In advance of the impending Apple Watch launch in April, smart watch manufacturers are figuring out that a hefty portion of the wearable battle is about fashion.
LG is replacing the buggy, ugly LG G Watch, which it released last year, with the LG Watch Urbane -- which looks like something that could belong under the glass at Tiffany’s.
LG announced the watch earlier this month, but a new YouTube video gives us an up-close look at its elegant lines, gold or silver finish, and array of band choices. Even the watch face options look updated: At a glance, you'd be hard-pressed to tell the digital chronograph from a physical watch face.
Under the hood, though, this is still an LG G Watch. Obviously, it's still running Android Wear, and the CPU (1.2 GHz Snapdragon 400), storage (4GB) and memory (512 MB RAM) are all the same. The Plastic-OLED screen size is still 1.3 in. and 320 x 320 pixel resolution. The LG Watch Urbane is dust- and water-resistant and includes all the sensors found in the G, including heart rate sensor, gyroscope, accelerometer and a compass.
The watch has gotten a little less bulky, losing some of its metal frame bezel. LG thinks this might make the smart watch more attractive to women, but the Urbane still looks like a man's watch. And while the video makes the Urbane look gorgeous, it never shows it on a wrist.
LG will formally unveil the LG Watch Urbane and announce pricing and availability at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next month.