The other week we wrote about a crowdfunded piece of tech in Japan called the FES Watch. The e-ink based watch was on its second successful turn at raising money through a Japanese equivalent of Kickstarter, Makuake. This week, things took a decidedly Scooby-Doo like turn when the mask was peeled off of Fashion Entertainments (FES) to reveal that it really is Sony. As it turns out, Fashion Entertainments is a Sony unit created to explore how to utilize e-paper in fashion. Utilizing the FES name instead of “Sony” allowed the team to gain a better understanding of interest and demand, without a brand name coming into the mix. Before Sony came clean about its FES involvement, there was some confusion after Sony said it was working on an unique e-ink watch and band, with media outlets pointing to the FES watch as having already beaten them to the punch. People in Japan who preordered the device should expect to receive it in May of 2015. Hopefully with it being a Sony product, the clever customizable watch will launch in other markets also.
