A New Era of Wearable Devices
June 21, 2022 | by Paul Stubbs (Zebra Product Manager)
It may appear that everything I write about lately I hail to be the next evolution, revolution, or a new era of technology. Well, I am back with another claim. That claim is that a new era of wearable devices has arrived.
What is a wearable device?
Simply, a mobile computing device that is worn on your wrist, back of hand or fingers. Mobile computing devices started as suitcase size computers, moved to laptops and then handheld. We then went a little bigger to tablets and now much smaller to wearable devices.
Wearable devices have been around for a number of years, and their adoption has been sporadic. The benefit of the form of such a mobile device is that workers can operate with their hands free rather than carrying a handheld device around. They are an excellent solution for warehouses where bulky goods need to be contended with. Devices typically involved a wrist wearable, compact mobile computer with a connected finger mounted barcode scanner, also known as a ring scanner.
Zebra WS50
Already a leader in the wearable device space, Zebra Technologies has raised the bar in the wearable device space with a new offering called the WS50. What makes this device unique is it’s an all-in-one device that is worn on a couple of fingers. In fact, it is the world’s smallest all-in-one Android enterprise mobile computer.
The WS50 has an inbuilt barcode scanner to cover scanning need so in effect it could be viewed as a ring scanner on steroids. No more wrist mounted computer and separate ring scanner. Furthermore, you can configure the WS50 to be worn on your wrist, back of hand as well as on two fingers. Don’t let its small size give you the impression that this device may not offer a true enterprise mobile computing experience. Not only does it offer a full colour AMOLED screen but has programmable buttons to automate processes. It can be configured to take high resolution images and even be used as a push-to-talk device.
What I like about the WS50 is that it now makes wearable devices a real alternative device for many more applications outside of the warehouse. It makes a great solution for those responsible for stock management in retail or transport and logistics workers who need to scan parcels as part of their delivery processes. Workers supporting manufacturing processes can now work hands free and still stay connected to host systems and hospitality workers now have an ultra-compact device that can even be used as a push-to-talk solution to keep them connected to other staff.
I can’t wait to see where the WS50 devices end up in enterprises, but no matter what, we now have entered a new era of wearable devices where compact all-in-one devices will be the norm.
