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Cashing Out the Smartphone: How Mobile Commerce Is Changing Retail

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This week, we wrap up our five-part series on Top App Development Trends for 2016 with an article on mobile commerce! For a recap, take a moment to review our last four articles on cross-platform app development, cloud integration, mobile security and IoT.

Smartphones have brought about unparalleled convenience in our daily lives. We are constantly connected to our rolodex of contacts with a variety of methods of communication. We can access all the information available on the world wide web anytime. We can find the nearest store of choice anywhere we go. For businesses, the mobile platform represents not only a major avenue for advertising, but an opportunity to give customers the ultimate convenience when purchasing products.

According to Internet Retailer, mobile commerce represents 30% of all US e-commerce and rose by 38.7% from 2014 to 2015. According to The Mobile Playbook, the absence of a mobile presence is the financial equivalent of closing a store for one day a week. Suffice to say, mobile commerce is only on the rise in the coming years. Here are the top mobile commerce trends for 2016:

INTEGRATING PHYSICAL WITH DIGITAL

Although the digital world is virtually omnipresent in households, the appeal of immediately receiving one’s purchases remains attractive. Retailers are offering an increasing variety of online + in-store options. Apps like Curbside have partnered with Target & Kroger’s to enable customers to skip the line when picking up their purchases.

PERSONALIZED MOBILE PAYMENTS DRIVE LOYALTY

Although services such as Apple Pay and Android Pay were once hailed as the future, they have had a hard time receiving mass adoption. This hasn’t stopped the impact of the mobile wallet on commerce. Starbucks drives 16% of transactions through its mobile app. Walmart Pay arrived in December 2015, and now Target is next in line to develop their own payment app.

WEARABLES ON THE RISE

According to Arc, there will be a 61% growth in wearable ownership in 2016. App developers and retailers are still plotting on how to capitalize on wearables. Many anticipate a hands-free shopping experience in which one can simply walk out with their purchases and have automatic charges through wearable devices. Wearables represent a major avenue for retailers to create innovative strategies and dictate trends to come.

MOBILE WEB DRIVES PURCHASES

While about 85% of time spent on mobile devices occurs in apps, the mobile web has actually proven to be a more successful in driving website traffic. Consumers spend 80% of their app time on their top 3 apps. The mobile web drives twice the amount of site traffic than mobile apps. With 82% of smartphone users looking to their phones in stores when deciding what to buy, many anticipate the mobile web to surpass apps as the largest revenue driver in the next few years.

This concludes our five-part series on Top App Development Trends for 2016! Follow the Mystic Media Blog for more awesome articles on app development, website design, strategic marketing and more!

Smartphones to Smartworlds: How the Internet of Things Is Shaping Our Future

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Our five-part series on the top Mobile App Development Trends for 2016 has now reached part 4, where we’ll be discussing how the Internet of Things, IoT, is changing the world as we know it.

In November 2015, Gartner (a leading research and advisory firm) predicted 6.4 billion connected “Things” will be in use in 2016, up 30% from 2015. By 2020, they expect the number to reach 20.8 billion. McKinsey Global Institute recently reported that $4 trillion to $11 trillion of economic value could be generated by IoT by 2025. IoT has been consistently hailed as one of the biggest technology trends in the world, yet many people are confused about what the IoT really is.

Top put it simply, the Internet of Things is the network of physical objects embedded with electronics, software and sensors which enable them to collect large amounts of data and communicate with other smart objects. Jamboxes, smart cars, TVs, homes, gyms, bridges and more have been implanted with sensors that allows them to communicate with other devices and objects seamlessly.

Technically, the Internet of Things was created before the World Wide Web. In 1991, researchers at University of Cambridge used a camera, a frame-grabbing card, and a Motorola 68000 series-based computer to create a networked sensor to show the state of their communal coffee pot. Two major shifts have helped evolve the “IOT” into a billion dollar, world-changing industry:  shrinking prices and sizes of computer processors and sensors, and the evolution of the cloud. Cloud-based applications interpret and send data coming from sensors, enabling IoT to exist.

