While Taiwanese Asustek Computer has just released its second smartwatch (VivoWatch ) in its home market, the company already plans to release a successor device as soon as next year. Sources "familiar with the matter" in taiwan claim that the new smartwatch will run on the company's own 'Kood' operating system for wearables, based on the Android Wear platform.

The company is also thinking about creating customized components, in collaboration with suppliers, to achieve a thinner design and better performance of the next VivoWatch, the sources said.

Asustek launched its VivoWatch in Taiwan on Thursday with its own Kood OS, which gives the fitness-centric smartwatch a battery life of 10 days, compared with two days for its ZenWatch that is powered by Google's Android Wear OS.

The VivoWatch is powered by a microcontroller unit made by STMicroelectronics N.V. and a firmware developed by Asustek. This means that users will not be able to install apps on the watch, which can only synchronize data with phones running on Android 4.3 or later and with iPhones running on iOS 8.1 or later, according to Asustek.

The VivoWatch sports a 1.28-inch black-and-white touchscreen, an integrated optical sensor for heart-rate measurement and an IP67 rating, which means the watch is dust resistant and can be immersed in up to 1 meter of water for up to 30 minutes.

The VivoWatch will go on sale in Taiwan on May 8 U$149 as part of an initial roll-out in 10 markets, including the United Kingdom, Germany, France and other European countries, Asustek said.