Apple Watch Gets Another Competitor in the Android-Based LG Watch Urbane

[the-msa]

I also love the 'Macs and iPhones are overpriced' argument, when a Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is $750 retail just like a 6 Plus, and the Dell XPS 15 and Razor Blade are thin, light, powerful laptops clearly inspired the rMBP that cost $2000 just like the mac. Or the $2000 XPS One 27" AIO that only has a 750M.

heh. the xps 15 has a 4k touchscreen. the gt750m of the macbook prop looks like an infant compared to the gt970m of the razer, which has more oomph in general and a near 4k-display, and the razer is smaller (14") AND thinner . and the xps one has a touchscreen, bluray, hdmi in and out.

i know what the next argument will be: but they dont have os x. so what. we can go back on forth about the features for all of the devices.

 

[RodThePlod]

Tell me which sounds right:
Flare:
High tech sudden brief burst of bright flame or light
High tech gradual widening, especially of a skirt or pants

Flair:
High tech special or instinctive aptitude or ability for doing something well
High tech stylishness and originality

Ok fine, the fourth one fits the best, but maybe the watch doubles as a flashlight or something?

LOL - When LG stated that their timepiece had a "...high-tech flare" in their press release, it's obvious that they really mean "flair" as in a uniquely attractive quality or distinctive elegance/style.

I just pointed out that they used the word wrong, that's all. No biggie.

RTP.

 

[SHNXX]

LOL at this thing.

Regarding "luxury," no smart watch can be considered a luxury watch.

A luxury watch typically starts around $5000 with the top-end brands selling them at starting prices of $20000.

Obviously, this thing is luxury in the same way that an Apple iPhone is luxury.
And to those saying it is $0, the real price is not $0.
Get some ****ing perspective.
Outside of US, most people buy phones without subsidy.

 

[ChrisTX]

Are you kidding me, have you even seen one? It has the best display for a watch with deep blacks, great colours and viewing angles and it is by no means "low DPI" if you even have an idea what that means...



You do realise that if you change the watch face it would obviously look different, right? I love Apple but some of you are being ridiculous acting like the Apple Watch is something special, while great smart watches have existed for a while now.

Here's a picture of my watch if you don't believe it can look like the press photo one. Cheers!

Please also keep in mind that this is MacRumors where everything sucks until Apple does it. There is no open-mindedness here because people like a product when Apple does it. I'm not going to lie, I did switch back to the iPhone when the 6 Plus came out. However, I did own a Note 3 and a Gear Fit.

On to the Gear Fit. I'm not going to lie, I bought it hoping to fuse the best of a gps "running" watch and a more traditional smart watch. The fitness tracking or pedometer features seemed inconsistent with the GPS on my Note 3. However, the smart watch features were pretty solid. I loved getting notifications to my wrist. I also loved being able to respond to texts from my watch as well. E-mail on the Gear Fit wasn't bad either as you can change the orientation from portrait to landscape. It makes receiving notifications much less intrusive.

With that being said, I believe Android Wear as well as the Galaxy Gear and Gear smart watches were a response to Apples watch plans. I remember as soon as Apple was rumored to be making a smart watch, everyone else under the sun said "Funny, we're making one too". How ironic. While I do like Android Wear, and even the Gear Fit, I think Apple's attempt will come with a lot more polish.

The fact that there will be third party apps make the Apple Watch more attractive IMO.

 

[AppleScruff1]

Would you call it a "precision time piece"?

Not at all. It keeps accurate time and it takes a beating. There is zero concern with ruining it.

 

[organic bond]

You're actually in the vast majority right now. But over time when smartwatches, led by the Apple Watch, start winning people over you'll eventually find yourself in the minority unless you yourself change your mind. Which you probably will eventually.

No.

 

[maflynn]

You're actually in the vast majority right now. But over time when smartwatches, led by the Apple Watch, start winning people over you'll eventually find yourself in the minority unless you yourself change your mind. Which you probably will eventually.

Only time will tell, but there's a huge difference between a phone that had people doubting back when apple announced the iPhone and a watch. The sheer utility of a smart watch is much more limited then a phone, tablet or computer. the battery life is another major factor. If a smart watch cannot last an entire day, its not going to be terribly useful. Add in what will it do, that my iPhone not do.

I think overall, manufacturers and consumers aren't entirely sure what to do with a smart phone, but not wanting to be left behind, manufacturers are jumping on board.

 

[bobob]

To be fair, the original Apple Watch debuted in September 2010.

...Based on this history, I would say it's safe to assume that the Apple Watch has been in development since at least 2008.

Interesting conjecture, but Apple claims otherwise.

Jon Ive and Tim Cook have publicly and repeatedly stated that the Apple Watch project began a while after Steve Jobs' death in late 2011. So, basically at the end of 2011 or beginning of 2012.

As pointed out in this week's excellent New Yorker profile of Jony Ive:

It’s hard to build a time line of this or any other Apple creation: the company treats the past, as well as the future, as its intellectual property.

