UPDATED 07:00 EDT / FEBRUARY 17 2015

Steve Wozniak thinks Apple Watch will sell millions from the start

steve wozniakCo-founder of Apple Inc., Steve Wozniak didn’t sound like a big fan of the upcoming Apple Watch when he referred to it as a “luxury fitness band” in an interview with CNNMoney late last year.

The remark came after he admitted to being an early-adopter when smartwatches first came out. “I kept saying that I’d like to have a smartphone on my wrist, so I bought a few smartwatches when they first came out,” Wozniak said. “I got rid of them so quick. I got real negative on smartwatches.”

The biggest problem with smartwatches, he said, is the small screen size.

Now Wozniak seems far more optimistic about the Apple Watch’s chances of success. In a new interview with the BBC, Wozniak talked about the upcoming Steve Jobs movie, Apple car rumors, the next big thing for Apple and his views on the Apple Watch.

Wozniak admits he’s had bad experiences with smartwatches to date. He thinks the Apple Watch will be different. “The thing is, Apple makes products more fun than anyone else,” he said. He seems particularly taken with the Apple Watch’s display: “If you look at the display it’s almost like a little piece of art … It’s going to be so special.”

Wozniak said that, just like everyone notices others with iPhones, Apple Watch wearers will take notice of one another, especially in “hip areas.”

Wozniak thinks Apple Watch will sell millions right from the start. “Apple has this thing,” he said. “They’ve made so many good products that everyone who owns Apple products will buy [the Apple Watch] and that means millions of people will buy this watch from the start. That helps get a critical mass going.”

He showed off his own ‘high-tech’ watch during the interview. He jokingly pointed out, “This is not the Apple Watch.” He explained how his watch uses vacuum tubes that haven’t been in use in over 45 years.

Wozniak is very excited about the use of the Apple Watch for healthcare. “Look at how many people have diabetes. If this thing’s actually measuring blood sugars all day long — oh my god, that’s a bit in niche market that’s very huge already,” he said.

Asked to speculate on Apple’s future products, Wozniak said that he feels self-driving cars will be an important technology in the future and he would also like to see better artificial intelligence to improve how humans communicate with machines.

Watch the complete interview in the video below:

photo credit: Campus Party Bogotá via photopin (license)

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