Motorola unveils new ‘classic timepiece’ 360 circular smartwatch

Motorola has announced its much-anticipated Moto 360 smartwatch, which will cost $250 and starts shipping Friday, hitting most markets by October. The company’s first smartwatch is powered by Android Wear and features a 1.5-inch curved screen, wireless charging and a built-in heart rate monitor and pedometer. Users will be able to control the watch through voice, gesture or touch commands, and notifications including location and essential information will be shown through tile-based cards.

I think the first watches that shipped have been really bad. It’s quite concerning to me that in the early days some of the first watches maybe gave the category a bad edge. We believe our product will be on the new wave of offerings.

Rick Osterloh, Motorola president

The device is waterproof, and has a battery life of around a day, according to the company. It will also be available with leather and metal straps. The company also unveiled two new smartphones - the Moto X and the Moto G - as well as a wireless Bluetooth earbud Moto Hint, at a launch event in Chicago on Thursday. The Moto X goes on sale in most markets at the end of the month.

This dynamic new portfolio of products gives you unprecedented power to choose how your mobile technology fits into your life, with new customisation options, better value and new ways to connect.

Motorola statement