Catching up with the times

SINGAPORE — At first glance, it is easy to mistake LG’s latest smart watch as a conventional watch — and that is one of its biggest strengths.

Released in the middle of this month, the G Watch R (R to stand for “round”), which comes only in black, sports a 100 per cent stainless steel frame, with a 1.3-inch round plastic OLED display and genuine leather 22mm straps that can be replaced with standard straps from watch shops for a different look. The classic side crown gives it a more regal look and LG said the design was derived from thousands of sketches.

At a time when smart watches are still trying to find a foothold in the mass market, beyond reaching out to early adopters, it appears that LG has received the message that appearance matters: The typical smart watch, including the G Watch R’s predecessor — the G watch — and its rectangular display may look too “techie” for the mainstream user. While LG is not the first to have a rounded smart watch (Motorola’s Moto 360 has a round watch face), its move towards a more classic watch design is highly commendable.

Beyond the aesthetic, LG’s G Watch R has some nifty features.

To go with the interchangable watch strap, the watch comes with a range of in-built watch faces, allowing you to sport a rugged look one day and a modest minimalist style the next.

Underneath the hood, the G Watch R carries a 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor, along with 512MB of RAM, with an internal storage of 4GB. It operates on the Android Wear operating system and is compatible with smart phones running Android 4.3 and above.

The 1.3-inch display carries the same resolution on most Android Wear smart watches, including the circular Moto 360. The 320x320-pixel resolution suffices for everyday indoor or outdoor use.

Recording vitals during exercise is facilitated with the heart rate sensor mounted on the rear. Altitudes can be measured and locations can be established with the barometer and a 9-Axis gyrometer.

The G Watch R’s IP67 rating for dust and water resistance is impressive on paper, with LG saying it is completely dust tight and water resistant to a depth of one metre for up to 30 minutes. For me, at the very least, that means being able to run in the rain from home to the bus stop, accidentally splashing water onto the device while washing my hands and experiencing condensation on the watch face — all without having to worry about messing up the internal hardware.

What I found useful was the embedded photoplethysmogram (PPG) sensor that allows me to count my daily steps. As accuracy is normally an issue when it comes to this, I tried it over two days, where I embarked on similar activities, and found that the numbers were constant. In-built sensors enable you to wake the screen when it is in rest mode simply by moving it.

I also liked how the lag issue has been improved with Android Wear smart watches. Swiping the cards and moving from screen to screen is almost effortless, intuitive and rarely misses with the latest 4.4W2 software update.

For those unfamiliar with Android Wear, the Google operating system makes it easier for users to send text messages via the smart watch using their voice, although it might get a little uncomfortable letting people be privy to private conversations while on the train.

One of the downsides in receiving notifications on the rounded face of the G Watch R is that the text is shortened much more than it would be in a square- or rectangular-shaped smart watch. The text appears in a squarish box within the round porthole of the G Watch R.

With all smart devices these days, it is a race to pushing the envelope when it comes to battery life.

The 410mAH battery provided me almost two days of use before I had to charge the device. LG said it can last three days when the Always On mode is turned off. Overall, though, the battery life was impressive considering I was a heavy user, constantly tinkering with the different features and utilising the voice-enabled texting as well.

The G Watch R brings to the masses a more aesthetically appealing gadget for the wrist, coupled with some nifty features under the hood. Its slightly chunky size might scare away some people and the deal breaker could simply be that it would not fit your wrist.

Still, it is a smart watch that looks and feels like it has caught up with the times. The G Watch R is available at all telcos and authorised LG retailers at S$398.