Amazfit X Slaps A Curved Smartwatch On Your Wrist

Smartwatches today seem to go out of their way to emulate the look of classical timepieces, mostly in response to the market shunning the geeky look of the first generation of smartwatches. Xiaomi-backed Amazfit (no relation to Amazon), however, is now going in the completely opposite direction and giving smartwatches the hi-tech yet still stylish look they may finally deserve. The Amazfit X is made to look like a wristband but promises to work like a smartwatch, just one that may not work like other smartwatches either.

To be clear, this is neither a flexible smartwatch like the Nubia alpha nor is it the first wearable with a curved screen. Samsung has been doing those since the early days of the Gear Fit trackers and one lone Gear S smartwatch, but the Amazfit X's 92-degree curve is promised to be a better fit, no pun intended, on people's wrists.

That curved screen is advertised to also be larger than traditional smartwatches at 2.07 inches. Of course, that's because the screen is longer but it is also narrower than most smartwatches. It can display more content without scrolling, Amazfit explains, but that also means there might be less content to fit across the screen's width in the first place.

The Amazfit X also has other tricks, like ditching a physical button for an invisible touch-sensitive surface at the side of the metal frame. But while the smartwatch is equipped with the basics, it is also missing out on modern smartwatch features like NFC or even a standalone LTE connection.

Amazfit, which has launched other smartwatches before, is taking the odd route of selling the Amazfit X on Indiegogo, further diluting the purpose of a crowdfunding platform. The early bird discounts may make the handsome smartwatch attractive but users should be aware of how the smartwatch will be an island of its own, incompatible with any of the major smartwatch platforms and apps available in the market today.