It’s been rumoured that Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook, is developing its first ever smartwatch. Now, thanks to a very recent leak published by Bloomberg, we may have a good look at what the product might look like.
The publication says that the image of the unannounced smartwatch was discovered by developer Steve Moser after going through Meta’s companion mobile app for its Ray-Ban Stories AR sunglasses on iOS. On that note, it is very likely that both products can be used together, although it is unclear to what extent.
On to the device itself, the image supplied by Moser reveals that Meta’s first ever smartwatch to feature a display with heavily rounded corners and, most interestingly, a front-facing camera housed within a notch that is positioned on its bottom half. The latter easily indicates that the wearable would feature the ability to shoot selfies from the wrist, but its involvement with the Stories sunglasses may suggest something a bit less straightforward. Perhaps hand tracking or features that could tie it in with Meta’s upcoming virtual and augmented reality plans?
As to when we’ll be expecting to officially see this new device, Bloomberg believes that the launch will happen as early as 2022. And there’s a chance that we’ll be seeing newer iterations of Meta’s allegedly upcoming smartwatch for years to come as well. According to the publication, the company is already working on three generations of the product which would see a release at different times.
It’s also worth noting that The Verge earlier this year reported that Facebook (prior to its recent rebranding) is supposedly working on a smartwatch that would feature a heart rate monitor, LTE connectivity, and with two different cameras: an unspecified front-facing shooter, and a rear camera with 1080p capabilities and autofocusing. It is not known whether this particular smartwatch is related to the recently leaked device, or is a completely different variant altogether.
(Source: Bloomberg)
