Microsoft"s plan to bring the Internet to your wristwatch will kick off this week when the company previews gadgets based on its Smart Personal Objects Technology.
The software giant, along with watchmakers Citizen Watch, Fossil and Finland"s Suunto, on Thursday is expected to show off the new products. More details on pricing and service providers also are expected to be revealed. The companies will start to release the wristwatches in the fall, sources close to Microsoft said.
Among other features, portable SPOT products can adjust automatically to geographic changes. Because of this, cars are emerging as another possible vehicle for SPOT, sources close to the company have said.
SPOT products run a Microsoft operating system and the company"s DirectBand radio technology developed in with SCA Data Systems. National Semiconductor is providing the chipsets for SPOT products. The chipset includes a processor based on designs from ARM, a radio receiver and memory.