工程師出身的高通 (Qualcomm)CEO Paul Jacobs針對該公司新發(fā)布的智能手表 Toq發(fā)表了一番誠實的評論：“它有好一段時間是我最愛的案子；當(dāng)你是CEO，就很難參與太多事情，因此對我來說，能跟工程師們一起開發(fā)這個產(chǎn)品真的很有樂趣?！? 在高通于日前于美國舉行的Upling大會上正式發(fā)表Toq以前，Jacobs參與了該產(chǎn)品兩個版本的開發(fā)；Toq將以”限量版“形式，只生產(chǎn)一輪、總量不超過10萬只。該款設(shè)備僅支持藍牙無線連結(jié)，針對Android 平臺最佳化，可扮演智能手機的第二個屏幕。 高通并不會成為一家面對大眾市場的消費性電子公司，像微軟(Microsoft)賣Surface平板電腦以及Xbox游戲機那樣；但高通期望藉由Toq達到幾個目的──這款智能手表可展現(xiàn)高通的三項技術(shù)：一是鎖定物聯(lián)網(wǎng) (IoT)應(yīng)用的AllJoyn通訊協(xié)議，其二是WiPower LE 無線充電技術(shù)，其三則是Mirasol反射型顯示器。 “我投資Mirasol 是因為我想要一種低功耗顯示器；”Jacob表示：“手機整天都在工作，但你說不準(zhǔn)何時屏幕會關(guān)閉。因此我想要有一種一直開機的顯示器，能隨時收到通知?！盡irasol一開始鎖定電子書應(yīng)用，但該市場后來分裂成采用電子書應(yīng)用程式的高解析度平板設(shè)備，以及僅支持黑白顯示的低階電子書閱讀器，讓Mirasol 無用武之地。 現(xiàn)在高通希望該顯示技術(shù)能在可穿戴電子設(shè)備上找到新歸屬，例如各家公司準(zhǔn)備推出的智慧手表；Jacobs表示，藉由Toq：“我們?yōu)榭纱┐魇皆O(shè)備顯示器設(shè)立了一個基準(zhǔn)…我們是在展現(xiàn)可以提供的技術(shù)。”

高通CEO Paul Jacobs在2013年度Uplinq親自上陣發(fā)布Toq智能手表
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除了顯示器，Toq所采用的另外兩種技術(shù)也值得注意──高通根據(jù)無線充電聯(lián)盟(A4WP)規(guī)格所開發(fā)的WiPower LE，是鎖定智能手表等小型設(shè)備的無線充電技術(shù)。此外其AllJoyn開放性通訊協(xié)議，則希望能為目前標(biāo)準(zhǔn)分歧的物聯(lián)網(wǎng)領(lǐng)域帶來亟需的共通性；據(jù)說高通的一位高層已經(jīng)前往德國柏林的IFA展會與數(shù)家消費性電子業(yè)者會面，討論成立AllJoyn聯(lián)盟的事宜。 Toq所采用的1.55寸Mirasol顯示器，支持每寸222像素、288x192像素分辨率，預(yù)計在10月開賣，但僅能在美國市場買到，售價325美元( Toq官網(wǎng) )。Jacobs在Uplinq親自上陣發(fā)表這款產(chǎn)品，并贈送免費兌換券給現(xiàn)場來賓，讓這款智能手表成為媒體寵兒，成為市場熱門話題。 Jacobs也相信，可穿戴式設(shè)備熱潮即將來襲：“我認(rèn)為可穿戴式攝影機未來將在市場上占有一席之地；我跟Irwin (高通創(chuàng)辦人Irwin Jacobs，也是Paul Jacobs的父親)常在說，我們家的人認(rèn)人臉的本事就比別人差一點，所以我們希望能有一種技術(shù)能在某個人迎面走來時，就在我們耳邊說出那個人的名字?！? 本文授權(quán)編譯自EE Times，版權(quán)所有，謝絕轉(zhuǎn)載 本文下一頁：忠實扮演智能手機第二屏幕的角色

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{pagination} 而筆者剛好就坐在Irwin Jacobs身邊，他在Uplinq大會的第一天就悄悄出席；他告訴我，他已經(jīng)戴著Toq幾個禮拜，而該款手表是他第一次用過的無線充電裝置。因為高通有個鎖定無線可穿戴式醫(yī)療保健設(shè)備的部門，他還說：“我也曾經(jīng)試戴過一個禮拜Dexcom推出的血糖監(jiān)測儀──我其實沒有糖尿病，但只是想看看戴起來是什么感覺?！?

