Pop star Will.i.am has shown off his as-yet-unnamed smartwatch in a TV show, which he claims is set to be released in July this year.
During an appearance on the Alan Carr chat show on Friday, the tech-savvy musician demonstrated the device that can make and receive calls, play music, and sync with Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, without tethering to a smartphone. The smartwatch also supports Bluetooth.
“I don’t carry my phone anymore. This is my phone,” Will.i.am said. “There’s a lot of smartwatches that need phones [to operate]. Mine doesn’t need a phone; this is the phone.”
“I started the company myself; I funded it, used my own money to develop it,” he added. “It’s a phone; it has all my music in it.”
Will.i.am, the maker of gaudy iPhone accessories, is “director of creative innovation” at Intel. Back in early 2013, Will.i.am said in a interview that he was ready to create a movement around wearable tech as he was fascinated by it.
After the appearance, the star has also confirmed that the device is real to Engadget editor Emily Price, via Twitter. “Yes, it is really real @emily…I will definitely share more info with you soon.”
In another tweet to Alan Carr, he stated “I want to give you my device before it launches in july…”
However, this is not the first instance the smartwatch has been showed off on TV. Will.i.am, Judge of The Voice show, has also been spotted wearing the smartwatch device.
In another UK show over the weekend, Will.i.am tried to place a call to fellow warbler Cheryl Cole which didn’t go well, as a result of muffled audio and call being dropped.
As of now, Will.i.am hasn’t disclosed any other information about his smartwatch, other than the expected launch in July.
