如何撬动800亿美元的可穿戴设备市场

Several factors have dogged the nascent wearable technology market. The lack of breakthrough innovation around batteries, for one, requiring wearers to plug in on-the-go gadgets More than they’d like. The lack of sophistication around tiny user interfaces is another, though that will no doubt improve over time.

有几个因素一直困扰着依然处于襁褓期的可穿戴技术市场。比如，电池领域缺乏创新，导致用户只能随身带着充电宝之类的设备。此外，可穿戴设备的界面过于简单，尽管随着时间的推移，这方面无疑将获得改善。

But a big one? The social factor. Beyond the geeks of Silicon Valley and elsewhere, it’s just not cool to wear a watch, glasses, or headset that’s as big as a hood ornament.

还有一个大问题，即社交因素。除了硅谷等地的少数极客以外，很少有人觉得戴着一个像汽车徽标那么大的手表、眼镜或耳机之类的设备，是件很酷的事。

That’s going to change, according to Juniper Research. The British market observer believes that the wearable technology market will grow to $80 billion by 2020—and the key will be making the connected gadgets virtually indistinguishable from their disconnected peers.

英国市场观察机构瞻博研究公司声称，这种情况可能会发生变化。该公司认为，到2020年，可穿戴市场的价值将增长至800亿美元。关键在于如何让可穿戴设备和谐地融入人们的穿着，看起来不那么“显眼”。

That means that Apple must be on to something as it continues to make atypical hires from the fashion and apparel world. Observers, includingFortune‘s own Philip Elmer-Dewitt, believe the new talent will help smooth the rough edges of a technology that’s as personal as a bracelet, watch, or ring. (So, apparently, does Google.) The best wearables, and the ones best positioned for profitability, may be those that allow their technology to completely recede into the background.

由此可以发现，苹果公司不断从时尚和服饰领域挖人的反常举动，必定是有所图的。包括《财富》记者菲利普o艾尔默o德怀特在内的许多观察人士都认为，新招募的时尚界人才将把智能手镯、手表、手环之类的私人物件打磨得更加精致（谷歌公司显然也在这样做）。最好且最有可能获利的可穿戴产品，可能就是那些能使它的技术完全融入到背景中的产品。

Nevertheless, wearables will be a diverse growth market that’s not merely Internet-connected jewelry. Wearables that attach to the skin, such as MC10’s Biostamp, are also part of this category—though they’re in a “more embryonic state” and require a much larger shift in consumer habits than a smart watch, Juniper says.

然而，可穿戴产品毕竟是一个多样化的增长市场，它的意义不仅是一件能上网的饰物。那种能够依附在皮肤上的产品，比如MC10公司开发的“生物印章”，也可归入这一类别，不过这种技术还处于“萌芽初期的状态”，和智能手表相比，它需要消费习惯的更大转变。

Many technology companies—including Apple, ARM, Google, Intel, Lenovo-Motorola, LG, MC10, Microsoft, Omate, Qualcomm, Sony, and Withings, plus wearables-savvy design firms like Gadi Amit’s NewDealDesign and Yves Béhar’sFuseproject—are well-positioned to benefit from the boom. With the right features, consumers are, too.

许多科技公司都准备从可穿戴潮流中获益，包括苹果、ARM、谷歌、英特尔、联想—摩托罗拉、LG、MC10、微软、Omate、高通、索尼、Withings，以及一些知名的可穿戴设备设计公司，比如加迪o阿米特的NewDealDesign和维斯o贝哈的Fuseproject公司。只要有了恰当的功能，消费者也会从中受益。