October 20, 2016
Why wearable tech needs fashion to survive and to thrive
These are most definitely designs of the future but that future is not so distant: all these technologies exist in some form today.
We'll never need to remember umbrellas or coats again either -- sensors will read humidity levels and tell the conductive fibres of our customised 3D-printed clothes to release waterproof chemicals, while a shift in their nanoparticles will pull fibres together for insulation. Sensors will send our biometric data to doctors, while the antibacterial fabrics protect us from viruses.
In the future, our clothes will replace our devices. They will light up with social media alerts, producing holograms to read those updates wherever we choose.
As wearable tech matures, designer collaborations are everywhere. Tech firms realise they don't have the credentials to make the kind of products people want to show off and fashion and watch companies can skip years of R&D.
From Swarovski to Tag and everyone in between, wearable technology is moving away from horrid black boxes and into luxurious designs. And as the tech gets smaller, these top designers can push the boundaries even further. Read on for our round-up of the best looking designer wearables money can buy.
Merging wearable tech with fashion stands to empower the public in a way that technology alone has never been able to. Materials are designed to protect us; fashion to give us creative control over our projected selves -- these innovations will allow us to do both in a far richer way. Our personal devices immerse us in information and entertainment, while social media acts as a constant stream for filtering other people's data and agendas and, increasingly, as a conduit for brands. That technology makes our lives easier, but has the capacity to unwittingly render us more passive when it comes to creating; its sheer efficiency make imagination less vital.
Fashion is about experience -- an occasion, a time or place -- and augmented reality or other technological applications will increasingly perpetuate new forms and understandings of this experience and exploration of identity. The experience can be a form of travel, in the same way as when we go on holiday we take pictures of things that are unfamiliar or visually engaging.