IoT is a major disruptor in virtually every industry: from agriculture to healthcare, car manufacturing, disaster management and more. Businesses are leveraging the IoT to save money and prevent potential threats from becoming catastrophes. The speed with which crucial data can be processed will give mankind incomparable control over asset, resource and disaster management. For example, smart cars will be equipped with unparalleled diagnostic systems capable of learning exactly what problems are happening and how to solve them in seconds. As Google has demonstrated, we’re headed toward a world of self-driving cars.

Self-driving cars only scratch the surface of what this type of object-to-object communication can achieve. Homes equipped with sensors which connect to the web can optimize energy efficiency based on temperature and the GPS location of the owner. Bridges will soon be built with smart cement equipped with censors which will evaluate stresses, cracks and warpages in a way which will allow them to communicate with authorities to fix problems before they cause disasters. IoT will create a smart world in which risk has been decreased significantly.

In order to leverage IoT, businesses need to not only invest money in technology, they must invest brainpower in innovation. As a burgeoning disruptor, the ramifications of the IoT haven’t quite processed in all industries. Management and business model innovation are required for the IoT to fulfill its potential across many industries. Those capable of capitalizing on the IoT will dictate the trends and sail to the top of their industries.

Please continue to follow our blog for more interesting articles on app development, web design, strategic marketing, tech, and more.

Safety First: Mobile Security Is More Than Worth the Investment

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Having established the top mobile app trends for 2016 with our blog App to the Future, the Mystic Media blog is currently exploring each of the top trends in greater detail with a five-part series. This week, in Part 3 of our Top Mobile App Development Trends series, we will be examining security.

2015 saw several major data breaches, including 87 million patient records from Anthem and 21.5 million security clearance apps from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. The European Union is currently crafting a General Data Protection Regulation designed to strengthen and unify data protection.

Gartner correctly predicted that over 75% of mobile applications would fail basic security tests in 2015. Many mobile companies are sacrificing security to attain quicker turn-around on smaller budgets, and the result has been disastrous for many. Even Apple hasn’t been safe from mobile app hacks.

Mobile application security is an integral part of the app development process worthy of the same level of attention as app creators give to design, marketing and functionality. With that in mind, here are some of the top app security trends for 2016:

DevOps Protocol on the Rise

In a recent RackSpace Survey of 700 IT manager and business leaders, 66% of respondents had implemented DevOps practices and 79% of those who had yet to implement DevOps planned to by the end of 2015.

DevOps is an approach to app development that emphasizes collaboration between software development, IT operations, security and quality assurance through all stages of the app development process under one automated umbrella. Utilizing a DevOps protocol improves app security by bringing the IT security team in at an early stage to guide the development process away from potential security threats. App Developers gravitate toward DevOps since it speeds up the time to market while increasing innovation. Like a conveyer belt, DevOps puts a system of checks and balances in place at all stages to ensure that the product will be sufficient for delivery.

By opening up the app development process, security team members can inject security into the code early in the development process and eliminate vulnerabilities before they become threats.

Security Risks In Wearable Tech

Wearable technology is on the rise not only in the marketplace, but as a major security vulnerability for businesses. With the technology in nascent stages, developers have been more concerned with creating a functional strategy for the wearable platform than they have been with improving security. Health and Fitness apps leave users the most vulnerable by constantly monitoring the user’s heartbeat, movement and location. With limited UI and an emphasis on usability, wearables severely lack in security features. App developers looking to create safe apps for this platform will have to innovate and dictate the trends in order to create apps that don’t put the user at risk.

IoT (Internet of Things) & BYOD (Bring-Your-Own-Device)

With the workplace increasingly becoming virtual, malicious hackers acting through the Internet of Things are targeting personal mobile devices in order to find vulnerabilities in businesses.

Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) has increased in popularity in work cultures, each of which represents a potential vulnerability . Smartphone owners generally don’t invest in security on their personal devices with the same thoroughness as a business would when issuing work devices. Due to the boon of mobile work apps, many app developers are cutting corners to meet demand by sacrificing security in service of quicker turnover.

Wise and experienced app developers know you can’t put a price on safety, and they take the necessary precautions to protect the integrity of the app for its users and the app owner.

