Urbane 2 now or are 2100 coming out soon and perhaps much better battery life?

[CobraCommander]

So, I was going to buy the Urbane 2 mainly to have the option of calling with it when needed using the Sync phone feature thingy but it seems some people complain about not even making it to 6PM without charging again. Is that so? If so, do you feel a 2100 CPU version will help?
Just wondering what to do.
I own the LG Watch R which I like but lacks some of those fancy extra features.

 

[json405]

It's really up to you if you want to wait. The new cpus will come out for sure but I'm not sure how that new cpu will do with LTE or standalone phone capabilities in regards to battery life. I would assume that it should be better than current AW devices but we won't know for sure until they are released. The decision to buy now or wait is up to you. Price and what I would get out of the new device are my factors that I would consider if I were in your shoes but unfortunately we do not know either of those things.

As for battery life, I consistently have plenty of battery left after a day with LTE set to automatic. Like you, I use my stand alone phone capabilities on an as needed basis. I wouldn't worry too much about the battery not lasting through the day unless you use the watch to take calls for a total more than an hour.

 

[CobraCommander]

It's really up to you if you want to wait. The new cpus will come out for sure but I'm not sure how that new cpu will do with LTE or standalone phone capabilities in regards to battery life. I would assume that it should be better than current AW devices but we won't know for sure until they are released. The decision to buy now or wait is up to you. Price and what I would get out of the new device are my factors that I would consider if I were in your shoes but unfortunately we do not know either of those things.

As for battery life, I consistently have plenty of battery left after a day with LTE set to automatic. Like you, I use my stand alone phone capabilities on an as needed basis. I wouldn't worry too much about the battery not lasting through the day unless you use the watch to take calls for a total more than an hour.

I doubt I will use it that much. I normally have the phone with me but for example when walking around the building at work away from my phone, or answering using my watch to speak while driving (which I assume I can do without really using the watch cell capability?).
What I would like is not having to constantly turn on and off the cell option to make sure the watch lasts me until night. Guess I will have to get it and try it a few days to find out how it fits me.

 

[CobraCommander]

mmmm I just read this on ATT "Compatible with Mobile Share plans only." I wonder if that is going to be a problem with my current old Unlimited data account.

 

[foxbat121]

The main battery sucker is the cell radio, not the CPU. Unless there is a technology break through (which hasn't happened yet), don't expect miracle battery performance.

The watch will need its own plan (voice, text and data) in order to use the full capability. With a mobile shared plans, you can easily add a $10/mo device plan for the watch. Unlimited data accounts are not mobile share plans. So you can't add the cheap device plans to your account. You will have to pay a full smartphone line price (which is typically $30+/mo). However, since the watch is unlocked, you are free to use any other GSM carrier or pre-paid plans.

 

[fernandez21]

Do the 2100 give a higher boost in battery or performance?

 

[CobraCommander]

The main battery sucker is the cell radio, not the CPU. Unless there is a technology break through (which hasn't happened yet), don't expect miracle battery performance.

The watch will need its own plan (voice, text and data) in order to use the full capability. With a mobile shared plans, you can easily add a $10/mo device plan for the watch. Unlimited data accounts are not mobile share plans. So you can't add the cheap device plans to your account. You will have to pay a full smartphone line price (which is typically $30+/mo). However, since the watch is unlocked, you are free to use any other GSM carrier or pre-paid plans.

I got with ATT chat and he said my Data plan wouldnt affect this but considering he didnt even know the Urbane 2 was a watch..thought it was a phone, I dont put too much fate on his info lol

 

[foxbat121]

Of course it won't affect . You just can't take advantage of the device plan which only available if you have a family share plan.

 

[Jaycemiskel]

I pretty much always make it through the day with plenty of battery life. If that's your only reason for waiting, I'd go ahead and get it if I were you

 

[json405]

Do the 2100 give a higher boost in battery or performance?

I'm not sure if it'll boost performance but technically it should help with battery life. The processing frequencies seem to be the same as the snapdragon 400.

But both battery life and performance isn't just based on the cpu that the device has. Of course it helps but depending on the software, the battery capacity etc. the boost of the new 2100 watches might not be as noticeable to the older smartwatches with the snapdragon 400.

