Android watch vs apple watch Continue It's been an interesting month for wearable devices, with the release of the Moto 360 and the announcement of the Asus zenWatch, LG G Watch R and Apple's long-rumored Apple Watch. Now that we have a fuller picture of the smartwatch landscape, we decided it was time to see where we are, what's good about the current smartwatch and what could be better. For this Friday discussion, we're looking at both the new Apple Watch and the Android Wear family. What works better on AW vs. Apple Watch? What did Apple hit out of the park? What can apple, Google and other OEM manufacturers do? Be sure to check out our team's responses and then let us know what you think in the comments below. Jonathan FeistIt has been an interesting and powerful couple of weeks for smartwatches. I wanted to say wearable technology, but I haven't seen anything but smartwatches of any interest. More on that later. Android Wear-powered smartwatches were announced or launched from a large selection of manufacturers around the IFA conference earlier this month. Perhaps the most significant launch was the Motorola Moto 360, which has been on many people's wish list for months. Apple came to the table this week with its smartwatch, allowing us to take a good look at what options users will have in the coming months. Let's start with the good things, I think Apple has a completely user interface. Don't get me wrong, I have a bad habit with my developer's mindset of creating images, apps and programs that are cluttered too, but Google Android Wear UI offers an interface that is hard not to be attracted to, and has been an inspiration to me. It's hard to say that the minimalist Design of Android Wear offers everything you need for their computing needs, I'm just saying that Apple's design brings too much to the screen to offer a quick look experience. We'll see a lot of comparisons of Apple smartwatch vs Android Wear offerings as we go, so I won't talk about it too much. What I want to talk about is smart watches in general. Although I am intrigued by smartwatches, I stopped wearing the watch altogether a few years ago for a reason, it is getting in my way. Right now, when I type this, if I had a watch on my wrist, it would dig both in my wrist and this laptop. So the clock doesn't serve me well at all. Android Wear has the potential behind the watch, which I think is the clincher here. But what is this form factor that will work for me? I do not know. One thing is for sure, Android Wear offers general services and features that I think will work best for me. I just need to figure out what kind of wearable form factor should keep my display. (After all my anti-watch rambling, I'm really looking forward to seeing the LG G Watch R in action. I could just bite the bullet anyway.) Joseph Hindi When I look at platform, I try not to on things like they are now, and what they might be in the future. Looking back, the first iteration of almost everything that's cool now wasn't so great when it was in its first year. We have the Xbox One and PS4 now, but in the first year of video games, it required a super computer (at the time) and the games were just colored lines on a black background with very basic controls. The first TVs were black and white and tiny with terrible speakers. The first smartphones were small, slow and lag. Was the HTC G1 iconic device? Yes. Was it also equipment limited, lag, and slow? Yes. I look at Android Wear and Apple Watch in the same way. Now their colored lines are on the black background of the era. This first year is essentially an HTC G1 smartwatch. Is that really cool? Yes. It will be a few years before the platform really takes off and people find the best use for it? You're betting! Just like Android! However, the pros and cons are the same on both platforms. They've got the ball rolling, which is good, and there are some peripheral uses that are really unique and fun (Android Wear has Google Now functionality that's good and the Apple Watch has NFC payments that are equally nice). That few features these devices have are actually quite awesome and that I didn't actually expect in the first year iteration. The downsides, however, outweigh the pros right now in that developers don't take full advantage of the platform. I believe there was a piece on the Time.com that talked about this issue very well. They said that developers are just trying to move tasks from the smartphone screen to the watch screen, and this has usually had bad results. The Eat24 app is only useful if you want to order the same thing you ordered earlier. Apps that require accurate wobbly control are wobbly at best thanks to a small touchscreen. I think both platforms will start to succeed and have a unique application when app developers stop looking at it as just a smaller screen and start looking at it for what it really is: a companion device. In an article in Time.com that will be the point where developers will look at the platform and think: What can I do this watch do that will make looking at the clock faster than using the phone. When apps come out that follow this line of thinking, I think we'll all be more excited about Android Wear and the Apple Watch. Until then, there won't be many overly interesting or innovative applications or features. Oh, and they really have to do something about battery life. Woof! Kevin NetherI has always enjoyed the idea of having a smart watch. I was an early adapter and owned the original Sony smartwatch. Little did I know how I would use my smartwatch. I quickly learned that running full-blown apps, browsing or actual input on the watch clock annoying than useful. By the time I did tinker with my watch, I could complete the same task in a few seconds on my actual phone. I quickly realized that I would just look at the notifications, and use baked answers to respond if necessary. I also like controlling music as well. Sony does not support the new Hangouts update, and does not support Play Music. It was enough to make the watch useless to me. When the pebble came out, that seemed to hit the sweet spot for what I think a smart watch should be. Fast access to notifications with baked answers. I was still holding on, because of the fact of the screen. I felt the gray screen made it look like a toy. I wanted a watch that looked like a watch and something I could wear with a suit or business everyday clothes. Fast forward another year and Android Wear has been announced. After watching the main on B/O, I was pleased to see the direction of Android Wear. Exactly what I wanted, notifications on the watch as well as Google Now Maps. Google Has now matured to the point where it's part of my day-to-day workflow and I find it an important part of my day. When I heard Android Wear didn't allow OEM skins and you get the same experience on the watch, regardless of the model I was on board. I was one of the refreshment guys every few seconds on the Play Store. I was hoping to get a chance to get a Moto 360. During I/O they announced 360 would be ready at the end of the summer, the crowd released a collective groan and I was there with them. However, I pick up G Watch since I was excited to have my hands on the device. Fast forward a few months later as I write this post, the watch is not on my wrist. It's actually in my glove compartment, without power for the last few weeks. As a guy who likes to wear watches, this smartwatch is cramped my style. I even installed a metal band on it, but it still looks and feels like a toy. I overlooked one of the things that I really need in hours thinking that functionality will outweigh it, but it's not. You see, for me, a smartwatch should be something you interact with periodically throughout the day. The rest of the time you see it, check the time, and move on. Other people see the watch on you and it is seen as an accessory. Just like a pair of good shoes. I had to decide if going to wear my Movado tag, or my LG. And obviously one of my luxury watches ended up on my wrist. I'm just not ready to give up my wrist estate for a toy. Heck, I even tried to wear one hour on each wrist, but I felt like bootleged Mr. T.My eye on the Moto 360, it would be a great alternative for my day-to-day setup. If I were to wear a suit that watch would still look like watch (I hope).