By . Victoria Woollaston . Apple hasn’t even confirmed that it’s working on a smartwatch yet, but that hasn’t stopped a wave of designers creating concepts of what the so-called iWatch could look like. Previous concepts resembled the square and clunky design of Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, yet the latest images from Californian designer Todd Hamilton imagine a much more sleek and elegant curved device. Hamilton took inspiration from fitness bands, as well as the look and functionality of Apple’s iOS7, to create a watch that is ‘like something Apple would actually produce.' Scroll down for video . Previous iWatch concepts have resembled the . square and clunky design of Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, yet the latest . designs from Californian designer Todd Hamilton imagine a much more sleek and elegant curved device, pictured . Speculation around Apple's iWatch began at the end of 2012 and a rumoured release date was initially set for the fourth quarter of 2013. Chinese websites reported in December 2012 that the computer giant was working with chip-maker Intel on a wrist-worn gadget. It was said to have a 1.5inch screen and use Bluetooth to communicate with other devices, including an iPhone. Other . rumours suggest the iWatch will feature Siri voice controls that let . users dictate messages, rather than use the tiny screen. The watch could also be used as a remote control to change music tracks or pause video, on the phone or tablet. In July last year, reports in the Financial Times said Apple was hiring outside help to tackle design problems with its iWatch. Further . reports in September claimed Apple was struggling to make a number of . iWatch components, meaning the release date would be pushed back. The concept watch is shown as a simple band, fitted round the wrist like the Nike Fuelband, with a curved touchscreen. The lockscreen is shown as having a basic black and white interface, and according to Hamilton, it would show the time and date, as well as a button to activate Apple’s voice assistant Siri. Hamilton explained that he wanted the concept lock screen to mimic those on the iPhone and iPad. This means users would swipe up to unlock, swipe down to see notifications and double-tap to open Siri. Once unlocked, the watch's homescreen would have four app icons stacked on top of each other, with a page controller on the right-hand side. Users would then swipe up or down to move between pages of apps, in a similar way iPhone users swipe left and right. The watch would additionally come with a physical home button, as well as volume controls, and pressing the home button would return users to the lockscreen. The new claims about a rounded design contradict previous reports the iWatch would have a curved screen, as seen in this concept by Todd Hamilton . Hamilton’s watch doesn’t just look the part, either. He also explained how menus would work: ‘One of the challenges I ran into was what to do about tabs.’ The iPhone and iPad has tabs across the bottom of the screen. ‘A normal tab view across the bottom wasn’t going to work so I came up with a simple drop down control in the title bar,’ continued Hamilton. ‘Tapping this would display a popover menu showing the other available pages. I also purposely left out several of the controls like Edit and Add Contact. ‘On a device this small I think it makes more sense to manage apps, contacts, and media from a synced iPhone or Mac.’ The lockscreen, pictured left, is shown with a basic black and white interface that would show the time and date, as well as feature a button to activate Apple’s voice assistant Siri. Once unlocked, the phone’s homescreen, pictured right, would have four app icons stacked with a page controller on the right-hand side . Hamilton said he 'wanted to retain a slim form factor like the Fuelband and incorporate familiar UI components from iOS 7. [The concept], pictured, needed to feel natural on the wrist and look like something Apple would actually produce' Similar to other smartwatches on the market, including the Pebble, Hamilton’s concept would connect to an iPhone via Bluetooth. Describing the design process on his blog, Hamilton said: ‘A few months ago Thomas Bogner posted an iWatch mockup that looked like a marriage between a Nike Fuelband and an iPhone. ‘It was an impressive concept that got a lot of people excited including myself. However, it had a major flaw: the orientation of the interface made it impossible to use. ‘I had some free time over the holidays so I decided to take a stab at the problem and create a more user friendly concept. ‘I wanted to retain a slim form factor like the Fuelband and incorporate familiar UI components from iOS 7. It needed to feel natural on the wrist and look like something Apple would actually produce.’ Previous iWatch concept images, including this one from MacUser magazine, featured a square screen, and a clunky design, that more closely resembled Samsung's Galaxy Gear smartwatch . Samsung beat Apple to the smartwatch market when it released its Android-powered Galaxy Gear, pictured, in September. However, its design, functionality and battery life has been heavily criticised and experts believe Apple may have delayed its iWatch release to learn more about what customers like, and don't like .
This latest concept was created by Californian designer Todd Hamilton .
Hamilton took inspiration from fitness bands, as well as the iOS 7 design .
His concept has a curved touchscreen with a physical home button .
Swiping actions would mimic those used on the iPhone and iPad .
