AliPay Pay Smartwatch will be unveiled on October 15

It wasn’t too long ago when a smartwatch from Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba was sighted, with the leak, as usual, getting teased on the Weibo microblogging service.  Now it does look like the AliPay Pay Smartwatch now has a launch date, as it will be unveiled to the public at a press event on October 15.

The AliPay Pay Smartwatch’s main selling feature, as rumored earlier, is the ability to make mobile payments offline.  Users merely have to double-click on a button located on the side of the Pay Smartwatch, allowing for offline transactions.  There’s no need for any network connection; once the payment code is scanned, the transaction is good to go.  It’s also a secure device, as the infrared light sensor ensures safe shopping by monitoring the watch.  However, the main catch here is that the Pay Smartwatch will only work in establishments that support Alibaba’s AliPay mobile payment technology.

You also get standard smartwatch features with the Pay Smartwatch, including smartphone notifications, a heart rate monitor, a pedometer, and more.  Magnetic charging is another supported feature on the Pay Smartwatch.  The device runs on the YunOS platform and supports a wide range of mobile apps.

Basic specifications of the AliPay Pay Smartwatch include a 1.63-inch AMOLED display with 320 x 320 resolution, a dual-core processor, 4 GB internal memory, and a 300 mAh battery.  Alibaba claims that you can use the device for up to 36 hours without charging, with a theoretical 10 hours of talk time and 5.5 hours of sports or fitness-related usage.  Power-saving mode allows the battery to last for up to 119 hours, or almost five days.  The Pay Smartwatch can be paired with Android and iOS smartphones alike.

Pricing for the Pay Smartwatch, which will come in four colors, starts at 699 yuan, which converts to only $109.75 USD.  It will come in two other variants, one costing 799 yuan ($125.45) and the other costing 999 yuan.