Google Glass may not be the product most consumers end up experiencing. It could be a watch, or a band, or something else. Google Now is the product worth watching -- that context-sensitive, always-on service that made the Moto X so interesting, and feels only a few steps removed from a movie like "Her."
You also get a sense of the other shoe beginning to drop in Google's master wearables plan with the company's latest high-profile acquisition: Nest. It's the beginning of a Google-in-everyday-things movement, toward smart homes and smart zones. Wearable tech won't be of much use as an accessory for your phone alone; it needs to be better-connected to the rest of the world, too. That's where Google seems poised to develop software, infrastructure, and new ideas that other wearable tech can employ.
Apple: the design and the utility
Apple's making an iWatch. Or it isn't, and we've all been deceived. Whatever this product ends up being -- which I still think should be a successor to the iPod line and a semi-modular gadget that will clip into various bands or other accessories -- it's bound to be well-designed. Design is where Apple products tend to shine, and where most other companies seem to pay attention. Apple has technologies that could be very wearable-friendly, like Siri, Touch ID and iBeacon, but it's design that everyone is looking to Apple to lead in.
In wearables, design is hugely important. No one really knows what wearable tech design should really look like, or feel like, to be successful. The products we've seen so far have been a big grab bag, even the ones that seem well-designed may end up having unforeseen problems down the road.
Apple will take a crack at it like everyone else, and odds are Apple's ideas will influence both everyday people and the industry. After Apple's device, will other wearable companies take their design philosophies back to the shop and come back with products that are a response to Apple's ideas? Based on what's happened with the MacBook, iPhone, and iPad, that answer's bound to be yes.
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