The Top Five Android Wear Smartwatches You Actually Want

Since the Android Wear platform was first announced in March, the long-teased Moto 360 smartwatch has been highly anticipated. It is one of the first smartwatches to hit the market to use the true, traditional watch design – which is simply put a round watchface. It’s amazing how such a simple concept could be missed by many. Until now, manufacturers have launched square-looking, geeky device after geeky device.

Problem is, the Moto 360 has not been officially unveiled – so far we’ve only seen a handful of prototypes – and does not have a release date. That is going to change of course in just a few days when the IFA trade show kicks off in Berlin on September 4.

Android WearEven so, if you were to run out and purchase an Android Wear watch right this instant you would only have two variants to choose from: the LG G Watch and the Samsung Gear Live. Both devices are decent, but they’re not quite the all-encompassing full-featured smartwatch the tech world seems to desire. Worst yet, after the Moto 360 launches the number will only sit at three total devices.

Again, IFA is going to change all that effectively opening the floodgates on Android Wear devices. A whole slew of AW powered devices are going to be unveiled and launched shortly after the event. In light of that, we’ve chosen the top five devices coming within the next few days that are sure to change your mind if you’ve been on the fence about smartwatches. For those of us who haven’t been on the fence, these devices are definitely more desirable than what’s available currently.

The Top Five Android Wear Smartwatches You Actually Want

Moto 360

Motorola Moto 360This was a given. The beautiful design alone is enough to land this smartwatch one of the year’s most anticipated devices label. Couple that with the fact that it will be running Google’s Android Wear OS and it’s clear we have a winner on our hands. Motorola has done exceptionally well lately on the Android front with their Moto X lineup. It looks like that success is going to translate well into the smartwatch market too.

The Moto 360 is set to be announced on September 4th, and it will launch shortly after. The rumors currently suggest a global release date of September 10th, but we’ll find out soon enough when IFA kicks off in a few days.

It looks as if the price is going to be $249 which isn’t bad at all considering what the watch is said to offer. We’re not going to bother listing specs yet, but you can be sure we’ll feature more on the device as soon as it’s officially unveiled.

LG G Watch R

438730-lg-g-watch-r-teaserPiggybacking on the success of Motorola’s soon-to-be round smartwatch, LG unveiled their next Android Wear device the G Watch R. The original G Watch is decent, but definitely leaves a little something to be desired in terms of the overall design – let’s hope LG does a better job with the next iteration.

Ahead of IFA, LG has been busy teasing everyone with the new device. It’s been dubbed the LG G Watch R (for round) and it was officially announced last week in a teaser promo. If you haven’t already seen it, check out the video below.

From what we can gather, LG has put more emphasis on design and beauty this time around and they’re making that painstakingly obvious in the teaser. In fact, just by looking at several of the quick shots the device looks pretty attractive. We all know, however that looking attractive and actually being attractive are two separate things especially in the world of smartwatches.

The G Watch R is also expected to make an appearance at IFA in a few days, and will probably launch by the end of the year. There are no rumors about release date though, so take that information with a grain of salt.

Just like the Moto 360, we expect have more information for you on the device within the next few days.

Samsung Gear Round

Samsung Gear LiveRound is clearly the new trend, but that’s okay we definitely are into it. Round watches look a hell of a lot better than bulky, square ones.

The latest rumors about Sammy is that the company has a round smartwatch in the works, which is said to pair directly with the Note 4. SamMobile – a tech blog dedicated to all rumors Samsung related – seems to believe that the new device will include a SIM slot for compatibility with 4G LTE networks. In other words, the supposed Samsung Gear Round looks to be a standalone device.

If it looks and functions well, it will definitely be interesting to see. The 4G support will allow the device to operate independently, meaning owners won’t have to worry about keeping a smartphone paired up. Of course, standalone devices usually work with paired devices as well offering the best of both worlds.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 4 is going to debut in Berlin and New York City on September 3rd, so we will probably get a glimpse or two at the smartwatch as well, if it is real. That said, Samsung has yet to release a teaser or announcement about a potential upcoming device so this is all heresay at the moment.

ASUS ZenWatch

ASUS devices are fantastic for those on a tight budget, and that’s exactly what the company seems to be planning for their first smartwatch. Best known for the Nexus 7, Google’s stock Android tablet, ASUS is preparing to launch the ZenWatch. Similar to LG, ASUS released a teaser last week showing off the device rather vaguely.

From the video, it seems as if the device is square-shaped with an aluminum or brushed metal body. Then again, it’s difficult to make confirmations from just the quick shot of the device in the teaser.

Rumors point to an unveiling of the device at IFA and an October timeframe launch. It’s also rumored that the ZenWatch will cost less than even the LG G Watch and the Samsung Gear Live, the two current Android Wear watches.

If you haven’t already seen the teaser, it’s been embed below for your viewing pleasure.

HTC One Wear

htcwatch-EVleaksBefore Android Wear was actually unveiled – yes way back then – there were many rumors that HTC was producing an Android powered watch. It’s been a while since we heard anything else about the device, but many believe that a device from the company will rear its head soon.

The infamous – and remarkably accurate – leakster known as @evleaks delivered an image to the world of a square smartwatch adorned with an HTC Sense skin over the one-and-only Android Wear OS. When compared to the others on the list, you can see HTC – if the image is real – decided to use a square design which is a bit disconcerting. That said, a metal design is always welcome and the watch itself looks pretty damn attractive. That doesn’t necessarily mean the finished product will end up looking like the leaked image, but we’ll just have to wait and see.

HTC has been completely mum about anything, so we have no idea if this device will even see the light of day. With all the competition launching smartwatches by the end of the year, it is hard to believe that HTC isn’t going to follow suit in some capacity. We may see something at IFA from HTC, or we might not. Rumors have also suggested an October release date for their smartwatch. Again, there’s been no official confirmation of anything from the company so who knows.

The Top Five Android Wear Smartwatches You Actually Want

Well, there you have it. There are devices rumored to be coming from several other manufacturers which we may – or may not – see at IFA alongside the ones we listed above. For now, these are the top five Android Wear smartwatches you actually want – or at least will want to spend hard-earned money on. When all is said and done, it will be nice to finally see some competition in the Android Wear market.

What smartwatch are you looking forward to?

About The Author

Briley Kenney

Briley Kenney is an experienced tech enthusiast who enjoys all things electronic and gadget related. Currently, Briley writes for a plethora of professional websites including Digital Trends, Lifewire, Ideaing, SmartWatches, and several prominent, but confidential, SEO companies. He has also written in-game content for the indie gem Tales of Illyria and it's two sequels Beyond the Iron Wall, and Destinies.