According to developers, the right time for iTime is now

An actual device may still be months away (or longer), but as far as developers are concerned, it's already "iTime."

Recent news that Apple had secured a wide-ranging patent for various features that may be included in a smart watch spurred a slew of comments on social media by app makers. The firm's intellectual property for a possible 'iWatch" included a design that would build circuitry into the strap and gesture controls based on a user's arm movements, among other things.

Even with no firmly announced product roadmap for an iWatch, developers sounded excited about the possibilities.

Given that others in the smartphone space have already created wearable computers that can be strapped to the wrist, there were also a few developers who thought Apple was taking a little long to get into the game.

Even if the iWatch turns out to be a late arrival on the smart watch scene, some developers pointed out that Apple's design could have some unique advantages.

And though it will probably be a long time before Apple informs them of whether a smart watch will be a hardware platform they can build upon, this was one case where a patent proved to be a powerful piece of developer relations: