Consumers confused by ‘wearable tech’

The fashion industry may be gearing up to make ‘wearable tech’ mainstream but according to new research conducted

by Phones 4u, 65 percent of consumers are confused by wearable tech and connected home terminology.

The snapshot survey, released in partnership with uBar, found that consumers weren’t sure what the terms ‘wearable tech’, ‘connected home’, ‘smart tech’ or ‘quantified self’ meant. The research also revealed that 80 percent of the 631 respondents didn’t intend to buy any smart tech, because they believed the product range was a “gimmick, not useful, or they did not understand what the technology did and how it would support their day-to-day lives”.

Only 35 percent of the consumers polled said that they were excited by the future of wearable tech and the connected home specifically, while 20 percent admitting they had no idea where to find information on such products.

Scott Hooton, CMO at Phones 4u, said: “There is a general awareness from the consumer around smart tech, but our research has shown that they aren’t necessarily sure what’s right for them. There is a need at the moment for categorisation and indexing so that the customer can learn what they want.”