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Smartwatch

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There is no denying that smart watches are a very popular segment these days. We here at WWR (and over at ABTW) have kept a close eye on these products, as they do seem to be a harbinger of something coming – we are just not quite sure what, as of yet. While most of the attention has gone to higher-end smart watches (say, $300+), I think that it’s worth checking out what the lower end has to offer. With that, we have a review of the U8 Pro Smart Watch.

Mother’s Day is coming up, and as a service to those gift challenged male readers out there, I though I would highlight a few watches that you may want to get for the woman (or women) in your lives. I am mainly going to focus on watches that we have reviewed relatively recently, though there are a few extras tossed in here. So without further ado, here is out Mother’s Day Gift Guide.

When it comes to the world of smart watches, one of the big complaints I have heard (and read about) is that they simply are not designed to be appealing to those who appreciate watches. Many of them are gadgets first, and just happen to be able to be strapped to your wrist. That argument is losing a lot of steam now, especially with the announcement of the Frederique Constant Horological Smartwatch.

I don’t really care for smartwatches. The ones that most interest me, thus far at least, have been ones like the Withings or Hoptroff that integrate a smartwatch feature into an analog watch. Well, the LG G Watch flipped that technique, taking the look of an analog watch and integrating it into a full blown smartwatch. It is, in my opinion, the best looking smartwatch out there.

I am not a fan of the direction of most smart watches. I don’t need another screen on my wrist to give me my texts and emails. If the notification is so important, then I will look at my phone or computer. But I do see the utility in getting some notifications, especially if it is in a fairly unobtrusive manner. And this is where connected analog watches enter the field. Devices like the Nevo Watch connect to your smart phone and display limited information in the background, while the primary look of the watch is an analog watch.

Hoptroff is a British Watchmaker who is doing very interesting complications with electronic watches tied to your smart phone. Instead of trying to do everything, and losing the look of a conventional watch in the process, the watches specialize is a specific function, and use the hands and subdials of the watch to convey the information. The Hoptroff Hotblack line of watches is available with options to keep you up to date on football (soccer for those in the US) scores, stock prices, the direction and time of day for Muslim prayers, and important notifications.