Watches are intensely more personal than smartphones

On the opposite end of the spectrum are the smartwatches that aim to be complete replacements for your smartphone. Kickstarter-funded Neptune showed off its Pine smartwatch, a device the size of a deck of cards that snaps onto your wrist and makes even the complex Galaxy Gear look understated. It’s more or less a complete smartphone, slightly miniaturized: it has a 2.4-inch touchscreen, front and rear cameras, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular radios, a microphone and speaker, and it runs a full version of Android with support for almost any Android app (including, yes, Angry Birds).

Conventional wisdom says that the success of Pebble has proven that there is a market for smartwatches, and companies are rushing to capture some of the zeitgeist surrounding it — and to copy the Pebble. MetaWatch’s Nuovo points to the long-rumored-but-not-actually-here smartwatches from Apple and Google, saying they’re pushing other companies to try to get their wares in before the big players. Though we’re far away from a smartwatch being worn on every person’s wrist, there’s definitely something appealing and futuristic about them that captures the attention of people — even if they aren’t yet willing to buy one.

But despite the variety and quantity of smartwatches on display at CES this year, there doesn’t seem to be a standout, category-defining model. The Pebble Steel might be the closest yet, but even its refined and arguably improved design isn’t popular with everyone. It may not have to be, though: watches are intensely more personal than smartphones. The design that I like might not be the design that everyone likes and vice versa. The traditional watch market bears this out: there are hundreds of makers and thousands of watch styles for every taste.

Maybe there doesn’t need to be an "iPhone of smartwatches" for the category to be a success. Smartwatches could potentially survive — and even thrive — with a variety of brands producing different designs with different functionality. If the watches offer a good user experience and are properly supported by their makers, there’s no reason for there not to be competition in the space.

There doesn't need to be an 'iPhone of smartwatches'

Still, though smartwatches are one of the stars of this year’s CES, it’s abundantly clear that this market is still finding its footing. This year feels like the tip of the iceberg, and there is a lot of room for maturity across the market (even for leaders such as Pebble). At this point, the companies that are leaning on simpler designs with influence from traditional watchmakers are furthest along on this track, but that doesn’t mean that someone else can’t come in with a radically different idea and upend the smartwatch world.

Maybe next year we’ll see the perfect idea of what a smartwatch should be — if it even exists — but for now, our wrists remains wide open for anyone to take.