Earlier today at the IFA 2014 trade show in Berlin, ASUS joined the growing list of companies debuting wearable devices by unveiling the ZenWatch – an Android Wear-powered smartwatch.
Unlike both LG and Motorola, who have recently been showing off smartwatches with circular designs, ASUS has given its first wearable device a rectangular 1.63-inch AMOLED display, which is protected by a curved glass front.
Moving onto the rest of the design, the ZenWatch has a stainless-steel case which is complemented by a genuine stitched-leather strap with a quick-release clasp. By using those kinds of materials, ASUS is clearly marketing the ZenWatch as a premium smartwatch.
Internally, the ZenWatch has similar specifications to its main rivals. It has a 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 processor, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of storage, and a 1.4Wh battery.
In addition to the usual capabilities that you would expect from an Android Wear device, the ZenWatch also includes the following ASUS specific features: Watch Unlock, Tap Tap, Remote Camera, Cover to Mute, Find My Phone and Presentation Control.
Finally, the Zenwatch also boasts a wellness manager which can be used to keep track of various health and fitness related statistics. These include the number of steps taken, calories burned, activity duration, heart rate, exercise intensity and relaxation level.
When it goes on sale later this year, the ZenWatch will retail for €199, which is around $260.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts about the ZenWatch or any of the products announced at IFA 2014. You can leave a comment below, via the usual social networks, or over on the forums.