Major organizations must understand IoT and how it can improve or threaten their business through their employees’ mobile devices. By encouraging a culture of collaboration and welcoming unique expertise into the app development process at an early stage, DevOps practices help ingrain necessary knowledge about IoT and mobile security into organizations.

That’s it for app security! Be on the lookout for part 4 of our series on the top mobile app development trends for 2016 next week when we explore the Internet of Things.

Can Cloud Integration Take Your App to the Next Level?

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In continuation of our exploration of the top 5 app development trends for 2016, this week we will be exploring cloud integration. Check out our master list in our blog App to the Future and be on the lookout for next week’s blog when we explore Security.

While the ethereal nature of the cloud makes it a mystery to many consumers, the cloud has engrained itself in businesses across the globe. Studies show the global market for cloud equipment will reach $79.1 billion by the year 2018.

A lot has changed since we last tackled the cloud in our 2013 blog What Can Cloud-Based Mobile App Development Do For Your Company? The aspects which haven’t changed are the basics: the cloud reduces operating costs by taking the computing load off of local and dedicated servers, it improves collaboration, and it fosters a streamlined collaborative environment.

CLOUD FOR CONSUMER USE

In the past 5 years, Amazon, Google and Apple have all monetized clouds for consumer use. These cloud offerings break up into two categories:

PUBLIC CLOUD: iCloud, Google Drive and Amazon Web Services, in addition to Dropbox and Box, all offer public cloud storage offerings. These clouds are accessible to the public through the Internet.

PRIVATE CLOUD: While the public cloud is available on the public web, the private cloud is designed for a single organization. These offerings are often crafted by cloud providers such as Rackspace, VMware, Microsoft and OpenStack.

HYBRID CLOUD ADOPTION

One of the major cloud trends in the past few years has been the adoption of the hybrid cloud. The hybrid cloud uses a mix of on-premises, private cloud and the public cloud to customize storage needs. Hybrid cloud adoption jumped from 74% in 2014 to 82% in 2015. The hybrid cloud has gained popularity because it allows businesses to section off their storage needs and leverage the advantages of the private cloud and the public cloud while keeping the disadvantages at bay.

CLOUD INTEGRATION

One of  the most interesting trends in the cloud for mobile developers is cloud integration. Device integration entails that multiple applications share data in the cloud and communicate either directly or through third-party software.

A great test case is Apple’s use of the iCloud to promote device continuity. Apple uses the iCloud to make sure files and apps which are synced to the user’s MacBook are also synced to iPhone, iPads, and Apple Watch. This allows the user to alternate between devices seamlessly and encourages them to buy Apple products.

For app developers, cloud integration is a major trend within the industry. With Apple leading the charge, many app developers and their clients want their iOS apps to integrate with iCloud with the intention of luring users to download apps on multiple devices and use them seamlessly. Cloud-integrated apps represent an investment in both time and money for developers.  In order to justify the effort, the app should appeal to tablet, smartphone, and perhaps also desktop users. Cloud integration represents a major opportunity for developers to increase brand continuity by creating a user experience which is consolidated across devices and informed by data across the enterprise.

Learn more about device integration with the iCloud via Apple’s Developer website.

For those with their sights set on cloud integration, here are some of the best third-party cloud data integration software options on the market:

Jitterbit

Zapier

Microsoft Azure

Informatica Cloud Integration

Crossing Over: Best Cross-Platform App Development For Your Business

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Over the next month, the Mystic Media Blog will be delving into the top app development trends for 2016. Check out our master list in our blog App to the Future and be on the look out for next week’s blog when we explore Cloud Integration.

Since the dawn of the iPhone, smart devices have become omnipresent. With Apple, Google, Microsoft, and more jockeying for position in the device and operating system market, many app developers will be investing in cross-platform development tools in 2016 to ensure their apps function on all operating systems and thus reach the widest possible audience.

Cross-platform development offers an extremely fast, simple and cost-effective method of creating an app. By building apps on a common code which can be easily ported to fit any OS, developers can focus more on a single universal app rather than divide their attention over multiple native apps. Developers also reduce the amount of maintenance necessary since they only have to update one app.

