Amazon Recognises the Rise of Wearable Tech

Friday, July 11, 2014 - 11:57 by Graham Miller

While portable technology has become much smarter thanks to the phones and tablets released over the past half-decade, these devices still have the distinction of being hand-held and you have to pop them in a pocket or bag if you want to take them anywhere with you.

But with an emerging number of wearable devices hitting the market, online retailer Amazon has recognised the rise of this new era of technology by creating a brand new product category to help consumers find such gadgets, according to Wired.

Customers can select from hundreds of different items on the new section of Amazon's outlet for safe shopping online. These include the obligatory smartwatches from Samsung and Sony, along with things such as cameras, headsets and other electronic products that are designed to be worn.

Amazon is no doubt gearing up for the arrival of the iWatch from Apple later in the year, which could help to catapult the wearable tech market even further into the mainstream. And no doubt if it is a success, it might even release its own-brand take on this wrist wear.

A spokesperson for the UK arm of this retail giant explained that the rising sales of wearable tech have helped to convince Amazon that it needs to address demand and ensure that people have the widest possible range of choice when they come to buy a gadget via safe shopping online.

These devices are not just aimed at replicating the functions of smartphones and tablets on a smaller scale. They offer their own unique features, such as the ability to monitor heart rate and other bodily variables, in order to appeal to a fitness crowd. And so Amazon will doubtlessly succeed in capturing a big portion of this emerging market in the coming years.