Apple iWatch Release Date, Specs Rumors: Features Samsung Processor, Price Details

Apple has yet to release concrete information on its upcoming wearable tech, the Apple Watch, but rumors have already pegged it with a release date for March, and a possible new processor courtesy of Samsung.

Reports have come in claiming that Apple submitted orders to Samsung to produce the processors for its first smartwatch. Apple is said to be asking for 3,000 to 4,000 of the 12-inch wafers per month using the company's 28nm process technology.

Some may consider the news surprising considering the history of competition between both, from court battles to disputes over patents. It's even been rumored that Apple was breaking away from Samsung, despite being a component manufacturer for Apple products.

Also, Apple started asking TSMC to produce its processors with its 20nm process. The sudden move to a larger nm process seems confusing.

Apple has yet to confirm the rumors though, so the partnership has yet to be confirmed. The company has also kept quiet on the release date of its first wearable, previously stating an early 2015 release.

However, rumors are looking at a March release date, especially after a video message was obtained of Angela Ahrendts, Apple's senior vice-president of retail and online stores, telling employees that the Apple Watch will be launched after the Chinese New Year, which is on Feb 19.

Based on the video, some estimate that employees will be trained to use the Apple Watch in February before launching it in March.

As for the specs of the wearable, design guidelines that came out before stated that the 38mm will come with 240x272 pixel resolution, while the 42mm watch will come with a larger 390x312 pixel. It has a flexible Retina display made from a crystal of a sapphire.

It recognizes touch and force, uses GPS and Wi-Fi, and receives notification from an accompanying iDevice. It will also come with a Digital Crown, which contains a sensor that is used to navigate the watch, as well as an array of straps.

As for the price, the Apple Watch has already been tagged in the United States at around $349, but prices for the device in other countries are still up in the air.