Home
News
You are here

Sony outs second generation of E-ink watches: crazy patterns abound

By Milen Yanachkov

Published: Jan 09, 2017, 8:00 AM

4comments

Sony Wearables

Sony outs second generation of E-ink watches: crazy patterns abound

Last year, Sony launched a lineup of odd wearables, dubbed the FES (Fashion Entertainments) watches, that relied on low-power, bendable E-ink displays to change their looks at the user’s whim. The first generation of FES watches saw release in Japan only, via a crowdfunding campaign, but the second generation is coming to the West, Sony revealed at CES in Las Vegas.

The original FES watch was not so much a smart wearable, since its “smarts” were limited to changing its appearance when tapped, as it was a fashion accessory. Its successor won’t be much different by the looks of it, though this time around, it will be almost paper-thin and capable of producing a variety of colors.

The original FES watch could produce only black and white, but that won't be the case for the second generation

The original lineup was limited to black and white designs, but second generation FES watches will be able to produce a presumably limited palette of colors, including blue, brown and gray, and will let users apply and mix the patterns on both the time face and wrist band. It hasn’t been announced yet whether these will be the only colors available on the new watches.

Other than that, the timepieces are expected to boast impressive battery life — at least three weeks if their predecessors are anything to go by — as well as waterproof designs. Launch date is yet to be announced by Sony.