This Week in Wearables is our weekly blog curating the best stories on wearables from around the web.

The Wearable Tech Market Could Reach 385 Million People and Change How We ‘Consume and use Information’

via Business Insider by Jon Phillips

In just a few years, there could be more people using wearable tech devices than there are in the US and Canada.In a note to clients on Monday — alongside initiation of Fitbit coverage — Piper Jaffray’s Erinn Murphy and Christof Fischer stated that “wearable technology will be the next generation of devices to transform how individuals consume and use information.”

Hitting the Fairway: Golf Readies Itself for the Wearable Tech Revolution

via gearburn by Brett Zika

In September 2013 Forbes magazine reported on the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Gear and boldly declared 2013 “the year of wearable tech”. Then, following slow adoption rates over the next three months, this deadline was later extended, with Wired magazine announcing that it would in fact be 2014 that would see wearables make their big break.

The Future For Wearable Growth Will Be In The Workplace

via arc by David Bolton

Wearables in the workplace may not have the media profile enjoyed by their consumer siblings, but the market for business-facing devices is expected to reach $8.5 billion by 2020, says a recent report. According to a forecast from industry analysts Research and Markets, the market for enterprise wearables will grow annually by 139% over the next five years, with increased demand from healthcare and energy sectors playing a significant role. To put this into perspective, the authors of the report said that annual growth for consumer wearables—some of which have enjoyed high profile launches—sits at 38%.

Apple Find Moderate Success In the Wearable Tech Market

via Nasdaq by Michael Fowlkes

As technology advances, it becomes smaller, smarter, and faster. Not that long ago, computers were so large they took up entire rooms, and those computers were not even very powerful. Since then, computers shrunk to fit on our desktops, then our backpacks, and finally into our pockets. Now technology is moving towards wearable devices, and Apple has made a big move in that direction with the Apple Watch.

Microsoft Research Has Found A Solution To Improve Wearable’s Battery Life

via WT VOX by Aidan Russell

As part of Microsoft’s WearDrive project, researchers have found a way to increase the battery life of wearable technology, such as fitness trackers, using a RAM-based system that doesn’t rely on a new battery. According to a paper that Microsoft Research employees Ranveer Chandra and Anirudh Badam will present at the USENIX Technical Conference this week, eliminating the need to read and write data to a wearable’s onboard flash memory can significantly improve battery life in a wearable like a smartwatch or a fitness tracker.

Little Heroes Technologies Launches Crowdfunding Campaign for Herokins Wearables for Kids

via VentureBeat by Dean Takahashi

Little Heroes Technologies is unveiling Herokins wearable smart toys that connect parents and kids via shared learning adventures. The San Francisco company has launched an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign to raise money for the new education technology wearables. With Herokins, parents can create StoryQuests that make a game out of chores such as shopping for groceries. Children wear the Herokins wearables — which take the form of action figures named Axel McRed and Dr. Rose — on their wrists. The wearables connect to the parent’s smartphone via Bluetooth, and the parent can communicate to the child using the wearable.

Fitness Concerns Drive Sales of Wearable Devices

via The Nation by Asina Pornwasin

Purchases of wearable devices are booming in Thailand, where people are concerned about fitness and tracking their health and are turning to technology to help them reach their goals. Recently, Jawbone launched two new tracking devices, UP2 and UP3, in Thailand. This country is one of the five key markets in Asia for Jawbone. The others are mainland China, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore, said Daniel Tan, the wearable-technology company’s managing director of Asia.