Is A Hybrid Smart Watch Right For You?

Life used to be so simple: when we bought something there were one or two ‘big’ companies that dominated a space, limiting choice and making it easy for us to buy from a compact lineup.

Those same big company products had a monopoly on features and R&D to create new ones.  Literally, it was either Apple or Samsung.

The Smart Watch category started off the same, but thanks to innovation driving prices down and a race to develop technology, the entire category has only become more broad.

Smart Watches became GPS Running Watches.  And they became GPS Fitness Trackers, and so on.

Now fashion companies with strong brands, and deep pockets, like Kate Spade and Hugo Boss are drilling down into the Smart Watch category to make their own mark.  They’re called Hybrid Smart Watches.

What’s a Hybrid Smart Watch?

While there’s no formal definition, a Hybrid Smart Watch blends the technology and features of a modern Smart Watch with the contemporary styling that is familiar to us in a wristwatch.

The Hybrid Smart Watch category is rapidly expanding because it captures the one aspect of Smart Watches that the bigger, earlier players missed: people want fashion.

They want Kate Spade, Michael Kors and Fossil.  And they want the freedom to wear the Smart Watch that suits them, instead of being the human that a one-size-fits-all device is wearing.

All of this growth in the Hybrid Smart Watch category that’s being driven by fashion houses instead of tech shops has made the latter stand up and take notice.

Garmin was probably the first of the “gear-gadgets” to step out of it’s shell and make a strong return into fashion.  Their Vivomove is a simple steps and sleep fitness tracker which is what 90% of wearers actually use.  And it looks like a normal watch.

Walk a little further along the display case and you’ll see that what you thought were watches are actually Hybrids with features that rival traditional Smart Watches.

Many, like Fossil’s lineup, are “no-charge” meaning you aren’t forced to tether at inconvenient times.  They still sync with your Android or iOS Smart Phone allowing you to interact with your activity and goals in real-time, monitoring your progress.  Or, like a traditional fitness tracker, even challenging your friends.

The other important factor that developers of Hybrid Smart Watches have brought to the category is lower cost, which has to be driving the big guys crazy.  The fashion houses know that the majority of us don’t want to open a spreadsheet on our watch or split the atom.  We’re pretty happy with call and text notifications, counting steps and sleep and any features beyond that are a bonus.

So how do you know if a Hybrid Smart Watch is for you?

It’s pretty simple.

First, you haven’t bought any smart watch yet.  Or, if you have, it’s too much smart and not enough watch.

And, second, you enjoy browsing through the websites of companies like Diesel, Fossil and Kate Spade because you see more to what they offer than the one-dimensional ‘computer on your wrist’ that the sheeple are wearing.

In your mind, what the device says about you is far more important than all of the things it possibly could do.

Lastly, you’re reading this article.  No joke intended.

We’ve found the best starting point for a micro-category like Hybrid Smart Watches is to look through the best-sellers list on Amazon.  We’ve already put together separate lists of Hybrid Smart Watches For Men and Women.

It has many of the most popular Hybrid Smart Watches and brands, allowing you to narrow your search down to what you like by appearance, features and style.  Then you can use the reviews to understand what features you think will work best for you.

But we’ll warn you now that once you see what choices are available in Hybrid Smart Watches, you won’t stop after you’ve bought one.

But that’s what great about them: Why would you ?

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