LG G Watch Powered by Android Wear

I've put off purchasing a Smart Watch for one specific reason: Price. I wouldn't even consider buying one and thought carrying around my smartphone was enough, and a watch would be unecessary. Well, the price has dropped significantly a year later to under $100, so I decided to check out the LG G Watch. And I Love it. When looking at styles of smartwatches, the decision is either round or rectangular. I'm not particularly drawn to either one. It's purely based on preference. I liked the LG G and it's 1.65” screen since this is so much more than a watch and I like the mini-phone rectangular shape. It can do way more than I'll need. Will I use the camera function to control my phone camera? Don't know but it's a cool feature. You can control the front and rear cameras, flash, and self-timer. You will see what your phone sees on the watch screen, and with two taps you can snap a photo. Getting started – choosing a watch face is as easy as pressing and holding the screen for several seconds. A bunch of watch faces scroll by and you pick one. There are tons more faces to choose from various apps, but be aware some faces can be battery hogs. The face could be a little smaller – or the screen slightly larger – as there is a bit of unused space with the bezel. The size fits my slim wrist nicely. I don't like thick bulky watches and this is pretty slim. The watch is extremely comfortable to wear. OK Google! If you're familiar with “OK Google” you will be using the voice command to speak to the G watch and tell it one of the many things you want it to do. Navigate to a destination, record a reminder, See your Agenda (Calendar), email, text, take notes, show you how many steps you've taken (with adjustable goals), play music on your phone, set an alarm – this watch does so much, and does it very well. I am using the Wear Mini Launcher for quick swiping to go to apps. Once swipe from left to right opens your app drawer. An additional swipe will bring you to another page of quick launchers for brightness, ring your phone, music, etc. See photo above. It displays your watch battery percentage as well as your phone battery percentage. Why would this be useful? I find myself not looking at my phone, so it's a quick reminder if the phone needs to be put on a charge. There is also a quick launcher right on your home screen which brings up a page of color icons (see photo) like “contact phone” if misplaced. Misplaced. This is one of the best things about having a smart watch. Unlike forgetting where I put my phone (Yup, memory problems), the watch is always attached comfortably to your wrist. I have a habit of leaving my phone on mute and miss calls. With the watch, I'll be notified of that incoming call. While you cannot use the watch as a phone, you take the call, and speak on your phone. Texting – no more missed texts. They pop up on the watch and I can reply via voice to the text right on the G Watch. Or just say: “OK Google” Say Send Text Say recipient's name Speak the message. It will automatically send the message, so speak carefully. The only issue I have with speaking to a watch is turning my arm towards me and the screen wakes up very quickly. I am an extreme case dealing with pain, so just doing this and holding it in that position hurts my arm and elbow. However, I don't think this would be an issue for most people. Additionally, I have found a way to relieve the pain without needing to hold my arm up. With my arm in a resting position, I Tap the screen once, Once awoken, I can give the “OK Google” command which it hears without the watch being near my face. Then I just give a command. Or I can still easily read the notifications, emails, texts on the large watch face. Something to help with pain is a huge plus for me. I have difficulty with arm, hand, finger pain (amongst others! Just doing a review I have to type in stages because of the pain) so I really liked that I didn't have to hold my phone to look at it for anything unless I absolutely needed to, such as make a call. If you have body pains, stiff fingers, find it difficult to hold the latest phablet, the G Watch is a great way to get around the phone with less pain. Notifications can get on my nerves, but again, having reminders right at my wrist is a huge bonus. I forget more than I remember. I limit which apps that I find useful to push notifications to the watch. I don't have tons of notifications on my phone, and keep it this way on my watch. I like it simple. It's unbelievably convenient to have a pop up notification telling me my Amazon package will be delivered. I don't need to be near my phone (see photo) – which is a good thing since my phone spends a good amount of time re-charging away from me. Which brings me to battery life for the G Watch. It is what I expected. It has lasted me a full day into the next morning with moderate use and playing around with it since I just got it. The more I used it, obviously the battery drained quicker. But, like with (or better than) a smartphone the battery lasts all day before getting pretty low. As I don't sleep with it (unlike my Garmin, which monitors sleep) I find it perfectly fine to take it off at the end of the night and put it in it's magnetized cradle and charge it up for the next day. By utilizing the watch, I've come to save battery life on my phone. Frankly, had I known more about the G Watch and it's convenience and capabilities, the original price would not have been so bad. But for it's current price of around $80, I highly recommend this at an affordable price. It's a great intro to smartwatches without investing hundred of dollars. As I continue learning the features, naturally future watches will do even more, and I am much more likely to invest now that I have experienced my first Smart Watch. If you have any questions I can possibly help answer, please ask.