When it comes to the wearables market, smartwatches and fitness trackers take the cake as the most dominant segment. From the biggest names in tech to the smallest fringe brands, consumers won’t crave for choice and diversity when it comes to smart gadgetry to be worn on the wrist. However, it’s the smart clothing segment that is being touted by a lot of tech enthusiasts and experts as the catalyst for the future despite not so enviable sales numbers.
Smart watches have found their niche beyond the tech world in the athletics department but smart clothes still haven’t found its position in the market. This makes it very difficult to market outside of the tech community. But, as the technology evolves and becomes more and more easy to use for non-tech junkies, it may begin to see the light of day.
At the end of the day, that seamlessness is what all great technologies strive for. When cellular phones were clunky and conspicuous, no one used it. But when it shrunk in size and improved in functionality, it began a crazy maelstrom of success for phone manufacturing companies such as Apple and Samsung. We can see this trend in how Apple Watch Series 3’s functions overlap with those of smartphone’s.
Smart clothes are already seamless. It’s only a matter of packing the relevant tech in them that needs to be accomplished for it to become bigger than the smartwatch and a major segment in the wearables market.
It’s the best form-factor for health tracking purposes
Smartwatches and fitness trackers are not necessary for peak physical performance. Some athletes even prefer to compete without them on. Clothes, on the other hand, aside from being necessities in modern competition, have the ability to enhance an athlete’s physical performance be it through muscle compression or body heat management.
This makes smart clothes for sport an extremely important segment. It can basically beat smartwatches and fitness trackers at their own game with the right technological advancements in place.
We’re starting to see that take shape.
The Nadi X Yoga Pants, for example, helps yoga practitioners perfect their form by letting the wearer know when their body alignment is off when engaged in particular poses. The figure hugging tights vibrate to alert you. This way, wearers won’t need yoga instructors to correct their poses during their workouts.
Smart clothing also includes shoes.
For this segment, we already have the Under Armour HOVR Sonic and HOVR Phantom sneakers. These smart shoes allow users to track their workout statistics even if they don’t take a smartphone with them on their workout.
Once the workout is done, the stats will be uploaded via a mobile application to the wearer’s smartphone when it’s available at the end of the workout. This eliminates the need for athletes to bring their phones with them that can get cumbersome after a while of workouts.
It’s not a cumbersome tech add-on
When it comes to gadgets and technology, ease-of-use is always a top priority. Smart clothes will always have an advantage in this regard because clothing is something humans know intuitively how to use. The “smart” features, on the other hand, are a different story.
This is the concept behind Levi’s Commuter Jacket with Jacquard, a smart jacket that the famous denim brand made in collaboration with Google. The jacket doesn’t only make it easier to bring a new piece of tech hardware around, it also makes interacting with the gadgets that you already have so much easier.
It allows the wearer to engage certain functions of your smartphone without ever needing to take it out of your bag. It can, for example, enable you to skip the current song playing on your phone through gesture controls. The smart jacket can also screen your calls for you so you don’t have to bring your phone out of your bag just to reject a call.
Furthermore, smart clothes have the potential to be powered by alternative means. Thermoelectric technology for example, can help provide power to the clothes. This eliminates the need for extra chargers for your gadgets.
It has endless application potential
Perhaps its inability to hold on to a particular niche market can become one of its best assets. Not having a mold to try to fit into, smart clothes are more free to go wherever there is need to innovate. Smartwatches and fitness trackers have already settled in to their place as an athlete’s gadget, but smart clothes still have no established niche market yet. This enables it to branch out to other untapped markets.
Sure, it has a bunch of applications for athletes as well but there are many other applications for smart clothes. Fashion, for example, is a huge consideration when it comes to smart clothes. To this end, manufacturers have invented fabric that can change colors at the tap of a smartphone.
Smart clothing also has a huge potential in the healthcare industry. Smart clothes that give the sensation of a hug to stressed out down syndrome sufferers for example, is already in the market. Other related applications include smart clothes that monitor health.
Conclusion
While smartwatches and fitness trackers are today’s favorite flavor of wearables, smart clothes just have all the opportunities to take that crown and hold on to it for a long time.
For one thing, it can beat smartwatches and fitness trackers at their own game. It can better track health data as seen in the HOVR sneakers without holding an athlete back. In some cases, it can even help athletes achieve peak physical performance.
They can also seamlessly integrate into human lives unlike other wearable categories. This is mostly because wearing clothes is almost a second nature to humans.
