As our Apple Watch 9 review and Apple Watch Ultra 2 review show, Apple’s smartwatches are powerful little computers. And as a new hardware project called TinyPod proves, they don’t necessarily need to be worn on your wrist.
As announced Social media (via 9to5Mac ) As stated “coming soon,” the TinyPod houses a strap-less Apple Watch inside a case that looks like a miniature iPod, and also features a click wheel on the front for controlling apps and actions.
If you think about everything the Apple Watch can do, it’s essentially a smaller, more limited version of an iPhone: you can make calls, send texts, listen to music, take notes, and much more.
Combine the iPod-inspired hardware design with the premium AirPods and you get a fusion of the ideas of iPhone and iPod, but in a tiny gadget that can easily slip into your pocket or strap to your clothing.
Phone away from the phone
This summer, let’s live differently than usual pic.twitter.com/7qvu5Sm3XvMay 24, 2024
One of the TinyPod teaser trailers already released describes the device as “a phone away from a phone,” giving us an idea of how it’s targeted — as a kind of complementary device that complements a phone (much like the Apple Watch itself).
Perhaps all the things this mini phone can’t do — browse the web, scroll through social media, play videos — make it a less distracting, less stressful alternative to an actual iPhone. It might be a good choice for times when you don’t need to carry a full-featured phone around with you.
There’s still a lot we don’t know about the TinyPod, like how much it will cost or when you’ll be able to buy it (it’ll be available in the US this summer), but so far it’s a promising idea.
In fact, this isn’t the first project to try to turn the Apple Watch into something else: there’s also the Cake gadget, which is very similar to the Rabbit R1 and is currently in the prototype stage.