Using Digital Watch Practices to Inform Smartwatch Design.

Smartwatches have seen a recent resurgence with several manufacturers entering the market. While there has been research on technical feasibility and novel interactions for smartwatches, there has been little work on what user-centered values a smartwatch might offer to its wearer. We present a user study designed to uncover usage practices of traditional digital watches and report results from a qualitative survey of 50 everyday digital watch wearers. We discuss patterns found in perception of features, aesthetics, and patterns of wearing a watch. Using this data, we discuss possible applications and the implications these of these findings for designing smartwatches.