If you’re interested in buying a smart watch this year, you have quite a few choices. Aside from new products from top players like Apple and Fitbit, there are two options that deserve a closer look. The first is LG Watch Sport made in partnership with Google, and the other is Huawei Watch 2 that’s coming out later this month at MWC 2017 in Barcelona.
There are pros and cons to both products, so let’s see what each brings to the table.
With LG Watch Sport, the biggest advantage is that it is already available. What’s more, it comes with 4G LTE cellular data capability, meaning it doesn’t require pairing with a smartphone to work. While that was the biggest drawback on the older Huawei Watch, the Watch 2 is expected to come with the same functionality as well. That’s an assumption based on Huawei’s promo for the Watch 2, but it’s very likely that Huawei has brought in that feature to compete on a more even level with 2017 smart watch models.
The LG Watch Sport also comes with GPS tracking, not found on the Watch first edition. We don’t know whether Huawei will launch the product with GPS capability, but it’s quite possible.
Another advantage that LG Watch Sport brings to the equation is Android Pay capability because of the NFC chip that it carries. The feature will work once updated to Android Wear 2.0, and is one of the key features on the new LG smart watch made in collaboration with Google.
Huawei Watch 2 will have its own advantages, such as Sapphire glass versus the Gorilla glass on LG’s product. The new smart watch from the Chinese devices giant will also eventually run Android Wear 2.0, but there’s a chance Google will hold back the rollout to give the LG product an edge, since it’s just been launched.
From a features perspective, both the LG Watch Sport and Huawei Watch 2 bring in a lot of new capabilities like mobile wallet payment, standalone cellular data and so on. Watch 2 should ideally continue to support changeable watch straps just like the previous model, as well as carry over several of its better features like IP67 waterproof rating, etc.
We don’t have a verifiable source for the pricing on the Huawei Watch 2, but it’s very likely to be in line with the $349 that LG Watch Sport is currently retailing for.
So, is it worth waiting for Watch 2 to hit the shelves or should you go for the LG Watch Sport that’s already available?
On the one hand, we know for sure what LG Watch Sport offers, but very little is known about Huawei’s new smart watch. On the other, it’s just a matter of less than two weeks before Huawei Watch 2 is launched at the Mobile World Congress 2017 (MWC 2017.) And Huawei is going to make sure that it puts the product up on shelves as soon as it can.
The important thing to remember is that both smart watches are likely to run neck-to-neck when it comes to features as well as pricing, so it might make sense to wait a couple of weeks and then decide which one you want gracing your wrist.
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