We have previously tackled this subject in our 2013 blog Should Your Company Develop Native Apps or HTML-5-Based Apps?

It’s important to understand that cross-platform app development also comes at a price. Developing for multiple platforms prevents app developers from maximizing the capabilities of any individual OS. Some apps may be too advanced to develop using a cross-platform tool, in which case, developing native is the best and only option. Android and iOS have different design schemes for apps on their respective Operating Systems. Customizing app design to match iOS or Android aesthetics improves ASO in the Apple App Store and Google Play. Apps can also have trouble integrating with devices due to the variety of storage options available on devices. We recommend you always discuss the project with your app developer before committing to developing using a cross-platform tool.

Ultimately, it comes down to a matter of resources. Developing an app natively for iOS and/or Android will yield a better product optimized to the device. While any company would love to be Facebook and have the money to invest in completely different native applications for iOS and Android, some have to be pragmatic about their budget. Once the decision to build cross-platform is made, the all-important question of which app development tool to utilize arises. Here are some of the best cross-platform development tools on the market in 2016.

PHONEGAP 

Adobe PhoneGap is one of the most popular cross-platform development tools on the market. PhoneGap is based on the open source Apache Cordova project, making it free to use. Adobe also offers an enterprise version of PhoneGap – it integrates with Adobe Marketing Cloud to not only focus on app development, but to ensure apps reach their audience and experience success. PhoneGap not only creates apps for iOS and Android, but also BlackBerry and Windows, making it an extremely versatile tool.

XAMARIN

Xamarin recently attracted a great deal of attention when it raised $54 million in its Series C round of investments. Xamarin is utilized by over 20% of Fortune 500 companies. According to IDC, those developers will be delivering almost $5 billion to the marketplace in 2017. Xamarin separates itself from the pack by using native UI components from each platform, allowing users to create their app with the native look app for each platform.

APPCELERATOR TITANIUM

Appcelerator Titanium uses Javascript to create native iOS and Android apps while giving developers the ability to reuse from 60% to 90% of the same code for all apps. Appcelerator is a major time saver. It’s also an open-source tool, meaning hundreds of developers are constantly adding to it and improving its functionality. In January 2016, Appcelerator was acquired by Axway, a software and services company. Axway plans on making it easy to integrate Appcelerator with their existing digital business enablement solutions.

For more great cross-platform development tools, check out these great curated lists by AppIndex and TechBeacon.

App to the Future: Top 5 App Development Trends for 2016

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Over the next five weeks, the Mystic Media Blog will be launching a series exploring the top app development trends for 2016 and featuring apps that demonstrate the ways in which each trend can be creatively applied. While this article will introduce you to each of the top trends, be on the lookout in the coming weeks for our in-depth expansion upon each individual trend.

With apps having amassed significant popularity over the past few years, many businesses are looking to enter the arena and develop their own app. Some apps are designed to generate revenue on their own, while others are built to support internal or eCommerce business processes. One would be hard-pressed to find a business which wouldn’t receive a boost by a well-developed app.

As we embark on 2016, it’s vital to consider the future of app development when investing in the creation of an app. Here are the top app development trends to look out for in 2016:

1. Cross-Platform Development

A business cannot control the devices which its customers and employees utilize. Between smartphones, tablets, computers, and now wearable devices, it’s vital to create apps with cross-platform functionality to ensure they are accessible by the widest range of users.

2. Cloud Integration

The cloud represents a major technological advancement over the past few years. With Apple, Google, and Amazon all monetizing clouds for consumer use, expect cloud integration to rise in popularity in 2016. The cloud will allow apps to sync data from various devices, making them a major tool to aid cross-platform development.

3. Emphasis on Security

In 2015, several massive data thefts took place, including 87 million patient records from Anthem and 21.5 million security clearance apps from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. The European Union is currently crafting a General Data Protection Regulation designed to strengthen and unify data protection. Security will be a major concern for app development in 2016, especially for large businesses and government agencies.

