LG G Watch review

In terms of design, the LG G Watch fails to break any new ground, at all. It reminds me a little of the Sony Smartwatch 2 inasmuch as it's a non-descript black rectangle.

At least the Sony has a logo and three home keys on the front, the G Watch however has nothing. It'll please the minimalists out there, and while I don't want anything too alien sitting on my wrist I'd have liked to see at least some creative input into the design.

For those of you who don't wear a watch everyday, or are a fan of the slender Casios, the G Watch will feel rather chunky, but next to my Fossil watch it's no deeper at 9.95mm.

In fact the size is certainly manageable and at just 63g it's actually lighter than my everyday time piece, meaning you'll quickly forget it's there - until it buzzes you with a new notification of course.

There are no buttons on the G Watch, not even a power key, which is a little confusing and means you can't physically switch it on.

When you take your G Watch out of the box for the first time you have to sit it in its charging dock. This is a small rectangle on which you lay the rear of the watch.

The charging cradle has a sticky, rubberised base to ensure you don't accidently knock it off the side and there's a pleasant magnetic connection between watch and dock reassuring you that you've successfully engaged it in the correct way.

Plug the USB cable into the cradle (ooh, a rhyme!) and the G Watch will spring to life. You can turn the G Watch off via the setting menu - although to get it back on you'll have to return it to the dock, which is a little frustrating.

With no button or charging port which needs to be covered by a flappy piece of plastic it means you'll feeling safer about stepping into the shower or heading to the beach with the LG G Watch. It is IP certified meaning it's dustproof and water resistant to a depth of 1 metre for up to 30 minutes.

I got the black G Watch with a grey strap, although you can also pick a white finish with a white band and gold highlights.

The grey strap on my review unit looked pretty cheap, despite being an official strap, and the rubberised finish meant it was a real dust magnet. Combine that with the gloss black square of the watch and it's really not a great look.

On the inside of the strap you'll notice that it has a diamond effect, although the outside is just smooth plastic - I'd have liked to have seen the pattern extended to the on-show side of the strap as it's more attractive.

The good news here though is that the strap can be changed for any standard 22mm (0.86-inch) watch strap, meaning you can significantly enhance the look of the G Watch, and personalise the black slab a little more to your taste.

Sure the design may be functional, but wearables have to be stylish to really grab people's attention. Just take a look at the Moto 360, it looks gorgeous and many people want to own one just for that reason alone.

The LG G Watch fails to win on looks, so it needs to perform well on-screen.