Will.i.am Criticizes Apple Watch: ‘S–t is weird’

Popular musician and entrepreneur Will.i.am, who debuted his own wearable dubbed the Puls, had some words for the Apple Watch during a panel discussion at the Cannes Lion festival.

During an interview with Salesforce’s Marc Benioff, the Black Eyed Peas founder used the phrase “that s- -t is weird” to describe working out with the Apple Watch. He suggested that Apple should make the Watch work independently without the iPhone after he saw a man wearing both at the gym.

Will.i.am also took a moment to prop up his own Puls smartwatch saying that “It knows if I’m running, sitting or driving,” without the need of a smartphone. He also mentioned its ability to make calls without needing a phone nearby.

It’s funny to hear Will.i.am call the Apple Watch weird. I agree that the Watch does need to decouple itself from the iPhone in places such as the gym, but I can’t help but think that Will.i.am is living in his own little bubble, unaware of what weird really is. Nearly every review on the internet concludes that his Puls smartwatch wearable is terrible. Ashley Feinberg of Gizmodo wrote that “It’s designed by a lunatic surrounded by yes-men.” Dan Seifert of The Verge titled his article Will.i.am’s Puls smartwatch is the worst product I’ve touched all year.

Will.i.am did give Apple credit for changing the smartphone game saying “The iPhone toppled everything, we totally changed our behavior,” before adding, “But something is going to happen to things you wear.”

Agreed.