4. Internet of Things

The Internet of Things (IoT) has gained traction with the advent of wearable devices. IoT attracts value on a case-by-case basis with specific IoT components designed to solve a specific problem. For those unfamiliar with IoT, here’s an awesome introductory video by Intel:

IoT has emerged as a major area of growth in the tech world which will only continue to expand in 2016. One study by IDC shows IoT spending will reach $1.7 trillion in 2020.

5. M-Commerce

With Paypal facing competition from Venmo, Apple Pay, Android Pay, and more, mobile commerce has become the norm. As consumers seek easier payment methods, app developers in 2016 will be working toward designing apps with safer, faster, easier transaction processing.

Mystic Media is an Android & iOS app development, web design and strategic marketing firm located in Salt Lake City, Utah. Contact us today by clicking here or by phone at 801.994.6815.

Rise to the Top of Google SEO with Responsive Design

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When designing a website, web developers have both practical and aesthetic concerns. From a practical standpoint, a website must reach and connect with its core audience. Due to the rise of mobile technology, it’s important for a site to have mobile functionality so that it can reach the multitudes surfing the web on their mobile devices. The most efficient, cost-effective & effective way is to develop a responsive website. Responsive design not only helps reach a mobile audience, it also increases overall SEO so that the website will rank higher in search engines.

For those unfamiliar with responsive design, check out this quick 60-second review:

When it comes to SEO, Google is king. As of October 2015, studies show the massive tech titan owns about 63.9% of the search engine market share. In February 2015, Google announced they will be emphasizing mobile-friendly search results. In their own words: “Starting April 21, we will be expanding our use of mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal.”

In accordance with their announcement, Google Adwords charges less for a keyword when the landing page is optimized for mobile. Responsive websites represent a major incentive for advertising on Google since responsive design guarantees presentation will accommodate the device regardless of whether it’s a mobile device or a computer.

Responsively designed sites offer a common landing page for all devices, consolidating the amount of links and improving the SEO. If a desktop or laptop user iMessages the link to an iPhone, they can click on it and immediately prompt the same web page rather than a different page optimized for mobile. Instead of duplicating content with separate sites for mobile and desktop mediums, responsive design ensures brand and information continuity with a singular master site.

According to Sociomantic, over half of online shoppers use more than one device. A responsive website not only ensures a consistent UI and brand experience, it eliminates maintenance cost by reducing the amount of websites one is required to maintain. The better a site is, the lower the bounce rate is, and the higher it will rank in Google. For businesses looking to succeed, responsive is almost always the best form of web design.

Mystic Media is a web design and application development company based in Salt Lake City, Utah and specializes in responsive design. For more information, click here or contact us by phone at 801.994.6815.

Best Sleep Apps: Get Better Rest Using your iPhone

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25% of people in the US report trouble with sleep. Sleep deprivation can cause decreased performance and alertness, impaired memory, stress, depression and more. Luckily, we live in a golden age of technology. App developers are actively working to develop iOS and Android apps which will help you get better sleep using your iPhone or Android smartphone. Below find some of the best iOS & Android sleep apps on the market.

BEDDIT

Beddit has made a name for itself as one of the consensus top sleep apps on iOS and Android. Beddit measures cardiorespiratory functions by detecting movements caused by respiration and heartbeats. The app uses an ultra-thin film sensor which goes under your sheet in order to  measure sleep time, sleep latency, awakenings, resting heart rate and snoring. While the Beddit app is free, the sleep monitor ranges from $99.99 – $149.99.

Beddit is available for iOS (iPhone and Apple Watch) via iTunes, as well as Android devices via Google Play.

SLEEP CYCLE

For those looking for a more cost-friendly sleep app, Sleep Cycle is another of the top Android and iOS sleep apps—and it’s only $0.99. Developed by Northcube, Sleep Cycle uses the iPhone’s accelerometer to track sleep phases. When we sleep, we go through multiple states in our sleep cycle, the deepest of which is REM sleep where dreams occur. Sleep Cycle monitors movements using sound analysis and wakes users up during light sleep to ensure users feel naturally rested.

Sleep Cycle is currently available for Android and iOS for free with in-app purchases.

