Update: There’s an Amazon.de employee about to have his wrist slapped rather firmly after a rather steep price tag was posted alongside the Huawei Watch listing. Any guess of what the number alongside it was? 999 Euros, or US$1080.
Yep, that’s about three times more than the entry level Apple Watch if rumours are to be believed.
No ad to show here.
Although the price could be an error prior to the device’s availability and price announcements, it could very well be an inflated sense of grandeur by those price-setters at Huawei. Of course, the watch is supremely gorgeous, but does it warrant such a steep price tag? Probably not.
We will update the story as soon as more details are made available. Huawei has yet to comment on the matter.
You just can’t keep a secret in the world of technology anymore without some sneaky leaker finding out about it. In this case though, Huawei kind of shot itself in the foot by releasing a video of its Huawei Watch mere days before its actual launch. But now that the device has emerged from its secret chamber, we can say for sure that it’s one of the prettiest smartwatches we’ve seen to date.
It’s crafted from cold-forged steel, boasts a 42mm completely circular face (there aren’t any bezels here, Motorola and LG) which is slathered in Sapphire Glass too, and a bezel-less 400×400 display. It’s probably the most watch-like smartwatch on the planet at the moment, and it’s a beautiful specimen.
Is it enough to challenge the likes of Apple Watch though?
For one, it runs Android Wear which is both a blessing and a curse really. Due to Android Wear’s relative immaturity, the OS doesn’t quite shoot the smartwatches it powers into immediate relevancy. There’s no “must have” element yet. Then again, the Huawei Watch will be compatible with seemingly most Android smartphones too, and not just Huawei’s. There’s a bonus.
Of course, this also allows the user to change things like the watch face, and utilise Google Now to activate apps on the watch or smartphone tethered to it.
And like seemingly every other smartwatch, the company was sure to highlight its health tracking abilities, with a heart rate monitor, six-axis accelerometer and barometer. The watch also intelligently adjusts to the situation it finds itself in, like it’s TalkBand B2 Bluetooth headset-cum-fitness band.
The TalkBand B2 is probably more interesting than the Huawei Watch, as it aims to solve two issues with one device. It boasts a detachable Bluetooth headset which doubles up at the device’s face when attached to the band, which is incidentally, available in hip-hop gold.
Like it’s Watch cousin, the TalkBand B2 also boasts a six-axis sensor which also knows when you’re hiking, running, naughty or nice.
Finally, Huawei’s TalkBand N1 is more of a mobile headset for music lovers than an out-and-out fitness tracker, but the pair of earphones seemingly attached and worn as a necklace can also track the wearers biometric patterns. It also boasts 4GB of onboard storage that holds quite a few tracks.
It’s allegedly professionally tuned too, so Huawei’s billing this thing as a proper piece of audio equipment for those on the move.
There’s currently no information on device availability, but we’ll make this information known as soon as available.
To keep up with all the happenings in Barcelona for the next week, check out our MWC 2015 portal for a more comprehensive look at the summit, and be sure to follow our live blog for details as they happen.