Aside from those reasons, smart clothes just basically have so much more possibilities. With all the diverse ways that it’s being approached right now, it seems that we’re only scratching the surface of the possibilities for the technology. That’s something that no other category of wearables can boast of yet.
Smart watches have found their niche beyond the tech world in the athletics department but smart clothes still haven’t found its position in the market. This makes it very difficult to market outside of the tech community. But, as the technology evolves and becomes more and more easy to use for non-tech junkies, it may begin to see the light of day.
At the end of the day, that seamlessness is what all great technologies strive for. When cellular phones were clunky and conspicuous, no one used it. But when it shrunk in size and improved in functionality, it began a crazy maelstrom of success for phone manufacturing companies such as Apple and Samsung. We can see this trend in how Apple Watch Series 3’s functions overlap with those of smartphone’s.
Smart clothes are already seamless. It’s only a matter of packing the relevant tech in them that needs to be accomplished for it to become bigger than the smartwatch and a major segment in the wearables market.
It’s the best form-factor for health tracking purposes
Smartwatches and fitness trackers are not necessary for peak physical performance. Some athletes even prefer to compete without them on. Clothes, on the other hand, aside from being necessities in modern competition, have the ability to enhance an athlete’s physical performance be it through muscle compression or body heat management.
This makes smart clothes for sport an extremely important segment. It can basically beat smartwatches and fitness trackers at their own game with the right technological advancements in place.
We’re starting to see that take shape.
The Nadi X Yoga Pants, for example, helps yoga practitioners perfect their form by letting the wearer know when their body alignment is off when engaged in particular poses. The figure hugging tights vibrate to alert you. This way, wearers won’t need yoga instructors to correct their poses during their workouts.
Smart clothing also includes shoes.
For this segment, we already have the Under Armour HOVR Sonic and HOVR Phantom sneakers. These smart shoes allow users to track their workout statistics even if they don’t take a smartphone with them on their workout.
Once the workout is done, the stats will be uploaded via a mobile application to the wearer’s smartphone when it’s available at the end of the workout. This eliminates the need for athletes to bring their phones with them that can get cumbersome after a while of workouts.
It’s not a cumbersome tech add-on
When it comes to gadgets and technology, ease-of-use is always a top priority. Smart clothes will always have an advantage in this regard because clothing is something humans know intuitively how to use. The “smart” features, on the other hand, are a different story.
This is the concept behind Levi’s Commuter Jacket with Jacquard, a smart jacket that the famous denim brand made in collaboration with Google. The jacket doesn’t only make it easier to bring a new piece of tech hardware around, it also makes interacting with the gadgets that you already have so much easier.
It allows the wearer to engage certain functions of your smartphone without ever needing to take it out of your bag. It can, for example, enable you to skip the current song playing on your phone through gesture controls. The smart jacket can also screen your calls for you so you don’t have to bring your phone out of your bag just to reject a call.
Furthermore, smart clothes have the potential to be powered by alternative means. Thermoelectric technology for example, can help provide power to the clothes. This eliminates the need for extra chargers for your gadgets.
It has endless application potential
Perhaps its inability to hold on to a particular niche market can become one of its best assets. Not having a mold to try to fit into, smart clothes are more free to go wherever there is need to innovate. Smartwatches and fitness trackers have already settled in to their place as an athlete’s gadget, but smart clothes still have no established niche market yet. This enables it to branch out to other untapped markets.
Sure, it has a bunch of applications for athletes as well but there are many other applications for smart clothes. Fashion, for example, is a huge consideration when it comes to smart clothes. To this end, manufacturers have invented fabric that can change colors at the tap of a smartphone.
Smart clothing also has a huge potential in the healthcare industry. Smart clothes that give the sensation of a hug to stressed out down syndrome sufferers for example, is already in the market. Other related applications include smart clothes that monitor health.
Conclusion
While smartwatches and fitness trackers are today’s favorite flavor of wearables, smart clothes just have all the opportunities to take that crown and hold on to it for a long time.
For one thing, it can beat smartwatches and fitness trackers at their own game. It can better track health data as seen in the HOVR sneakers without holding an athlete back. In some cases, it can even help athletes achieve peak physical performance.
They can also seamlessly integrate into human lives unlike other wearable categories. This is mostly because wearing clothes is almost a second nature to humans.
Aside from those reasons, smart clothes just basically have so much more possibilities. With all the diverse ways that it’s being approached right now, it seems that we’re only scratching the surface of the possibilities for the technology. That’s something that no other category of wearables can boast of yet.