I can certainly understand why they would cite the Apple Watch's origin as being slightly after Steve Jobs' death, given the endless pernicious speculation that Apple was doomed without him. However, I will stick with my own educated estimate of when Apple really began work on the Apple Watch.

 

[LordVic]

I guess they followed the mp3, smartphone, and tablet industry - right? Definitely not leading those categories, lol.

They folloewd in every one of those markets.

you do realize that Apple didn't invent a single one of those right? they were not the first Mp3 player, Smartphone or tablet.

 

[Planins]

Please also keep in mind that this is MacRumors where everything sucks until Apple does it. There is no open-mindedness here because people like a product when Apple does it. I'm not going to lie, I did switch back to the iPhone when the 6 Plus came out. However, I did own a Note 3 and a Gear Fit.

On to the Gear Fit. I'm not going to lie, I bought it hoping to fuse the best of a gps "running" watch and a more traditional smart watch. The fitness tracking or pedometer features seemed inconsistent with the GPS on my Note 3. However, the smart watch features were pretty solid. I loved getting notifications to my wrist. I also loved being able to respond to texts from my watch as well. E-mail on the Gear Fit wasn't bad either as you can change the orientation from portrait to landscape. It makes receiving notifications much less intrusive.

With that being said, I believe Android Wear as well as the Galaxy Gear and Gear smart watches were a response to Apples watch plans. I remember as soon as Apple was rumored to be making a smart watch, everyone else under the sun said "Funny, we're making one too". How ironic. While I do like Android Wear, and even the Gear Fit, I think Apple's attempt will come with a lot more polish.

The fact that there will be third party apps make the Apple Watch more attractive IMO.

I like the way the Apple Watch is headed, I think that by its second or third iteration it will turn out to be a solid product. The products the came after the rumours for Apple's Watch could indeed be just an answer to them, but keep in mind that Apple didn't singlehandedly think of the idea of a wearable smart device. Keeping in mind Apple's track record it was just the right thing to develop a product before them and have any chance to succeed.

It would all have not mattered, if it weren't for the fact Apple's watch doesn't do anything more than the existing watches. I am more than sure, 90% of the people here saying how marvellous it is haven't even for a second used Android Wear (which by the way also has a lot of third party apps and watch faces, I don't know why you listed that as an Apple Watch advantage).

Just for all those people who praise Apple for no reason: keep in mind smart watches weren't originally thought of by Apple, they were not the first ones to introduce one to the market, it doesn't have ANY advantages or new use cases over the ones that exist now and last but not least it is by far not as beautiful as a swiss time peace and users of those are hardly ever going to switch to an Apple Watch.

P.S. I am probably buying it on day one so I could finally use a smart watch with my iPhone.

 

[Chad-VI]

That's the best looking smartwatch I have ever seen

 

[TechZeke]

heh. the xps 15 has a 4k touchscreen. the gt750m of the macbook prop looks like an infant compared to the gt970m of the razer, which has more oomph in general and a near 4k-display, and the razer is smaller (14") AND thinner . and the xps one has a touchscreen, bluray, hdmi in and out.

i know what the next argument will be: but they dont have os x. so what. we can go back on forth about the features for all of the devices.

The Razor Blade also has a worse processor and starts $2200 for 128gb flash. Also, it has a 3200x1800, which is essentially the same resolution as the rMBP except 16:9, not 16:10 like the rMBP.

The Dell XPS has a 4K display, but also features a worse processor, the same 750M, and uses standard HDD drives and SATA SSDs.

Good try though.

 

[Bare]

To me a real luxury item is one that the masses cannot afford to own. If Apple is a true high end "luxury" brand like so many around these forums believe how in the world can so many people afford it? There might be a perception of luxury by some, but it is a mass produced consumer brand just like the rest.

The problem is with defining the term "afford."

For one thing, for a smartphone, you're talking about an item that costs you $200+ up front locking you into a two-year contract paying roughly $2,400 to use. $2,600 is a lot of money. People have come to think of smartphones as necessities, but they are not. A plain, old dumbphone can get you around from day to day without much drop in functionality, really. The things a smartphone can do are great, but a vast majority of them are not essential.

Then you get to Apple laptops and desktops that are far more expensive than their PC brethren, often costing $2,000, $3,000, $4,000 or more, with little (if any) added functionality.

I would argue that a great many people should not be spending so much money to own these devices. You (and they) might argue that the fact that they have it, make the payments and continue to meet their other financial obligations means they can "afford" it. I would argue that it's a lot of money that could be put to better use elsewhere, and that many people actually cannot afford it when the median household income in this country is around $50,000 before taxes, the average savings rate is in the low single digits, that about 42% of people say they could not come up with $1,000 in an emergency (without depending upon credit cards or otherwise going into debt), that the average retirement account is five figures (well below what most people will need to retire), etc.

