LG to take on Apple Watch with its own all-metal smartwatch

Watch Urbane will come in silver and gold and is meant for "more formal" use, according to LG

LG is set to launch its response to the Apple Watch at the beginning of March, with a stainless steel body that it hopes can rival Apple’s luxury watch.

The LG Watch Urbane — a name that the company says is supposed to suggest a “sophisticated and cosmopolitan wearer” — is available in silver and gold.

The company will announce further details including price later, it said. The similar G Watch R currently sells for around £199.

The watch is modelled closely on the already released G Watch R, which was released in October 2014. That watch, with its circular face and bulky body, is already one of the available smart watches that most resembles a real watch.

The specifications are similar to that watch. It runs using Android Wear, and is powered by a 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon.

But the new watch has a narrower bezel and a thinner body. The LG G Watch R was designed for active use and fitness tracking, where the new one is meant for “more formal” uses, the company says.

It has the same battery, which can last nearly two days in use.

“The LG Watch Urbane’s classic design and smart features make it the perfect smartwatch to complement our G Watch and G Watch R, which were designed as more casual and active devices,” said Juno Cho, president and CEO of LG’s mobile division. “LG Watch Urbane is an important part of our strategy to develop wearable devices that are worn and viewed as everyday accessories, not electronic gadgets.”