Apple's next big thing is on your wrist

This little gadget nearly stole the show. The watch is real. It’s not called the iWatch, but the Apple Watch. Tim Cook says it’s the next chapter in Apple history. It’s a “comprehensive health and fitness device.” The key idea is that Apple is reinventing input mechanics, using a Digital Crown on the Watch that scrolls, zoom, and navigate the user interface without blocking the display.

Apple has designed six different straps and a special mechanism for swapping them around. Like a traditional His and Hers watch set, the Apple Watch will come in two different size (38mm and 42mm) and three different finishes, and it will be powered by means of wireless charging that is inductive, similar to Apple’s MagSafe chargers for the MacBook. So far they have yet to reveal info on its battery life and whether or not it is water resistant.

The glass is made of sapphire, and it covers up the Watch. It is a scratch-proof material that was more rumored to be featured in the new iPhones.

It has a built-in gyroscope, accelerometer, a heart rate sensor, and a Taptic Engine for sensing input. The Apple Watch can recognize the difference between a tap and a press, offering another subtle way to make different inputs without needing additional input points or buttons. Calling the harder press Force Touch, Apple is essentially defining the smartwatch equivalent of the right-click on a mouse. You can reply messages with smartly predefined text replies and emojis. If you don’t feel like replying messages through voice to text dictation, you can send a finger drawn sketch or even a recording of your heartbeat that’s picked up from the heart rate sensor.

Siri will be included, along with Maps and Photos. Fitness and Workout apps will collect your bio stats, and determine the ideal physical lifestyle in accordance to those numbers. For developers, WatchKit would be released to allow them to develop apps exclusively for the Apple Watch. Finally, Apple Pay will work on the Apple Watch, after it’s synchronized with your iPhone of course. It will also work on your older iPhone 5, 5C and 5S.

There are three variants available for the Apple Watch. The first would be with a stainless steel case and sapphire crystal display, a Sports Edition in an aluminium case with sporty design straps, and the Luxury Edition that has an 18-carat gold case with a sapphire display. It won’t be released together with the newly announced iPhone 6 / iPhone 6 Plus so expect it to go on sale by early 2015, with a starting price of US$349 (about RM1,115). In case you’re wondering, that’s US$100 more than the Moto 360.

For more info, head over to Apple’s Watch page.