Best Buy Releases "Next Big Thing" in Smartphones

Richfield-based Best Buy has rolled out what could be the "next big thing" in tech, WCCO reports: the "smart watch."

The device uses Bluetooth wireless technology to tie in with a user's smartphone to provide additional bells and whistles, but in a postage stamp-sized package mounted on the user's wrist. Some applications let the user access certain smart phone apps from their watch, too.

As with many things in tech, the idea isn't new—1930's comic book character Dick Tracey and 80's TV crimefighter Michael Knight famously had wrist-mounted communicators—and the idea popped up multiple times in the 1990's and early 2000's.

Several smart watches are on the market right now, from previous versions of the iPod Nano to the WIMM One and the Sony SmartWatch, but Best Buy will only be offering the Pebble. 

Pebble allows users to do everything from monitor running pace to customize its interface design to access emails or music, according to the company's website. Pebble is available on BestBuy.com for $150.

Read the rest at WCCO.com