There’s a new comer in the smartwatch race: Google.

According to some sources, the search giant’s Android team is working on a smartwatch that would compete with Apple’s iWatch and Samsung’s recently announced Galaxy Altius, or what we previously referred to as the S-Watch.

But what will the Google smartwatch have that the other two won’t?

Evidence of the Google smartwatch was found in Google’s approved patent last year.  The patent describes a wearable device that includes a “wristband, a base, and a flip up portion.”

The base comprises the housing, a processor, a wireless transceiver to connect to a wireless network, with a tactile user interface to provide interaction between the user and the smartwatch, and can be attached to the wristwatch.  The flip-up portion has two displays: one on top for when the flip-up portion is closed, and one on the inside or under the flip-up portion for when it’s flipped open.

The Android smartwatch will also have two cameras: one located on the base that’s in communication with the processor, and one located on the flip-up portion, serving as a viewfinder for the camera when it’s flipped open.  The second camera will be configured to “display information received from the wireless network regarding an image within the viewfinder while the image is visible within the viewfinder.”

The flip-up portion will be partially transparent when in the open position, to serve as the viewfinder.

The base display will show information based on what is seen by the viewfinder, such as product information or directional information when a geographic location is displayed in the viewfinder.  Because of the touch user interface, users can send text and e-mail, as well as receive messages.  In short, the smartwatch can serve as a user’s much more portable smartphone.

In a previous piece, we listed some features that both the iWatch and the Galaxy Altius need such as a bigger, flexible screen, camera, fitness tracker, specifications of a smartphone, a personal assistant, and it should be virtually indestructible.

The Google smartwatch has a camera or two, some functionalities of a smartwatch, but it’s still missing a lot.

What the Google smartwatch needs

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Better aesthetics – based on the patent, the Google smartwatch will look bulky and toyish because of the flip up portion.  If Samsung and Apple were to give consumers a flexible slap smartwatch, Google should do something along those lines as well.  I doubt people would give it another look when other products are slim and sleek.

Fitness tracker – as I’ve said before, companies are now more focused consumer health because they would crumble if consumers become extinct.  Since Google is working on a wearable device, it won’t hurt if it adds a fitness tracker to help consumers stay healthy.  The Google smartwatch should have a step counter, calorie counter, heart or pulse rate monitor, or make it a device that would be useful for diabetics – add a blood glucose reader.

Collaboration and Integration – smart devices should be able to communicate and work well with one another.   Google Glass will soon be available to consumers, and a talking shoe as well.  If Google wants to dominate our everyday lives with wearable Android devices, these gadgets should work well with each other.

Do we really need one?

Smartphones and tablets are getting smarter and these devices make our lives easier.  With that in mind, we need to stop and think, do we really need other devices to rule our lives?  If these smartwatches act like smartphones, then why would consumers buy it if they already have a smartphone?  And if they purchase a smartwatch, does it mean that they would abandon their smartphone?  Or are these smart devices intended to complement the existing devices we are currently using?  Tell us what you think!