iWatch Rumors Swirl As Apple Hires Nike FuelBand Engineers

Apple has hired two former members of Nike's FuelBand team to assist on the development of its upcoming smartwatch, 9to5Mac reports.

Ryan Bailey and Jon Gale left Nike after the company reportedly downsized its FuelBand team during its shift of focus from hardware to software.

iClarified notes that Bailey, who was the Senior Test and Validation Engineer for FuelBand is now a Mechanical Design Engineer at Apple and Gale, who served as Senior Firmware Engineer at Nike is now a Sensing Systems EnginTeer at Apple.

Earlier this week, the Cupertino-based tech giant reportedly added Patrick Pruniaux, a sales director from TAG Heuer, for its iWatch project.

The smartwatch is reportedly set for an arrival this fall with various shapes and sizes, sources "familiar with the matter" recently told The Wall Street Journal.

The publication reports that the Apple smartwatch will come with 10 sensors - including ones for health and fitness - with the intention to offer an experience that will differ from the iPhone by providing functions users won't be able to get in any old or new smartphones designed by the tech giant. The various designs, meanwhile, would help Apple better compete with the smartphone offerings from rivals such as Samsung and Google.

According to Reuters, the iWatch will feature a 2.5-inch display with a design that will be "slightly rectangular." The Reuters source added that the device's face will "protrude slightly from the band," with wireless charging and a touch screen among the anticipated features.

With July targeted as the mass production start, an October release date seems likely. As Mashable notes, Apple has traditionally launched accessories including the iPod and iPad during that time.

What do you make of Apple's recent hirings? Are you interested in purchasing a potential iWatch? Let us know with a relevant comment.