The camera was integrated into Samsung's Galaxy Gear, which was one of the first smartwatches available on the market. It wasn't a huge success, and because Apple Watch swiftly took over a major section of the market, smartwatch cameras were almost completely obsolete.
Apple set to fit a camera lens in Apple Watch
Nevertheless, the recent acquisition of a patent by Apple implies that the company is still investigating (or at least has explored) the possibility of adding a camera to the
Apple Watch.
It states that the disclosure is based on the assumption that the entities responsible for the collection, analysis, disclosure, transfer, storage, or other use of such personal information data will adhere to well-established privacy policies and/or privacy practices. "The present disclosure presumes that the entities responsible for the collection, analysis, disclosure, transfer, storage, or other use of such personal information data will adhere to well-
Apple had previously been granted a patent for the idea of incorporating a built-in camera onto the underside of the display of an Apple Watch. This new patent protects a variety of different things in addition to the Digital Crown.
Additionally, the patent states that "a camera can be organised as a back-facing camera designed to capture images through a backside of a watch casing." [citation needed] "When the watch housing is worn on the wrist, the wrist may prevent the camera from taking pictures of a scene. However, the watch housing can be removed from the wrist via a release mechanism in the attachment interface, or by removing the housing and the watch band together, so that the back-facing camera can take pictures."
