Smartwatches Are Useless? That's What Nothing Co-founder Carl Pei Thinks

Carl Pei, the tech entrepreneur who founded Nothing and was instrumental in making OnePlus a successful brand, recently shared his opinion about smartwatches. In a recent tweet, Pei admitted that he bought a Samsung Galaxy Watch5 Pro but doesn’t quite know what to use it for. He said, that it “feels kind of useless.”

Pei’s candid admission about his own smartwatch usage raises an interesting question about the broader appeal of these devices. He also expressed curiosity about how other people use their smartwatches. 

It’s worth noting that smartwatches have been in existence for a while now. The first Android Wear watch—LG G Watch was released in 2014. And, since then, many OEMs have been trying their hands at making them, including both tech giants like Samsung and traditional watch brands like Fossil.

However, Apple has always sat at the premium end of the spectrum with its highly popular Apple Watch, which has been a dominant smartwatch in the market. Despite this, no CEO, other than Pei, has outright called smartwatches ‘useless’ until now.

This raises the question of why Pei would purchase a new Galaxy Watch5 Pro if he isn’t interested in smartwatches and their growing market. In a subsequent tweet, Pei mentions that he is “learning about the category.” Perhaps Nothing is considering the possibility of launching their own smartwatch to complete their broader ecosystem, which already includes the Nothing Phone (1) and wireless earbuds such as the Nothing Ear (Stick) and Ear (1) that are already available in the market.

In response to Carl Pei’s tweet, many users emphasized the importance of fitness tracking when it comes to smartwatches. One user pointed out, “I mainly use the Apple Watch for tracking calories burnt (average as it’s not extremely accurate) and then heart rate and vo2 max estimations are good too.”

While some users shared their experiences with using smartwatches for fitness tracking, one user expressed disapproval of Pei’s comment and sarcastically congratulated him on getting a “fancy wrist accessory that you don’t know what to do with.” They continued, “Don’t worry, it’s not like it can track your fitness, keep you connected, control your music, make mobile payments, or help you manage your time.”

It remains to be seen if Nothing is indeed going to launch a smartwatch in the near future—and if it is going to be based on Wear OS—on which other popular Android watches like Samsung Galaxy Watch5 Pro and Galaxy Watch5 are based on.

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