Update: Moto 360's price was outed by Motorola along with wireless charging and a rumored July release date.
Google's Android Wear software is designed to be a broad platform for wearables, but the watch that's stealing the show right now is the Moto 360.
Motorola's ambitious smartwatch, rumored to have an even more ambitious July release date, features a unique circular watch face, not a square-shaped display like every other smartwatch.
At Google IO 2014 next month, expect the bold design choice of this all-metal Moto 360 to look more sophisticated and natural next to the boxy Pebble Steel and Samsung Gear 2.
Paired with customizable leather and metal straps that fit variety-seeking 21 century wrists, the Moto 360 is shaping up to be Google's answer to the inevitable Apple iWatch.
Moto 360 watch face and battery life
The computerized Moto 360 watch screen is rumored to be a custom-madeOLED display, which would make sense given its circular shape and need to conserve battery life.
OLEDs consume as much as 40% less power when displaying black images vs LCDs because they can turn off individual pixels. The opposite is true for battery-draining white backgrounds.
This could be why almost all Moto 360 renders exhibit a black analog watch face when Android Wear menus are inactive. The timepiece could easily throw up a black analog dial "screensaver."
Such a power-saving move would make the Moto 360 look and act even more like a traditional watch and give it an always-on screen, a feature confirmed for the rival LG G Watch last month.
Motorola perfected a similar active display on its Moto X smartphone, which always includes the time and notifications on the lock screen, and it could do the same here. Battery life is even more important on a wearable; no one wants to charge a watch before the day is out.
Moto 360 specs
Motorola has been upfront about its Android Wear smartwatch plans, but it's still shy about revealing the official Moto 360 specs.
That may be because the internals of a purposely low-powered smartwatch have never been all that exciting when it comes to processing power and memory.
We know more about the outside of this device. For example, Motorola has confirmed that the Moto 360 can be worn on the left hand or the right hand thanks to its clever orientation-free design.
Yes, there's a classic watch knob on one side of the face and not the other, but remember, this is a digital watch face. The UI can be flipped around so that the knob always points to your elbow.
Whether the Moto 360 is on your right or left wrist, it's equally susceptible to everyday dings and scratches. Scuffing a wrist-worn wearable is just as common as dropping a smartphone.
Moto 360's beautiful watch face stands a better chance of staying in pristine condition if it's protected by sapphire glass vs Gorilla Glass.
Sapphire glass has a hardness level that is said to be four times greaterthan the Gorilla Glass that protects many of today's smartphones.
It's also the same glass material that is rumored to protect the forthcomingiPhone 6 and iWatch. The one downside is that it could put the Moto 360 price at a premium. More about that in a bit.
Moto 360 battery charging
You won't find charging contacts or a micro USB port on the Moto 360 because this Google watch has a "secret" charging method. It's the device's "secret sauce," teased Motorola earlier this year.
Sure enough, the company just confirmed that its smartwatch charges wirelessly via magnetic induction. This makes sense.
Inspecting the handful of Moto 360 photos that exist reveals the rear of the watch features a strange purple backing. This could easily be used for the popular Qi charging method.
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