The drumbeat of rumors regarding an Apple-made smart watch continues this week. This time it’s The Verge and Bloomberg saying that an iOS-based “iWatch” should arrive some time before the end of 2013.
After reporting last month that a team of 100 people were working on a smart watch at Apple, Bloomberg is back with a few more details about the device’s capabilities. It says Apple is considering adding caller ID to the iWatch (or whatever the device is called), a pedometer and heart rate monitor, and the ability to make calls and check points on a map.
The Verge also reports a few more details about the current state of the project:
- That battery life is a big concern: Apple wants the battery to last four to five days on a single charge, but the current prototypes are only lasting “a couple of days.”
- The operating system would likely be the full version of iOS scaled down to fit on a watch-size display.
- But iOS isn’t properly equipped for that just yet, and needs more work to make it adaptable to an iWatch.
Buzz surrounding an Apple-made smart watch spiked early last month when several publications reported simultaneously that the company was working on such a device. A former Apple interface designer also laid out a case for why Apple is prepared to develop a device now, and speculated on what such a device could do.
This enthusiasm surrounding a new product category is welcomed by Apple investors, who are becoming impatient for Apple to enter a brand new product category three years after it introduced the first iPad.

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