First Click: what happened to the Apple Watch walkie-talkie?

April 24th, 2015

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Today is a milestone date in computing. To the olds, it’s obvious — it’s the day the Dick Tracy 2-Way Wrist Radio goes mainstream. An idea first introduced in the 1946 comic strip before being upgraded to a 2-Way Wrist TV in 1964. Unlike the jetpack, this pulp fiction fantasy is now a reality. Except the Walkie-Talkie feature announced with the Apple Watch in September seems to have been pulled at the last minute. Remember that?

Regardless of last minute changes, today’s the day we’ll look back upon as either the advent of wrist computing or just another consumer electronics folly. Remember when the industry made a coordinated push for 3D television? That was fun.

The Apple Watch is far from the first wrist-worn computer. Samsung, and to a lesser degree LG, have kept the dream alive for years by showing off concepts at trade shows and releasing limited runs of Korea-only devices. Google gave the burgeoning category a much needed boost with the launch of Android Wear last year. Yet when was the last time you saw a normal wearing a Moto 360?

Apple has a knack for turning nascent technologies into devices of mass consumption. The iPod wasn’t the first MP3 player. The iPhone wasn’t the first smartphone. The iPad wasn’t the first tablet. No, the Apple Watch is just the first smart wearable from Apple — the most powerful company and brand in the world. Like it or not, that means something.

apple watch walkie talkie

⚡⚡Tracy to Apple, Tracy to Apple, please reinstate the walkie-talkie feature. Tracy to Apple. Come in Apple.⚡⚡

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Wearable of the day

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