SLEEP GENIUS

If you’re searching for the most high-tech sleep app, look no further than Sleep Genius. Designed with the help of research by NASA, Sleep Genius helps you determine the perfect bedtime, revives you with a soothing alarm, and even helps you make the most of your naps with psychoacoustic music scientifically designed to trigger a relaxation response. NASA’s magazine, SPINOFF, recently celebrated the app for its use of NASA technology to create a better world.

At $4.99, the app is moderately priced in iTunes and Google Play. It’s a steal considering the level of high tech utilized to make it work.

Looking for more great sleep apps? Check out these awesome curated lists from HealthLine and Tom’s Guide.

Mystic Media is an Android & iOS app development, web design and strategic marketing firm located in Salt Lake City, Utah. Contact us today by clicking here or by phone at 801.994.6815

Keep Your Competitors Close: How to Leverage the Power of ASO to Crush Your Competition

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At Mystic Media, we’re no strangers to App Store Optimization. Every app development project we take on has its specific ASO challenges. ASO remains one of the most vital processes in the marketing process. We’ve detailed our knowledge in our six part ASO series where we explored techniques for the ASO Basics, Title and Keywords, Increasing Downloads and Ratings, Getting Featured on the App Store, Differentiating between Apple and Google Play App Stores, and Changing Your Title.

In this article, we’ll detail how to get the most from researching your competitors, what to look for, and how to go about maximizing your analysis.

As with any aspect of marketing, understanding your competitors is vital to finding a search opening in the app store for an app. The app store allows for anyone to do detailed research on competing apps. Simply search the keywords you’ve selected for your app in app stores in order to find primary competitors.

It’s easy to see which app competitors come up in search results; however, it’s important to differentiate between which apps are significant and which have no competitive value. An old sub-par app may rank high in the app store, but it’s not in-competition with a well-designed app. Understanding the value of competing apps will allow you to narrow the list your true competition.

The following factors are vital in appraising the value of a competitor:

The app’s last update: Apps that are not generating revenue will not be updated frequently as it’s a futile endeavor. If a competing app hasn’t had any recent updates, it’s safe to deem them an irrelevant competitor.

App launch date: The app launch date not only dictates whether the app is still active, it informs you as to whether it’s ranking in the search results is being boosted by the “new app” factor. Apps get a boost in downloads and ASO at their launch. If the app has been around for a month or two and retains its ranking, then it’s definitely a competitor worth researching.

Amount of reviews since last update: With iOS apps, the reviews an app receives lose value after an update. This makes for hesitation every time an iOS developer decides to update their app. Evaluating the amount of downloads and reviews since the previous update will also give insight into the amount of traffic being generated by the keywords used.

Other factors include: The publisher of the app, the average user rating, the keywords targeted in the title, and what other keywords the app is emphasizing.

Subscribe to Gabriel Machuret’s Youtube channel for a bunch of awesome videos containing information on how to increase an app’s ASO ranking:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCG6A0qWOOJ0fGfzW48KCcXw

Here’s one on the best ASO tools available to developers:

When you’ve identified the apps with which your app is in direct competition, you can begin to analyze their strategy and decide what techniques you wish to emulate and where you might be able to counter them. This takes consistent monitoring of what techniques the app developers are using to improve their app’s ranking. Analyzing what demographics competing apps are targeting will help define where there might be an opening for your app to appeal to an audience. Knowing what share of the revenue competing apps have will give insight into which app store an app might appeal to (perhaps a competitor has Google Play locked down, in which case one would focus their energies on the Apple App Store.)

Tools such as App Annie,  Mop App, and more give app developers and marketers a time-efficient way of attaining the analysis they need to understand their competitors and adjust their strategy accordingly.

ASO is a thorough process with many ins and outs. Understanding both your competition and how each of the app stores rank apps in search results requires both experience and a great deal of research. Using the techniques given in this article, in conjunction with those outlined in our six-part ASO series and a well-designed app, you will be able to conquer your competition in the app store and rise to the top of search results.

