Talk of the Apple Watch dominated the web in 2014, but now that 2015 CES has hit Las Vegas, the fashionably techie piece has taken a backseat to—well—everything else. LG and Audi’s smartwatch is the newest wearable to make us salivate—a prototype that offers promises of futuristic technology with the streamlined chicness of a luxury watch. It’s the best of both worlds.
But so far both the tech and auto giant seem pretty hush-hush about the whole thing. When reporters noticed the watch was running on webOS, Audi automotive security engineer Roman Kochanek replied, “It's a prototype. Some people say they saw a settings screen which says it's webOS. We're not saying it's webOS." But as you can clearly see in Android Central's video, it is indeed running on an open OS. Originally developed by Palm, the operating system was open–sourced in 2012 and LG has stated previously that they are going to work on bringing the system to wearable tech.
The piece offers standard smartwatch apps including email, calendar, music, messenger, phone and gallery. But one of the biggest standouts of the watch is the Audi function that allows you to control your car from your wrist. Unlock the door, start the engine or even share access with your friends and family through their own smartwatches or smartphones. Unfortunately, it won’t drive your car for you like “Jack,” the A7 that the drove itself from San Francisco to Las Vegas for the conference.
While both LG and Audi remain adamant the watch is strictly a prototype and will not be coming to your local Audi dealer anytime soon, we have high hopes that this is a step in the right direction. Aside from looking like a Bond tech piece, the watch is highly functional, offering real-world integration and technology like webOS and NFC that have not been used in wearables before.
