Warning about the WIMM One’s EULA

So, I just got done with my smart watch series, and decided to sign up for the WIMM Labs site, and maybe purchase a WIMM One.

I was presented with a EULA, not entirely unexpected given that their site provides private downloads of things like the SDK.

Occasionally, I actually read EULAs. There’s an annoying reverse engineering clause, although it’s fairly toothless. The clause that really bothers me, though?

CONFIDENTIALITY: You acknowledge and agree that the Software and Hardware were developed at considerable time and expense by WIMM Labs, and are confidential to and a trade secret of WIMM Labs and/or third parties. You agree to maintain the Software and Hardware in strict confidence and not to disclose or provide access thereto to any person.

So, you’re telling me that, even though I can buy the damn thing for $199 on Amazon, I can’t show it to anyone else or let them use it? Really, WIMM?

Therefore, I decided to buy a refurbed Abacus Wrist PDA – I had one a while back and it died, but IMO it was a brilliant device, potentially the best smart watch even by modern standards (except for not being able to get alerts from an Android device). I’d be willing to consider the WIMM One if they revised that portion of their EULA, but not before then.

I’ll post the full EULA text after the break – you get it after signing up for the WIMM site, and if you simply buy the device without signing up for WIMM’s site, you don’t see the EULA at all until you’re setting the watch up. Continue reading “Warning about the WIMM One’s EULA”


The history of the smart watch, part 4 – the modern era

Finally, we’re to the modern era of smart watches – stuff that’s actually for sale today.

Most of the modern smart watches all connect to a host device via Bluetooth (with one exception), at least an Android device if not additional platforms, for notifications. Some act as dumb terminals (along the lines of the Abacus/Sony watches mentioned in the previous post), whereas some have some local processing power and even apps (some running Android). Continue reading “The history of the smart watch, part 4 – the modern era”