LG G Watch Release Date Approaches, Price And Images Leak Online

The first smartwatch in Google Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Android Wear line is now on view online. Leak images of the LG G Watch, expected to be released in the coming weeks and formally unveiled on June 25 at Google’s I/O developers conference, show that an Android Wear app will allow the wearables to communicate with smartphones.

LG has not set a release date for the G Watch, but the company did confirm earlier this month a retail price of €199 in Europe. LG did not give a U.S. price for the first Android Wear device, which will square off against Motorola’s Moto 360 later this year, but is expected to sell the G Watch from $199-$279. The LG G Watch is constructed largely from plastic and rubber, and is expected to be a lower-priced alternative to the Moto 360, which features stainless steel housing as well as steel and leather band options.

In the leaked image, the LG G Watch is charging with a micro USB cable. Leaked text in Germany’s Play Store that mentioned the G Watch earlier this week alluded to it being released via Google’s marketplace.

The LG G Watch reportedly includes a 1.65-inch touchscreen with 280 x 280 resolution, 4 gigabytes of internal storage and a 400mAh battery powering a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset. Most reports peg the G Watch’s RAM at 512 megabytes as well, and it will have an always-on display and will also be water- and dust-resistant, LG says.

The LG G Watch’s battery is rated to last up to three days, according to a leaked manual, and it can be recharged in roughly two hours. The Android Wear smartwatch’s boot screen also leaked online earlier this month, offering a look at the design language Google will use for a new Android logo. LG will compete for consumers’ wrists (and wallets) later this summer with Samsung, which recently released the Tizen-powered Gear 2, Gear Fit and Gear 2 Neo.