Sony has developed the "Wena Wrist" leveraging it's own "First Flight" crowdfunding platform in Japan. As shown in a recent video, the analogue display watch looks a lot like an attractive traditional sport design from, say, Seiko, but the magic lies in the watch band, or the clasp more precisely.





WENA, which stands for Wear Electronics Naturally, offers NFC for payments (via the Japanese Felica standard), activity tracking, haptic notifications/alerts and a user configurable LED indicator on the band.  The two watch models, the "Chronograph" and "Three Hands" are said to have years of battery life, while the smart clasp/strap requires weekly charging. The offering is only for iOS, at least initially, and will be priced at an estimated - 

¥28,000 / US$230 wholesale for the "Three Hands" model  
(¥34,800/US$287 retail).

¥56,000/US$460 wholesale for the "Chronograph" model
(¥69,800/US$ 576 retail) . 




SA recommends that traditional and especially luxury watchmakers keep close tabs on the smartstrap and particularly the smart-clasp approach as a strategic direction. This approach offers their devices a connection to their customers messaging/ digital/ connected lives, while completely preserving the enduring appeal of their products.  Unlike the MMT Motion X initiative, smart bands and clasps are capable of offering real-time connected benefits to users. 

While it is a first for a major CE brand (or sub-brand), it is not the first product to try to develop such an approach. Montblanc's e-strap and the more ambitious (though less fashionable, comfortable, and ready for prime time) Kairos T-Band are the early pioneers in this area. The e-strap and T-band are shown below, in order. 




For more insights and SA's 5-year outlook on the smartwatch opportunity, subscribers may access -

Function Takes Form at Wearable Tech Expo 2015

Global Wearable Device Sales, Revenue, and ASP Forecast by Type: 2013-2020 (April 2015)