The Flexible Display Band That Puts All Other Smartwatches to Shame

Stretching the boundaries of what wearable tech can do.

Ironically, while most “modern” smartwatches are trying to cram a bunch of cool apps into the same basic wristwatch format—a strap connected to a square or round face—that’s existed for centuries, one company is truly thinking outside the box—or circle, as the case may be.

Polyera, which has actually been at it for 10 years, announced that its innovative Wove band is now open to developers and will be available for purchase next year. As you can see in the animation below, it incorporates a special flexible E Ink display that stretches five times the height of current smartwatch displays; will supposedly last three weeks on a charge; and makes the device useful both on and off the wrist.


Believe it or not, as of today, folks have been talking about flexible displays for a decade. A couple years ago, Samsung filed patents for a similar-sounding watch to this one. And last year, Sony showed off a flexible e-reader display. But as you can see from the prototypes in this video from Wired, the Wove looks like it’s almost ready for primetime. Can it beat the big boys to market? Interesting to ponder, as well as how Polyera’s digital fabric technology may have an impact on the future (and “smartness”) of our clothing.

Photos by Polyera Corporation