Samsung calling time on smartwatches - for now

Samsung has released more smartwatches so far than anyone else, so it's perhaps no surprise that the company is going to "pause" its efforts in the wrist-based gadget market for a while.

That's according to executive vice president Young-Hee Lee, who's been having words with the Wall Street Journal at MWC. She says Samsung is still working on watches, but it'll be a while before the next one.

"We've been introducing more devices than anybody else," says Lee. "It's time for us to pause. We want a more perfect product."

That "pause" refers to device releases, not research and development - Samsung isn't sending its smartwatch division on sabbatical.

Where are the wearables?

During its main MWC presentation, Samsung spent a lot of time showing off the new Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge handsets, without any mention of a wearable gadget to go alongside them.

This break in play obviously coincides with the long-awaited launch of the Apple Watch, set to be announced next week and on sale next month. Maybe Samsung wants to see how the market reacts before making its next move.

At least the temporary hiatus should mean we can expect something significant the next time Samsung has a smartwatch to show off. In the meantime, there are plenty of others to choose from.