Premium rush

WEARABLE technology is all the rage, and the smartwatch is now the latest fashion craze for your wrist.

Industry experts estimate the number of Apple watches sold at a staggering 12 million units. Pebble’s smartwatches, considered to be the least expensive on the market, has also been a big hit – the company has already shipped 400,000 units of Pebble Time.

And if you include the likes of Samsung, Huawei, LG, Fossil and Motorola, consumers have more choices than ever before.

The majority of the watches are in the US$ 150 to US$ 350 ( RM600 to RM1,450) range, making them an affordable and cool accessory to have.

Now though, a new segment – the luxury smartwatch – has hit the market. These watchmakers are seeking to tap a growing market for wearable devices amid flagging sales of traditional watches.

Last year, TAG Heuer became the first Swiss watchmaker to offer a smartwatch to customers that combines Swiss design with smart technology. TAG’s Connected Watch, part of LVMH’s Swiss watch- making business, has already seen demand outstrip supply.

Consumers in the United States and Japan, the first two markets to get the watch, don’t seem too put off by the US$ 1,500 ( RM6,400) price tag, roughly five times what you would pay for a typical smartwatch. But the Connected Watch is just the tip of the iceberg because the Swiss brands are going for upscale clientele with plenty of disposable income in a big way.

Bulgari is set to debut a new watch which incorporates credit card technology, allowing the wearer to make secure payments. The watch is expected to go on sale by the end of the year with a price tag between US$ 4,600 and US$ 5,100 ( RM19,100 and RM21,000).

Tissot will release a cheaper version late this year called the Smart Touch, priced around US$ 1,000 ( RM4,100). When connected to your smartphone, it will show weather updates and offer GPS tracking.

Breitling’s US$ 8,900 ( RM37,000) Exospace B55 is designed to complement your smartphone by allowing you to track different time zones, set alarms and receive notifications. The watch is also designed to track flight, takeoff and landing times, and even shows airport codes.

Frederique Constant’s updated Horological Smartwatch looks like a normal analogue watch but it also tracks a user’s activity and sleep, much like a Fitbit device. The company has sold more than 16,000 of these devices over the past year.