I think the biggest upside of the upcoming AW devices with the 2100 chip would be size. The newer AW devices should be thinner than the current crop but have the same or better performance and battery life.

I'm just afraid of the price tag they would carry. I can see some manufacturers like Huawei charging over 500+ for an unlocked LTE model.

 

[fernandez21]

I'm not sure if it'll boost performance but technically it should help with battery life. The processing frequencies seem to be the same as the snapdragon 400.

But both battery life and performance isn't just based on the cpu that the device has. Of course it helps but depending on the software, the battery capacity etc. the boost of the new 2100 watches might not be as noticeable to the older smartwatches with the snapdragon 400.

I think the biggest upside of the upcoming AW devices with the 2100 chip would be size. The newer AW devices should be thinner than the current crop but have the same or better performance and battery life.

I'm just afraid of the price tag they would carry. I can see some manufacturers like Huawei charging over 500+ for an unlocked LTE model.

You think the price would go up? That would be a shame, and makes the urbanes at $350 seem like a really good deal. I'm just still debating whether or not to keep mine. I have until Friday to return. What's frustrating is that my battery has been inconsistent.

Yesterday I took it off the charger around noon and it was dead by 8pm, I charged it to 100% and took it off the charger around 9:30 and fell asleep, woke up at 4am and it was already down to 60% with me not using it as I was asleep. But today I took it off the charger at 11am and it is now 2am and I still have 17%! If I knew I would get this type of battery life consistently it would make the decision a little easier.

The other pros and cons are:
Pro.
1.The high res circular display
2.The ability to leave my phones in the car/home
3.The ability to sync with both my iPhone and Samsung.
4.The ability to sync with both my phone numbers (I did this by syncing with my Note while I had my iPhone sim in it and setting up AT&T sync, I then swapped my sim cards back so now I can receive calls from both my work line and personal line on the same watch)
5.The availability of certain apps, I can use a web browser and even watch YouTube videos on my watch if I want.
6.It's water resistant, I went swimming in the beach the other day while wearing it and it worked perfectly fine, and it was freeing being able to leave my phones in the car while I did this.
7.It uses a nano sim and is unlocked

The cons though are:
1.Can't replace the band
2.It's a little too bulky on my wrists.
3.No sapphire cover.
4.The inconsistency in battery life
5.The software isn't there yet, still no stand alone apps and it'll be a while until developers update them even after AW 2.0.
6.Not a big fan of the ui changes in 2.0, hopefully they'll be better in the final version but that is unknown at this point.
7.A new chipset is around the corner
8.And the big one is that I can't receive iMessages even if I synced it with my iPhone.
9.The rumored LTE Apple Watch, even though I wouldn't be able to sync it with my android phone, my personal line is the iPhone and being able to get FaceTime/iMessage/Apple Pay everywhere even without my iPhone is huge.
10.No wallet replacement (Apple Pay/Samsung Pay/Android Pay)

Might be better off returning and seeing what gets released this fall, but then I basically have to deal with taking my phones to all my summer activities, which involve going to the beach and pool, and it was really great just going to the beach with only my watch and keys this past weekend.

 

[foxbat121]

With cellular turned off, I can easily use it for 2 days straight without re-charging. But if I leave cellular on, it varies a lot depending on the signal strength. In my house, it barely lasts half a day. So, the biggest the problem with battery life is cellular radio, not CPU. Unless there is a new super technology to resolve this signal strength problem, or new battery types comes out that is small but higher capacity, battery life won't change much over next 2-3 years.

 

[nrseife]

You think the price would go up? That would be a shame, and makes the urbanes at $350 seem like a really good deal. I'm just still debating whether or not to keep mine. I have until Friday to return. What's frustrating is that my battery has been inconsistent.

Yesterday I took it off the charger around noon and it was dead by 8pm, I charged it to 100% and took it off the charger around 9:30 and fell asleep, woke up at 4am and it was already down to 60% with me not using it as I was asleep. But today I took it off the charger at 11am and it is now 2am and I still have 17%! If I knew I would get this type of battery life consistently it would make the decision a little easier.

