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Apple’s iWatch reportedly won’t launch until late next year

Updated Oct 30th, 2013 2:56PM EDT

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Apple’s had previously been rumored to be reading its “iWatch” smart watch for a late 2013 launch, however a new report suggests the device won’t launch until late 2014. In what reeked of a controlled leak earlier this year, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg all issued exclusive reports on the iWatch within days of each other. Details were scarce at the time, but Apple reportedly had a team of more than 100 people working on the smart watch, which it hoped to debut in late 2013. Now, however, KGI Securities analyst Ming-chi Kuo claims that Apple won’t launch the iWatch until late next year.

In a recent note to clients picked up by AppleInsider, the analyst claims that Apple’s iWatch will feature a display measuring between 1.5 and 2 inches diagonally, but it won’t be an OLED panel, as suggested in earlier reports. Kuo doesn’t expect the device to launch anytime soon though, and he said the name people have been using to describe the device — “iWatch” — is misleading.

“Investors shouldn’t be misled by the word ‘Watch.’ We think iWatch will not be positioned as a time-telling device, nor as a device that displays information from other Apple products,” Kuo wrote. “We are positive on the iWatch because its wearable design is helpful for offering more secure user identification and biometrics functionality.”

The analyst also believes the iWatch will feature a “secure user identification mechanism” and while he doesn’t specifically mention the fingerprint scanning technology gained in Apple’s AuthenTec acquisition, earlier speculation suggested the device may indeed include a fingerprint scanner.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 15 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.