Casio Joining the Wearables Bandwagon Soon
Until recently, Casio has been keeping its smartwatch plans under wraps. The company has been quiet about what its plans are no less than the company's president and chief operating officer, Kazuhiro Kashio, has revealed that they are planning to come out with their own smartwatch soon.
Kashio told the Wall Street Journal that the company is "trying to bring our smartwatch to a level of watch perfection: a device that won't break easily, is simple to put on and feels good to wear." The watch will be launched in the U.S. and Japan in March 2016. Although it will be priced at $400, its introductory offer in the U.S. will make it available at $349.
Whether the watch will make use of the Android Wear OS is still unknown, but the report speculates that this may not be the case. The pricing also indicates that the new smartwatch is seeking to compete with other high-end smartwatch models in the market.
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Apparently, the company has been doing its own research and development on their first smartwatch for the past four years. The efforts were headed by Kazuhiro Kashio, who recently replaced his father as the company's president.
According to the report, the company is projecting $80 million in sales for its smartwatch. They are also cautious about entering the market.
"I don't think the smartwatch will be an instant success but we want it to grow in the long term," Kashio said.
Casio is known for its line of watches that boast of functionality and durability. Product name recall is the one thing that Casio has advantage over other smartwatch manufacturers. According to the report, Casio may still continue to produce what is called "basic wearables" or wearables that serve a simple, single purpose, demand for which may still continue to grow through time.
