LG and carmaker Audi are collaborating on a wearable device and this is it, the first Open WebOS smartwatch. While still officially nameless, this is the first device to run the OS developed by Palm, which first released webOS with the Pre smartphone in 2009. LG looks set to implement more standalone app functionality in its webOS wearables.
The webOS watch has a circular app navigation menu, a slick and circular calendar app, and a quick settings menu that’s also best viewed on a round screen. Audi’s participation in this timepiece is limited to a branded watch face and an app that unlocks the car door via NFC.
Unlike the G Watch R, whose design this is based on, the webOS watch also has cellular connectivity. It has a phone dialer (unfortunately it’s not rotary) and a messaging app built in. The ability to integrate a cellular radio may be a big reason for why LG went with webOS over Android Wear on this Audi watch.
