Rufus Labs has announced the Rufus Cuff. The device is a wearable tablet housing a 3.2-inch display and runs on Android. Coming to the specifications of the Cuff, it is powered by the TI Cortex A9 Processor and comes with 16, 32, and 64GB storage variants. A 1175mAh Battery powers the entire package. The tablet isn’t waterproof but is spill & splash resistant. Other specifications of the Rufus Cuff include Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, 9-axis accel/gyro/compass, speaker, dual microphones, Ffront-facing camera, vibration alert, LED alerts & flash and Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n. In an era where smartphones and tablets run on Android 5.1 Lollipop and Android 6.0 Marshmallow, this wearable tablet runs on Android 4.4 Kit Kat. It also has support for multiple languages.
The Rufus Cuff is compatible with both, iOS and Android so you can seamlessly receive and make calls from the comfort of your wrist – just like the plethora of smartphones available in the market. Since the display of the device is larger than the standard smartwatch available, it houses a full sized keyboard. How comfortable this is to use is something we will comment on when we use it. In the past we have seen a device like the Intex i-wrist sport a full sized keyboard. Not the most comfortable experience.
The one place where a device like the Rufus Cuff makes sense for someone like me is with navigation. Rather than investing in a dedicated GPS device for my car or using my phones, which anyways have battery life issues, this device can work well as a navigation device.
Looking at the device, it does seem to be a bit big for users to wear but then again it looks like the only device that works exactly like Dick Tracy’s smartwatch. In the recent past we have seen devices such as the Moto 360 generation and the LG Watch Urbane launch that aims to be the perfect smart device on a users wrist. These devices suffer from the same problems – battery life and limited functionality due to the small screen size. Apple also has the Apple Watch, but how users respond to it in India is questionable considering the price. The most expensive Apple watch will cost about Rs. 14 lacks.
It great to see wearable’s move in this new direction. We have seen a bunch of interesting startups that have worked with wearable devices. We cant wait to see how they will be implemented in real world usage.