Abstract
This article uses the emergence of smartwatch models from 2012 to 2015—including the Pebble Watch, Android Wear, and Apple Watch—to explore the relationship between “instants” and “information.” Through a focus on the ways in which smartwatches notify, buzz, and otherwise touch the skin, this article develops the idea of the “haptic instant” as a key feature of this technology. The haptic instant, in calling attention to the delivery of news alerts, e-mails, personal communication, and other notifications to the wearer’s wrist, is part of the larger formation of bodies capable of living in a culture increasingly reliant on computer information systems for the management of daily life.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
