The Apple Watch is turning out to be the worst possible gadget: a solution in search of a problem. Apple clearly thought humanity would be willing to buy an iPhone and an Apple Watch in order to never have to use their wallets again. But Apple’s been quiet about sales of the Apple Watch, small merchants are still resisting mobile payments, and, well, the headlines speak for themselves. Meanwhile, Volvo has done what Apple apparently can’t and came up with a reason to buy this $300 accessory.
Namely, they’ve put their app on it. Volvo On Call is coming to wearables. Among the features, you can check your car’s gas tank, lock or unlock the doors remotely, start the engine, fire up the heating or cooling, find your car in a crowded parking lot, and push navigation data from your phone directly to your car.
Sure, it’s only for one model of Volvo, for now, and you could just use the phone version of the app. On the other hand, isn’t that a much better sales pitch than “Give us money every time you pay for something?”
“Put this thing on your wrist, and you will never be lost in a parking lot or locked out of your car again.” If that had been the sales pitch right from the start, things might be taking a different turn. Take notes, Apple.