Samsung Electronics is developing a wearable gadget similar to a wristwatch to compete with its biggest rival Apple Inc. The device will perform many tasks of smartphone.

"We have been preparing the watch product for so long," Lee Young Hee, executive vice president of Samsung's mobile business told Bloomberg. "We are working very hard to get ready for it. We are preparing products for the future, and the watch is definitely one of them."

He did not mention features or price and even exact release date of the device. As for 2013, the company already has a busy schedule to release three high-end smartphones including the Galaxy S4 which was unveiled last week and another smartphone with Tizen operating system.

"We are constantly exploring new technologies and developing various form factors," said company spokeswoman Chenny Kim to Reuters.

The news came after familiar sources reported last month that Apple has already begun working on rumored smart wristwatch and has a team of about 100 product designers including some well-known Apple employees. The report also states that Apple is experimenting with curved glass to make wristwatch and will operate on the same platform as the iPhone.

Both Samsung and Apple have taken a hit as the world's top two mobile device manufacturers by impressing consumers with their latest smartphone models.

Samsung shares dropped nearly 5 percent, or around $10 billion, in just two trading sessions after it launched its latest Galaxy S smartphone late Thursday, partly hit by concerns that its flagship product lacks the 'wow factor' and may not live up to expectations.

The Galaxy S4, unwrapped to a huge fanfare in New York to challenge Apple's iPhone 5 on its home turf offered some incremental evolutionary improvements, but media reports have since suggested these features may not be sufficient to attract buyers in an industry that concentrates on innovation.

WIth inputs from Reuters.

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