Wearable technology’s time has come

Smartwatches for kids that serve as electronic tagging devices with panic buttons were among the hi-tech gadgets showcased at this week’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Stephen Shurrock, CEO of Telefónica’s consumer division, spoke about the security wristband for children.

“Telefonica has a wristband for five- to 10-year-olds,” he said. “It’s unobtrusive. You can set it so that if your child goes beyond a set area, for example, the block in which you live, a beeper goes off so you’ll be alerted straight away.