LG G Watch is expected to have HomeChat applications. (LG Electronics)
LG Electronics’ first smartwatch, the LG G Watch, is expected to feature its mobile messenger service to help manage LG home appliances and electronics, according to industry sources on Tuesday.
“We plan on using the HomeChat service for the LG G Watch to control smart home appliances from LG Electronics,” said a source from LG Electronics, who declined to be identified.
The HomeChat service was first unveiled in April, allowing users to communicate with home appliances and electronics. When users register devices, including refrigerators and washing machines, as friends, they can control them through mobile messenger app, Line.
Though the source did not specify how the HomeChat service will work in connecting the smartwatch to home appliances, industry watchers said it would most likely use voice recognition technology such as LG’s Q Voice service. The company already launched its voice recognition service Q Voice on its smartphones from 2012. Users can make a call, send a message or play music through voice.
LG Electronics officials said that nothing has been decided yet regarding the features of the G Watch.
The LG G Watch is expected to feature a non-removable SIM or uSIM inside, allowing the smartwatch to stay connected to the Internet. Currently, its rival Samsung Electronics’ Gear 2 has no Internet connection, but instead uses infrared communication.
“If a smartwatch has a USIM card, it can help users directly control smart home appliances from afar without smartphones,” said Lim Tae-bum, head of the Korea Electronics Technology Institute’s smart media research center.
Apart from the HomeChat function, the LG G Watch is set to be the first device to run the new Android Wear operating system for wearables. Android wear is a new platform that extends Google’s operating system to the body starting with the wrist in the form of smartwatches. The device is also expected to feature always-on display, lightweight design and a 1.65-inch IPS LCD screen with a 280 x 280p resolution.
The LG G Watch will be unveiled at Google’s I/O developers’ conference in San Francisco on June 25.
By Shin Ji-hye (
shinjh@heraldcorp.com)