By . Victoria Woollaston . Apple hasn’t even confirmed that it’s working on a smartwatch yet, but that hasn’t stopped a wave of designers creating concepts of what the so-called iWatch could look like. Previous concepts resembled the square and clunky design of Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, yet the latest images from Californian designer Todd Hamilton imagine a much more sleek and elegant curved device. Hamilton took inspiration from fitness bands, as well as the look and functionality of Apple’s iOS7, to create a watch that is ‘like something Apple would actually produce.' Scroll down for video . Previous iWatch concepts have resembled the . square and clunky design of Samsung’s Galaxy Gear, yet the latest . designs from Californian designer Todd Hamilton imagine a much more sleek and elegant curved device, pictured . Speculation around Apple's iWatch began at the end of 2012 and a rumoured release date was initially set for the fourth quarter of 2013. Chinese websites reported in December 2012 that the computer giant was working with chip-maker Intel on a wrist-worn gadget. It was said to have a 1.5inch screen and use Bluetooth to communicate with other devices, including an iPhone. Other . rumours suggest the iWatch will feature Siri voice controls that let . users dictate messages, rather than use the tiny screen. The watch could also be used as a remote control to change music tracks or pause video, on the phone or tablet. In July last year, reports in the Financial Times said Apple was hiring outside help to tackle design problems with its iWatch. Further . reports in September claimed Apple was struggling to make a number of . iWatch components, meaning the release date would be pushed back. The concept watch is shown as a simple band, fitted round the wrist like the Nike Fuelband, with a curved touchscreen. The lockscreen is shown as having a basic black and white interface, and according to Hamilton, it would show the time and date, as well as a button to activate Apple’s voice assistant Siri. Hamilton explained that he wanted the concept lock screen to mimic those on the iPhone and iPad. This means users would swipe up to unlock, swipe down to see notifications and double-tap to open Siri. Once unlocked, the watch's homescreen would have four app icons stacked on top of each other, with a page controller on the right-hand side. Users would then swipe up or down to move between pages of apps, in a similar way iPhone users swipe left and right. The watch would additionally come with a physical home button, as well as volume controls, and pressing the home button would return users to the lockscreen. The new claims about a rounded design contradict previous reports the iWatch would have a curved screen, as seen in this concept by Todd Hamilton . Hamilton’s watch doesn’t just look the part, either. He also explained how menus would work: ‘One of the challenges I ran into was what to do about tabs.’ The iPhone and iPad has tabs across the bottom of the screen. ‘A normal tab view across the bottom wasn’t going to work so I came up with a simple drop down control in the title bar,’ continued Hamilton. ‘Tapping this would display a popover menu showing the other available pages. I also purposely left out several of the controls like Edit and Add Contact. ‘On a device this small I think it makes more sense to manage apps, contacts, and media from a synced iPhone or Mac.’ The lockscreen, pictured left, is shown with a basic black and white interface that would show the time and date, as well as feature a button to activate Apple’s voice assistant Siri. Once unlocked, the phone’s homescreen, pictured right, would have four app icons stacked with a page controller on the right-hand side . Hamilton said he 'wanted to retain a slim form factor like the Fuelband and incorporate familiar UI components from iOS 7. [The concept], pictured, needed to feel natural on the wrist and look like something Apple would actually produce' Similar to other smartwatches on the market, including the Pebble, Hamilton’s concept would connect to an iPhone via Bluetooth. Describing the design process on his blog, Hamilton said: ‘A few months ago Thomas Bogner posted an iWatch mockup that looked like a marriage between a Nike Fuelband and an iPhone. ‘It was an impressive concept that got a lot of people excited including myself. However, it had a major flaw: the orientation of the interface made it impossible to use. ‘I had some free time over the holidays so I decided to take a stab at the problem and create a more user friendly concept. ‘I wanted to retain a slim form factor like the Fuelband and incorporate familiar UI components from iOS 7. It needed to feel natural on the wrist and look like something Apple would actually produce.’ Previous iWatch concept images, including this one from MacUser magazine, featured a square screen, and a clunky design, that more closely resembled Samsung's Galaxy Gear smartwatch . Samsung beat Apple to the smartwatch market when it released its Android-powered Galaxy Gear, pictured, in September. However, its design, functionality and battery life has been heavily criticised and experts believe Apple may have delayed its iWatch release to learn more about what customers like, and don't like .
designer Todd Hamilton imagine a much more sleek inspiration from fitness bands, as well as the Nike Fuelband, with a curved touchscreen. The lock screen to mimic those on the iPhone and additionally come with a physical home button, as