HMD Rubber watch could bring a camera to Wear OS for the first time
Two new Wear OS smartwatches are coming from HMD Global, and one of them might have a built-in camera. That alone makes it interesting.
For those not in the know, this is the company behind modern Nokia phones. Lately they’ve been branching out with their own branded devices, including phones, tablets and more recently smartwatches.
Now, the idea of a camera on a smartwatch might sound like a gimmick. And it kind of is, unless you’re a kid who thinks it’s cool. Smartwatches with cameras have existed before, just not running Wear OS. They’ve typically been kids devices in China running real-time OS (RTOS) software. So HMD wouldn’t be first to do it overall, but they’d be first in this category.
This is not your typical Wear OS launch
So far the models are only known as HMD Rubber 1 and Rubber 1S. Strange names, but they’re hard to forget. I’m guessing the “Rubber” part refers to the casing, which might be rugged or playful. And based on the sizing, it seems likely that Rubber 1 is the larger version while Rubber 1S is a smaller alternative, maybe aimed at women or younger users.
That second group might actually be the bigger clue here. HMD teamed up with Xplora Technologies last October. If you don’t know them, they focus on kids smartwatches. That partnership could be what’s behind this new direction. And the hardware hints line up.
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Rubber 1 comes with a 1.85-inch OLED display, a 2MP camera, and a solid set of health sensors including heart rate and SpO2. It also has the usual bits like NFC, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.3, and decent waterproofing at 5ATM. Battery is 400mAh, and it charges over USB-C or Qi.
Rubber 1S is a scaled-down version. Smaller 1.07-inch screen, no camera, slightly lower battery capacity at 290mAh, and a slightly older Bluetooth spec. But it still gets Wear OS, so it’s not running cut-down software.
A lot still unclear
There’s no official launch date or price yet. And no photos of the actual watches, either. Just the specs, which were shared online by a well known leaker going by @smashx_60. You can find the post here. It’s always possible the design changes before release, or the camera ends up dropped. But the hardware looks developed enough that something’s coming soon.
HMD has been trying a few things lately, from classic Nokia reboots to new device categories. These Rubber watches feel like a side project that might find a niche. In any case, it’s one to keep an eye out on.
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