Apple Applies for 'iWatch' Trademark

Rumors about an "iWatch" have been floating for a while now, and Apple applied for a "smartwatch" patent in February. Today, even more confirmation that the device is coming: Apple applied for an "iWatch" trademark in Japan, a patent official tells Reuters. The trademark application was submitted June 3 and would cover "computers, computer peripherals, and wristwatches." No word yet from Apple, but Tim Cook mentioned wearable products last month. Though it's certainly a potentially hot area, he noted, "There's nothing that's going to convince a kid who has never worn glasses or a band or a watch to wear one, or at least I haven't seen it."

Over at Forbes, Ewan Spence is relatively unimpressed. "A world where everyone sports a computer on their wrist? Apple fanatics can see it, but I’m not so sure. I think this is less a ‘take over the world’ product, more another ‘hobby’ to see what’s going on in a new space," he writes, comparing the watch to Apple TV. "Admittedly," he concurs, "it will be a hobby that will shift hundreds of thousands of units." (More iWatch stories.)