Intel recalls all Basis Peak watches over safety concerns

Customers can get a £184 refund for returning the devices

Intel has issued a safety recall of all its Basis Peak smartwatches after it received reports that they were overheating.

The vendor reported on 13 June that some of the watches were overheating, with approximately 0.2 per cent of all watches sold having an issue.

It called for all customers to stop using the watches while it tried to fix the problem.

But its senior vice president of new technology, Josh Walden, said in a recall notice that it couldn't find a solution "without completely compromising the user experience".

Intel bought Basis in March 2014 for around $100m (£77m). The recall notice states that Basis designed the watch before Intel acquired the company, but that Intel and Basis jointly distributed the watches to the US.

The overheating can result in burns and blisters, causing Intel to stop support of the watches immediately. But the vendor said customers can access their data from the watches until 31 December. The watch will stop syncing after that, meaning it will no longer work.

Customers will receive a full refund of £184 (in the UK) for returning the watch and all authorised accessories.

IDC reported that wearables shipments reached 19.7 million units in Q1 2016, an increase of 67.2 per cent year on year. The market is showing no signs of slowing down, with a report from IDTechEx predicting the wearables market will grow from $30bn in 2016 to $160bn in 2026.

In the notice, Walden apologised to customers "on behalf of the Basis Science team".

He said: "We know that many of you love using your Basis Peak watches and have made it part of your daily lives, and we are very sorry for the disruption this will cause you."