Is Wearable Technology Ready for Fashion?
Our attitudes and ways of thinking are subtly transformed by the things we use every day, those things that relentlessly infiltrate our lives. It happened with smartphones and related services, which not only evolved our way of communicating, but also the way we get information, go shopping and do our exercise. These very real yet invisible technologies are good at concealing themselves. However, this full-blown technological revolution has still to unsettle the classical logic of the fashion world. But something is moving in the direction of intelligent and wearable equipment, and within a few years these smart garments and accessories could become surprisingly widespread. The signs of change are plenty, and the world of wearables is undoubtedly a scene to watch.
While the first genuine experiments with wearable technology date back to the 1960s, it was only with the turn of the millennium that we saw its first commercial applications. The pioneering project “New Nomads: An Exploration of Wearable Electronics” was developed in 1999 by Levi’s and Philips, marking the inception of a new way to think and design. These two companies represented the apex of fashion innovation and technological research at the time, and they shouldered the risk of creating wired jackets that could connect to cellphones (which had yet to become smart), portable CD players (iPods were still a dream) and headphones. Everything could be connected via cables and jacks, and then controlled with textile buttons cunningly integrated into the sleeves. Sony and Burton appeared with a similar product a few years later, not to mention LG and Prada who anticipated smartwatches with their visionary Prada Link. This was only the first wave, and such technologies still lacked the maturity to become true mass phenomena. Then came Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and sensors, which intro- duced a new chapter. The second wave of wearable technologies began to appear around 2010, and we’re still riding the same wave today. Technological miniaturisation, “over-the-air” data transmission, Web integration, increasingly smaller and more efficient sensors, interface simplification and more accessible prices – all these developments sparked a new age of wearable technologies. Close to our bodies or touching our skin, they eagerly collect data which is then displayed in the form of valuable information on our wellbeing and even our health.
The new mantra of hi-tech companies is mindfulness, or rather “mens sana in corpore sano 2.0”. We have dedicated apps on our phones, and smartwatches remind us when we have to breathe or devote a few minutes to meditation. But these new “mindful wearables” aren’t just occupying our wrists. For example, Smith’s Lowdown Focus eyewear, produced by Safilo with InteraXon technology, uses brain-sensing technology to help mental and cognitive training, while improving brain health and psychophysical equilibrium. The Japanese Jins Meme smartglasses, meanwhile, are able to trace a map of our wellbeing based on eye movements. By gathering and interpreting data on our state of health, they monitor tiredness levels and warn us with sounds and lights when we’re risking a fit of sleepiness.
Pioneers in the relationship between fashion and technology include the collaboration between Tory Burch and Fitbit. But there are also the accessories by Kate Spade and Michael Kors: bracelets and watches whose traditional appearance conceals a smart core designed to monitor movement and physical activity.
Today’s smartwatches represent a category of products that, until not long ago, could only be seen in sci-fi films. While Fitbit, Apple, Garmin and Samsung (the industry leaders) favour a hi-tech metallic aesthetic, there are now other smartwatches that look more like mechanical, analogue timepieces. Examples include the Hald Connected by Skagen and the Activité by Withings: truly hybrid watches with a familiar, almost retro appearance.
But beyond health there’s also fun and social media. The Spectacles by Snap Inc. allow wearers to record short videos and save them on Snapchat without having to in- teract with their phones. These glasses exude a classic style, apart from the presence of a camera which is only activated by pressing a button integrated into the arm.
In the eyes of many, these devices are little more than gadgets or advanced toys for tech lovers. But it’s worth noting that we’re faced with a market which has been enjoying constant growth in recent years (at an annual rate of +25%), and which in 2016 saw the sale of over 102 million devices. Signs of the third wave are already emerging, and it will likely mark the definitive entrance of wearable technology into fashion.
Levi’s hasn’t abandoned its Californian inclination for innovation, and the company will shortly be marketing its first product produced with Google Jacquard technology. Today’s bike-riding commuters no longer have cables and buttons on their sleeves. Instead, they have Bluetooth and invisible filaments woven into their jeans to make the garments sensitive to touch, just like a trackpad. And performing certain simple actions will be incredibly simple, such as answering the phone, changing your music or accessing street directions.
The Rochambeau Bright BMBR is a more fashionable smart jacket fitted with NFC and QR tags, which allow wearers to combine physical experience and digital life. The jacket can provide information on the places we’re visiting, ensure access to reserved events and even connect people with similar interests who happen to be in the vicinity, thanks to microscopic sensors and an intangible exchange of information with your telephone. Thus a bomber jacket can become one of the “things” to connect to the Web.
Designed for movement, but infused with digital, electrical and mechanical engineering, there’s the futuristic Nike HyperAdapt 1.0: a shoe described as “the first performance vehicle for Nike’s latest technological breakthrough, adaptive lacing”. Stores sold out of them immediately after launch: they can be found on eBay for $ 1200.
Projects by Pauline van Dongen encapsulate the recent advances in the world of wearables. But at the same time, they also reveal the direction in which fashion might be moving. The studio has created dresses fitted with solar panels, tops that alert their wearers of bad posture thanks to a delicate tactile feedback, and jackets that (literally) caress us when prompted by our mood and surrounding environmental conditions. It’s all present, highly technological, extremely human and increasingly invisible.
In just a few years, digital innovations revolutionised the music industry (from Napster to Spotify), followed by publishing (between ebooks and tablets) and fitness (with smart bracelets and watches). Fashion’s entry into the Internet of things could mark the beginning of an “invisible Internet of beautiful things”, made of technology that is not seen but felt, like a sensation or an emotion.