Apple Watch: Everything You Need To Know Before You Buy

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At Apple’s Spring Forward event, the tech giant unveiled detailed plans for Apple Watch. We’ve documented everything we knew about the new device based on last year’s Fall Announcement in our article Shaken Not Stirred: Apple Watch’s Anticipated Impact on Wearable Platform. Here’s what we learned from the Spring Forward Event:

SPECS

Apple Watch will come in three different versions: Apple Watch Sport, Apple Watch (standard edition), and Apple Watch Edition. Each version has two different sizes: 38 mm and 42mm (catered to the average male and female wrist respectively) and 38 different band designs.

Apple Watch Sport

 

Apple Watch Sport Image via Apple Store

Apple Watch Sport is the cheapest version, starting at $349. It comes with a synthetic rubber band and has an alluminum-alloy body.

Apple Watch

Apple Watch image via Apple Store

Apple Watch, the mid-tier model, comes in stainless steel with a sapphire crystal and ceramic back. It starts at $549.

Apple Watch Edition

Apple Watch Edition image via Apple Store

Apple Watch Edition appeals to the upscale buyer. It has an 18-karat gold body with a sapphire crystal and ceramic back. It starts at $10,000.

FUNCTIONALITY

Functionality for the Apple Watch will primarily be reliant on a connection to your iPhone. Apple Watch will also support fully-fledged native applications, however, they will not be available until later in the year. In the meantime, as the smallest screen in the Apple ecosystem, Apple Watch is perfect for micro-managing iPhone apps. “Glances” are one-shot views of apps. For Uber, you can see when your taxi is arriving. For Instagram, you can scroll through images of those you follow.

Check out this The Verge article for a glance at some of the best Apple Watch apps in the App Store.

Apple Watch utilizes Apple Pay to offer quick, card-free payments for small items (drinks and snacks). In participating hotels like the W, Apple Watch apps can open your door for you. The Lutron app will help users save energy by sensing when lights are left on in the user’s home and allowing the user to turn them off remotely on their watch.

COMMUNICATION

Communication-wise, users can take calls on their watch, as well as send voice-memos. The Watch is smart enough to recognize quick replies to basic questions. Users can also draw and pictures to other Apple Watch users. Perhaps the weirdest feature, however, is the ability to send your heartbeat to anyone with a watch.

Heartbeat

Image via Redmond Pie

WHAT’S LACKING: STORAGE AND BATTERY LIFE

Two negative features stand out about the new device: Storage and Battery Life.

Apple Watch comes with 8GB of storage. Of that storage, the bulk is reserved for apps. 2GB is available for music, and 75 MB for photos. Photos will be resized to take up less screen room than the originals. Unfortunately, the 8GB storage limit will apply to all versions. Even those who shell out $10,000 for an Apple Watch Edition will be stuck managing a limited amount of music on their phones.

The device will require daily charging. One full charge will last for 18 hours, a figure brought about assuming it is paired with an iPhone and used for 90 time checks, 90 notifications, 45 minutes of app use and a 30 minute work out with music playback through Bluetooth.

HEALTH

Health-wise, Apple Watch can track movement, estimate calories burned, and monitor heart rates. While Apple initially ran tests to include a stress sensor and blood pressure monitor, they failed partly because of individuals with hairy arms. One of the innovations in Apple’s approach to setting health goals is how the device sets goals based on the user’s past behavior, rather than allowing the user to set their own goals or setting a default goal. Customizing exercise goals to the user make the goals achievable and less intimidating. Unfortunately, Apple Watch lacks diet tracking functionality.

OVERALL

Apple Watch will have a major impact upon release. Current projections estimate around 20 million Apple Watches to be sold in the first year. The biggest technical detriment of the first wave of Apple Watches is the limited battery life and storage space. Moving forward, how developers take advantage of the platform to create native apps independent of the iPhone will be crucial to the platform’s growth. Until we see an influx of native apps, the Apple Watch will be a supplement to the iPhone and a luxury; however, the possibilities are endless for this new platform.

For those who are looking to see what the Apple Watch will look like on their wrist, check out this awesome augmented reality app which makes the iPhone look like an Apple Watch:

Mystic Media is an app development, web design, and strategic marketing firm located in Salt Lake City, Utah. Contact us today by clicking here or by phone at 801.994.6815