LG’s latest Android Wear device lands in Australia today, with the G Watch R becoming available in retailers this afternoon. LG is making a lot of noise about this one — it’s the first Android Wear device with a circular P-OLED display which uses 100% of the watch-face, unlike the Moto 360 which is notorious for that ‘flat tyre’ look.
Being an Android Wear device, you already know about most of the features, but one that will be popular with the health buffs is the photoplethysmography sensor, which is a complicated way of saying optical heart rate monitor. Having used similar technology on other watches, I can confirm that this is indeed pretty cool.
Powering the G Watch R is 4GB of storage space for all your offline music needs, 512MB of RAM (which is standard), and of course, a larger battery than the original G Watch. How much larger? 410mAh vs 400mAh, so it’s not a huge difference. For those who like the low down, here’s the specs straight from LG’s press release:
- Chipset: 1.2GHz Qualcomm SnapdragonTM 400
- Display: 1.3-inch P-OLED Display (320 x 320)
- Memory: 4GB eMMC / 512MB RAM
- Battery: 410mAh
- Operating System: Android WearTM (compatible with smartphones running Android 4.3 and above)
- Sensors: 9-Axis (Gyro/ Accelerometer/ Compass), Barometer, PPG
- Colour: Black
- Other: Dust and Water Resistant (IP67)
Perhaps the biggest news is that the LG G Watch R is available today from retailers including Harvey Norman, JB HiFi and Optus for $359. The astute will note that this is $10 more than the Play Store price of $349, but on top of that you have to factor in a shipping cost, taking the total cost of ownership to about $368.95.
If you’re out and about for a new watch, and have been waiting for this puppy, be sure to head to your preferred retailer this afternoon and take a look!