All that being said, smartwatches are DEFINITELY luxury items. Some may not be that expensive, but they are absolutely non-essential, which to me means that you ought to have plenty of extra money lying around (which is a luxury) to justify owning one. You could rearrange your priorities, cut back on other expenses to save up a few hundred bucks to get one, but that just means you're making it work for you, not necessarily that it's an "affordable" purchase.

 

[SirCheese]

Wrong. The current crop of crapware were "first!" knee jerk reactions to the long, long standing rumors of apples entry to this market. Learn your history.

Even though, for the last few years, they have been making them, totally knee jerk! Do you realize how....you sound?

Not everything is a rumor to what Apple is doing


Oh, and repeating it over and over, doesn't make it true.

 

[SirCheese]

Wrong, everyone else is following Apple. WSJ announced THREE YEARS ago that Apple was working on a wearable and everyone tried to rush manufacturer their own.

Yes, following, even though Apple JUST ANNOUNCED IT 5 months ago...

Great logic...

 

[LordVic]

Sorry, but a circular face for a digital watch is just really really stupid and just reinforces how little thought some companies put into their products.

I say the same thing about square faced watches.

it takes no thought to throw a square face with some metal band around it and a strap.

it takes actual engineering chops to be able to make different shaped displays. especially since traditionally most watches are round, so if you're trying to hit those people who wear watches as functional jewelery, this is closer to what people would wear than what Apple has showcased.

 

[deconstruct60]

As pointed out in this week's excellent New Yorker profile of Jony Ive:

.... However, I will stick with my own educated estimate of when Apple really began work on the Apple Watch.

Chuckle. The sentence in the New Yorker article immediately before the one you quoted is .....

The Apple Watch - .... -- was conceived "close to Steve's death," Ive said.

So have Ive making a statement and we have your relatively wild speculation and puzzling inability to place statement you are quoting in context.

The iPod nano getting watch faces was also a factor of other 'computer-like watch' efforts that preceded it around that time . It was "small enough" to make a watch face and limited scope of what the mini-apps could do on the platform. That completely disconnected mode isn't really what the Apple watch (and smart watches) are about at this point.

 

[dumastudetto]

Much better looking than the others but still runs Android Wear.

Looks ugly as sin to me. I wouldn't be caught dead wearing one of these, or any Android wear watch. I think Apple has nailed it on the design personally and nobody else will ever be able to compete.

 

[AppleScruff1]

Looks ugly as sin to me. I wouldn't be caught dead wearing one of these, or any Android wear watch. I think Apple has nailed it on the design personally and nobody else will ever be able to compete.

Of course you wouldn't.

 

[bobob]

As pointed out in this week's excellent New Yorker profile of Jony Ive:

It’s hard to build a time line of this or any other Apple creation: the company treats the past, as well as the future, as its intellectual property.

I can certainly understand why they would cite the Apple Watch's origin as being slightly after Steve Jobs' death, given the endless pernicious speculation that Apple was doomed without him.

Chuckle. The sentence in the New Yorker article immediately before the one you quoted is .....

The Apple Watch - .... -- was conceived "close to Steve's death," Ive said.

So have Ive making a statement and we have your relatively wild speculation and puzzling inability to place statement you are quoting in context.

I must say it's refreshing to see a person such as yourself being so willing to freely demonstrate such an ingenuous nature. Far be it from me to dissuade you from your belief that all statements from Apple are completely true, apolitical, and unrelated to corporate strategy. It's adorable!

 

[UAV]

We all know what you meant and I only had to look at your last 15 posts to realize you are an Android owner and Apple basher. Why are you here? Just to troll?

dude i talk from 100% experience i just recently got rid of my iphone6 so how does that make me a troll if i owned both phones? do you own both phones? if not then consider yourself a troll.
attach pic shows proof i had both phones

 

[the-msa]

The Razor Blade also has a worse processor and starts $2200 for 128gb flash. Also, it has a 3200x1800, which is essentially the same resolution as the rMBP except 16:9, not 16:10 like the rMBP.

The Dell XPS has a 4K display, but also features a worse processor, the same 750M, and uses standard HDD drives and SATA SSDs.

Good try though.

Good try? Try reading the last sentence of my post.

 

[3goldens]

Certainly a way better looking product!

Joni, better start putting his creative thinking cap back on. I would actually wear this one for sure, if it had a built in flashlight ofcourse like my MTM speicla ops watch!

 

[shyam09]

LOL - When LG stated that their timepiece had a "...high-tech flare" in their press release, it's obvious that they really mean "flair" as in a uniquely attractive quality or distinctive elegance/style.

I just pointed out that they used the word wrong, that's all. No biggie.

RTP.

I got that, I was just going along with what you caught.

 

[aristotle]

How is this competition for the Apple watch? Doesn't it only work with android smartphones? If they were smart, they would go the pebble route and target both Android and iOS. The latter market might be smaller worldwide but iOS users tend to spend more on accessories and apps and iOS has the majority in markets that have a lot of disposable income like the US.