The other pros and cons are:
Pro.
1.The high res circular display
2.The ability to leave my phones in the car/home
3.The ability to sync with both my iPhone and Samsung.
4.The ability to sync with both my phone numbers (I did this by syncing with my Note while I had my iPhone sim in it and setting up AT&T sync, I then swapped my sim cards back so now I can receive calls from both my work line and personal line on the same watch)
5.The availability of certain apps, I can use a web browser and even watch YouTube videos on my watch if I want.
6.It's water resistant, I went swimming in the beach the other day while wearing it and it worked perfectly fine, and it was freeing being able to leave my phones in the car while I did this.
7.It uses a nano sim and is unlocked

The cons though are:
1.Can't replace the band
2.It's a little too bulky on my wrists.
3.No sapphire cover.
4.The inconsistency in battery life
5.The software isn't there yet, still no stand alone apps and it'll be a while until developers update them even after AW 2.0.
6.Not a big fan of the ui changes in 2.0, hopefully they'll be better in the final version but that is unknown at this point.
7.A new chipset is around the corner
8.And the big one is that I can't receive iMessages even if I synced it with my iPhone.
9.The rumored LTE Apple Watch, even though I wouldn't be able to sync it with my android phone, my personal line is the iPhone and being able to get FaceTime/iMessage/Apple Pay everywhere even without my iPhone is huge.
10.No wallet replacement (Apple Pay/Samsung Pay/Android Pay)

Might be better off returning and seeing what gets released this fall, but then I basically have to deal with taking my phones to all my summer activities, which involve going to the beach and pool, and it was really great just going to the beach with only my watch and keys this past weekend.

This watch is NOT made for swimming....the IP67 rating makes it ok to leave it on the wrist during a shower etc...I guess you got lucky...

 

[afblangley]

I'm just afraid of the price tag they would carry. I can see some manufacturers like Huawei charging over 500+ for an unlocked LTE model.

In general, prices do not go up. As the leading edge pushes forward, the price of products using it tends to remain the same, while products using the previous leading edge technology get cheaper. This is especially true for smartwatches. There is little demand for $350 watches (excluding Apple), there is even less demand for $500 watches. Until developers come up with a compelling use for smartwatches, most people don't see a need strong enough to pay a lot. The majority of smartwatches sold are in the low priced, fitness band category.

After Apple announced that all new iWatch applications must be standalone, Google said they would be pushing that frontier also. I think manufacturers are waiting to see the features on the new iWatch before releasing their offerings. I expect a slew of new Wear watches with better standalone functionality to be introduced by year end.

I think LG will have to drop the price of the U2 in order to compete with the new watches, which will have some combination of thinner, better looking, higher performance, easier UI or cheaper.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the U2 for $199 by 1Q17.

 

[json405]

I agree that in general a cpu or screen resolution upgrade do not tend to increase a price of a newer model but in most cases devices that are equipped with LTE are priced higher than their wifi only counterparts. A good example is the gear s2 which has a wifi and 3g model where there is a difference of about $50. So I can only assume that the newer AW devices with LTE will be priced higher if it was only a wifi model. And most likely these new LTE AW devices will also have standalone GPS since I believe it is required due to the need of e911 services. I can be wrong about that requirement but I'm pretty sure most if not all of the new AW devices will have gps as standard when data and calling functionality is added.

Huawei will have a slew of versions ranging from plain to premium models that will probably have some of their prices go above $500 with LTE.

 

[Runningwarrior08]

There will also be more competition if all manufacturers start to release sim connected wearables which will drive the prices down.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[json405]

I hope you are right. Asus seems to be the more inexpensive brand while LG and Sony seem to hold own the middle tier. Huawei and Motorola seem to offer what they call premium smartwatches. I just can't see any of those manufacturers selling a LTE equipped smartwatch for the same price as their current wifi only models.

My prediction would be the cheapest option with LTE will come from Asus with an initial price tag of $225 to $250. Which isn't bad but still more than their zenwatch 2 wifi model.

Only time will tell. I'm glad LG started the pricing for the urbane 2nd edition at 300 to 360. I hope the other manufacturers take that as a baseline.

As for the OPs original question, I would still throw in this watch for consideration even after the new AW devices with the 2100 chip releases. I honestly do not think that chip will make a huge difference that warrants a substantial price hike over the LG U2 especially if the price on the U2 is reduced.