected to grow to as much as USD 50 billion over the next three to five years according to a recent Credit Suisse report.

The two key factors that are facilitating the rapid growth of this market are – (i) the improvements in technology resulting in availability of low power and low cost solutions – this ensures the designers and developers have the flexibility to develop products that address the form factor needs of wearable technology thus resulting in relevant and usable products; (ii) the growing trends of cloud computing and big data – resulting in massive amount of data and solutions being available across several medium and networks and at the same time creating the need for more intelligent data for better analytics which can be provided effectively by the wearable technology devices.

Key Trends – The following are a few interesting and innovative products that might lay down the future path of this market –

Google Glass – a wearable device with an optical head-mounted display that integrates several display, audio and software solutions to create the next generation spectacles that display information in a smartphone-like hands-free format.

Samsung Galaxy Gear – the recently launched smartwatch by Samsung that relies on a Bluetooth connection to a Samsung Galaxy device to provide several smart device functionalities like making a call, taking pictures, pick up notifications and control music play-back.

Fitbit Flex – Essentially a water-resistant wristband for fitness enthusiasts that will track every step, calorie burned and even every minute of sleep and this data is stored and made available to be synced with computers and smartphones. Even though the functionality might seem simplistic there is an opportunity for many more solutions to be provided using this framework – for ex. To implement passive healthcare tracking for the elderly, etc.

Key Challenges –

Not just an ornamental accessory – For sustainable growth of wearable technology sector, the designers and developers should target to provide innovative solutions to real world problems thus creating value rather than just developing ornamental accessories that act as alternatives to existing portable devices. This will justify their necessity in consumer’s lives and ensure faster adoption of the products.

Integration and Interaction with human functions – Another key challenge in this domain for ensuring wide scale adoption is the need to provide solutions and products that are well integrated and interact efficiently with the various human functions – for example smart-glasses that do not disturb the field of vision while driving.

Privacy and Data Security Concerns – though this is a challenge for the mobile and portable technology as a whole – it becomes even more relevant in the case of wearable technology due to the high level of personalized data involved. As the technology goes mainstream, strong and clear regulations will need to be put in place to minimize abuse of passive personal data collected by the devices.