Musician will.i.am is no stranger to the fashion industry or the tech industry. After all he was Intel’s Director of Creative Innovation, and let’s not forget last year the musician unveiled a wearable of his own called the Puls which is part of the his i.am+ brand. Now it looks like he will be taking things further and more high-class with a collaboration with luxury fashion label Gucci.
Both the fashion label and musician have teamed up to create Gucci timepieces on a smartband which can actually standalone, meaning that it will not require tethering to a smartphone or any other mobile device in order for it to work. This already puts it at an advantage over the competition, which for the most part still requires a connection to the user’s smartphone in order for it be fully utilized.
The smartband will also be able to make and receive phone calls, send and receive text messages, control music, use maps, track your fitness, and even comes with its own personal voice assistant software. While not exactly a watchmaking brand, Gucci would basically be another luxury brand that would join the likes of TAG Heuer in ushering the era of luxury wearables.
In a statement made by will.i.am, “In developing together a device that is both fashionable and technologically advanced, we will create something that is unique in the marketplace. From the very start, I coined the term ‘fashionology,’ a merging of the worlds of fashion and technology, which is exactly what this collaboration with Gucci represents.” Pricing and availability have yet to be confirmed.
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