The release of the iPhone six last week was an unsurprising triumph for Apple, but another generation of smartphone seems fairly unimpressive in the shadow of the Apple watch, which is planned to debut in early 2015.

Phones and tablets are fundamental tools in most of out lives, but the very nature of their design is somewhat limiting. By putting aside current models and implementing a totally new device Apple is opening the door for capability and interaction like we’ve never seen before.

The Apple Watch will provide all the same services as the iPhone, texting, calling, email, GPS, and internet access, as well as featuring a new set of services and apps for digital communication.

It will also interface easily with the wearers existing devices, sharing files and seamlessly moving information from one place to another.

So what’s so innovative about old software in a new device? In a word, wearability.

The simple fact that this device will be worn rather than carried is a game-changer for smart technology, and one that could alter our concept of personal technology altogether.

Being worn provides easier access, and Apple plans to use the watch’s continual proximity to the user in unique ways. For example the watch can notify users of incoming calls or messages by “tapping” their wrist, rather than using sounds or vibrations.

These taps can also be sent from one wearer to another providing a whole new level of contact, using technology to send physical interaction between people. Now that’s something your iPhone won’t do!

The Apple Watch is making technology more a part of us, something we experience more tangibly than before. It’s bringing a level of intimacy that a handheld device simply cannot achieve.

Though the Apple Watch may not be something you “need” in your life, it’s an exciting and undeniable first step toward a new kind of personal technology, and a development that will undoubtedly inspire more wearable tech to com.