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iWatch rumours suggest LG also planning a smart watch

The hotly rumoured Apple iWatch has competition, with reports suggesting LG is planning its own wrist-worn smart phone.

Richard Trenholm Former Movie and TV Senior Editor
Richard Trenholm was CNET's film and TV editor, covering the big screen, small screen and streaming. A member of the Film Critic's Circle, he's covered technology and culture from London's tech scene to Europe's refugee camps to the Sundance film festival.
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Richard Trenholm
2 min read

Apple's probably doing it. Google's maybe doing it. Samsung's definitely doing it -- and now it seems LG could do it too. The hotly rumoured Apple iWatch has competition from LG, with reports the Korean company is also planning a new wrist-worn smart phone.

The iWatch rumours ignited with reports Apple is working on a wristwatch that echoes the features of a phone. Where Apple is rumoured to be heading, others are quickly rumoured to follow: and so the Korea Times reports unconfirmed claims that LG is another major mobile manufacturer working on a smart watch, which could run Android or Firefox OS software.

It's actually not much of a stretch. LG made a watch phone back in 2009, but it never took off. The LG GD910 Watch Phone, pictured above, included voice control, a camera, a music player, Bluetooth and 3G Internet.

It was horribly bulky though, and at £850 was prohibitively expensive. Not to mention that it had a mere two hours of talk time. Ouch.

More recent examples of the watch phone include the Pebble, which has a battery-conserving E-Ink screen showing notifications of what's going on with your blower. But the only major mobile manufacturer to confirm it's definitely looking to win over your wrist is Samsung.

LG's purported new attempt at a smart watch is one of a number of reported projects, including a smart visor that would rival Google's Glass

Whoever produces a smart phone for your wrist, they'll have to solve the biggest problem: creating a usable interface on a wristwatch's tiny screen. Can LG solve that problem? Do you think the iWatch is worth watching? Watch your language in the comments, or on our watchable Facebook page.