負(fù)責(zé)高通AllJoyn 專案的Rob Chandhook 展示Toq與WiPower LE 無線充電器、藍牙立體聲耳機
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Paul Jacobs在專題演說中還提出了“數(shù)字第六感(digital sixth sense)“的愿景，表示包括可穿戴式設(shè)備以及各種圍繞著我們的智能連網(wǎng)設(shè)備，將：“創(chuàng)造出一種融入(immersive)體驗，并改善人們的生活?！彼赋?，過去幾周配戴了Toq之后，他已經(jīng)“打從內(nèi)心認(rèn)同”這類設(shè)備將會忠實扮演智能手機第二屏幕的角色。 而Paul也回憶了一個過去的類似經(jīng)驗，表示他在1998年去夏威夷Maui海灘度假時，第一次使用一款內(nèi)建Alta Vista 搜尋引擎的早期智能手機找到一家在附近的壽司餐廳：“我當(dāng)時就了解世界將因此改變?！? 老實說，我不能確定智能手表是不是會像iPhone那樣成為改變世界的產(chǎn)品；我還沒玩過三星(Samsung)新發(fā)布的智能手表，也沒用過Pebble智能手表，但看過微軟(Microsoft)、樂金(LG)曾經(jīng)發(fā)表又消失過的類似設(shè)備。不過我也相信可穿戴式設(shè)備會崛起，只是目前尚未有一種能定義這個設(shè)備類別的大眾市場產(chǎn)品出現(xiàn)，僅有一些仍在成形中的概念…你認(rèn)為呢？ 本文授權(quán)編譯自EE Times，版權(quán)所有，謝絕轉(zhuǎn)載 編譯：Judith Cheng 參考英文原文：Qualcomm Toq Is Engineer-CEO's Tick，by Rick Merritt

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{pagination} Qualcomm Toq Is Engineer-CEO's Tick Rick Merritt "It was my pet project for a while," Jacobs said in a press Q&A. "When you're the CEO it's not like you can get into the guts of a lot of things, so it was fun for me to get into this with the engineers," he said. Jacobs worked on two iterations of Toq before releasing it at the Uplinq conference here as a "limited edition" product with a single planned production run of less than 100,000 units. The Bluetooth-only device is optimized to work with Android smartphones as a secondary display Qualcomm won't become a consumer electronics company selling to mass markets like Microsoft with its Surface tablet or XBox consoles. Nevertheless, Toq has a few serious goals. The smart watch is meant to showcase three Qualcomm technologies: its AllJoyn messaging protocol for the Internet of Things, its WiPower LE wireless charging and its Mirasol reflective displays. "I invested in Mirasol because I wanted a low-power display," Jacobs said. "The phone is doing things all the time, you just can't tell because the display is off, so I wanted an always-on display getting lots of notifications," he said. Mirasol initially targeted e-books. But the market split into high-res tablets with e-reader apps and low-end models with black-and-white displays. Mirasol's middle market evaporated. Now Qualcomm hopes the display technology could find a home in wearables, such as smart watches other companies make. Thus Toq is a way to "set a benchmark for a wearable display… We're about enabling technology," said Jacobs. Paul Jacobs announced the Toq watch at Uplinq. The other two components in Toq are also significant. Qualcomm aims to establish WiPower LE, its variant for small devices like smart watches of a spec set by the Alliance for Wireless Power. In addition, it believes its AllJoyn open-source effort could deliver the glue so badly needed in the fragmented IoT sector. A Qualcomm exec is headed to the IFA show in Berlin, aiming to meet with a group of consumer electronics companies who will create an alliance around AllJoyn. Incidentally, the Mirasol in Toq is a 1.55-inch display delivering 222 pixels per inch and a resolution of 288 x 192 pixels. The watch will probably be available in October, but only in the US, selling for about $325. The smart watch has become a media darling, a poster child for wearables. Jacobs stirred up plenty of gadget lust and good press when he announced it at Uplinq and gave attendees coupons for free ones. Jacobs said he's a believer in a coming wave of wearables. "I think there is a place in the world for a wearable camera," he said. "Irwin [Jacobs, Qualcomm's founder and Paul's father] and I always talk about how our facial recognition is not as good as someone else's so we want to have something whisper in our ear" the name of the person approaching, he said. I happened to sit next to Irwin Jacobs, who quietly attended the first day of Uplinq. He told me he has been using Toq for a few weeks and that it was his first device to use wireless charging. Qualcomm also has a health care division driving technology for wireless wearables. "I wore a continuous glucose monitor from Dexcom for a week -- I don't have diabetes, but I wanted to see what it was like," he added. In his keynote, Paul Jacobs rolled out a vision of a "digital sixth sense" that includes wearables, as well as smart connected devices all around us that "create immersive experiences and improve people's lives," he said. He said his experience wearing a Toq watch the last few weeks convinced him such devices have a role to play as second screens for smartphones. "I viscerally understand it," he said. He recalled a similar experience in about 1998 when on a beach in Maui he did his first search on an early smartphone using the Alta Vista search engine to find a nearby sushi restaurant. "I understood the world had changed," he said. Personally, I am not sure I have seen or heard of a smart watch that has changed the world in the same way as a product like the iPhone did. I have yet to see the new Samsung watch or use a Pebble watch, but I have seen models from Microsoft and LG come and go. I too believe in wearables, but I have yet to see a mass-market product that defines this category, which I see as a set of concepts still in search of a compelling product. Rob Chandhook, who runs Qualcomm's AllJoyn program, showed the press Toq in its carrying case that doubles as a WiPower LE wireless charger for the watch and its stereo Bluetooth headsets. Rob Chandhook, who runs Qualcomm's AllJoyn program, showed the press Toq in its carrying case that doubles as a WiPower LE wireless charger for the watch and its stereo Bluetooth headsets.