While the market spends energy and attention on smartphones, there is enough action going on in the smartwatch segment also. The interesting point for discussion here is there are two contrasting devices built over the same OS, Android Wear 2.0.
Mobvoi is a Chinese company known more for its voice assistant modules and already has released smartwatches earlier, has now announced two new smartwatches Ticwatch S and Ticwatch E.
Both these smartwatches have the Android Wear 2.0 as the OS, which is a departure from the previous version Ticwatch 2 in which the company used its own OS developed on the Android platform with its own in-house voice assistant as well.
The two models, Ticwatch S and Ticwatch E have only one major difference, the location of the GPS antenna. In the S model smartwatch, it is integrated into the watch’s strap. This helps in better navigation using the smartwatch’s GPS. In the case of the Ticwatch E the antenna has been built into the main watch itself.
This provides the user with the option to change the strap to match the attire or the occasion. The watches also offer the choice to the users to go with the Android OS or their own OS called Tic Fit software.
The device is being offered at prices of $99 for the Ticwatch E and $119 for the Ticwatch S. But these prices are only on the website Kickstarter, a kind of early bird incentive. In the normal course, these phones would carry retail price tags of $159 and $199 respectively.
Now, from here to a smartwatch, which is more of a fashion statement than merely a watch. That is because it is from Louis Vuitton and the smartwatch bears a fancy name Tambour Horizon. The stark difference is in the prices. The Tambour Horizon will retail for a good $2, 450 per piece.
In terms of the design itself, one can buy it in three different styles; stainless steel, brushed steel and black. In addition, you can pick from a range of 30 straps for men and a similar number for women.
As for specs, the display is 1.3 inches in size and has a 390x390 AMOLED display. The processor is Snapdragon 2100 and the RAM and ROM are 4GB and 512MB respectively. As mentioned, the OS is the Android Wear 2.0 and you get Android Pay and Google Assistant also as support.
What can be found missing is a heart rate monitor. As if to justify the high price tag, there are features like Vuitton’s City Guide and also Flight which help the users with information on different services.
This Louis Vuitton fashion accessory may not sell in huge numbers looking at the price tag; if this is the outlook for the developed markets, the scenario in India might not be that bright.