Does Amazon’s New Wearables Dept Signal a Kindle Smartwatch?

Yesterday, Amazon launched a brand new department for its ever-growing online retail space: the Wearable Technology Store. As if you couldn’t tell, this new department sells wearable devices, naturally. But if we use our imaginations, it’s not too much of a stretch to believe that this could be the first sign of a forthcoming Kindle smartwatch. Stick with me.

First the basics: the press release published yesterday spells out the main goals of the new store, which is to provide its customers with the latest and greatest products in the wearable technology category. But more than that, the department also features a “Learning Center” and Buying Guide, both there to help new customers get the lowdown on the different functions of what’s sold in the store.

Since it literally just launched, the Wearable Technology Store is still relatively sparse in terms of what it has on offer. But since the first two Android Wear devices are set to hit this summer, Amazon will be in a great position to connect those devices with its customers. Then there are reports from yesterday that Apple will finally reveal its iWatch for a holiday release, and suddenly Amazon’s retail hub for wearables makes a ton of sense.

Then there’s the idea I put out up above. Could this possibly portent the coming of a Kindle-branded smartwatch from Amazon? I say yes. That’s because Amazon launched its Android App Store in March 2011, and then revealed its megahit Android tablet the Kindle Fire six months later.

While Amazon has been in the video streaming business since way back in 2006, that, too, could be seen as an obvious hint that they’d one day enter the hardware business. The Kindle Fire was the first device from Amazon that allowed users to stream video purchased from the company, and just a few weeks ago they unveiled the Fire TV.

The fact that we’ve gotten a bevy of leaks regarding Amazon’s forthcoming smartphone (here, here, and here) shows that the company isn’t shy about branching out into other high tech categories. And, hey! They’ve been selling smartphones and cellular plans for quite a while now. Seems like the perfect way to have infrastructure in place to sell your own product in that category.

Other than the fact that the company has launched a Wearable Tech department, I have zero evidence that we’ll ever see an Amazon-branded smartwatch. And, well, Amazon has tons of departments, like gardening equipment and sports memorabilia, that have no Amazon product attached to it. But considering the trajectory the company’s been on in terms of making consumer products, I feel safe in saying in this instance that where there’s smoke, there’s probably Kindle Fire.

Sorry.

[Amazon Launches Wearable Tech Store]