A little over a week ago, Samsung unveiled a brand new smartwatch, the Galaxy Gear S, just ahead of IFA Berlin. Now, with New York Fashion Week well underway, Samsung has announced a partnership with Diesel Black Gold that will see the fashion brand release custom versions of the Gear S.
Diesel Black Gold has used the Gear S as a foundation for its latest round of accessories, creating a line of Gear S smartwatches to suit individual tastes and styles. Samsung basically just contributed the actual watch face module and then Diesel took care of the fashion side of things, which is probably the way it should be.
Diesel Black Gold’s take on the smartwatch involves a lot of leather cuffs, and while they may not be everyone’s cup of tea, they’re a far cry from the one-style-suits-all approach we’ve seen from most wearable manufacturers this year. Ultimately, this is likely the direction wearables will take. As more companies move into the wearables space, they’ll seek to differentiate themselves with unique or stylish offerings, and a partnership with a major brand is probably the quickest route.
What we’re missing is release dates and pricing. No doubt they’ll be more expensive than the current Gear S, which will launch in October and has also yet to receive any official pricing. Assuming it will be in the same $200 to $250 range that we’ve seen from most smartwatches to date, you could be looking at $300 or more for the Diesel versions.
[source]Samsung[/source]
