Even though the Moto 360 was late out the gate compared to Android Wear devices like the Samsung Gear Live or LG G Watch, it’s still considered a first gen Android Wear device. While there’s a lot that we loved about the Moto 360 — as mentioned in our review — it did come with its fair share of shortcomings and thus, there was still plenty of room for improvement in a followup.
With OEMs introducing quality watch designs with solid aluminum builds, the Moto 360 is no longer the only fashionable — or most durable — Android Wear device on the market. We got a sneak peek at what Motorola could have planned for a Moto 360 followup after a Lenovo CEO posted an image to social media of what appeared to be an all new smartwatch housed inside a soft briefcase (Lenovo bought Motorola last year for .91 billion). Other than that brief look, not much else is known. That is, until today.
We received a tip from a popular app developer who recently noticed a mysterious Motorola-built Android Wear device pinging his Android developer console from Mundelein, a city not too far from Motorola’s HQ in Chicago, Illinois. The device is carrying the codename “Smelt” and is reportedly running Android 5.1. On the hardware front, it carries a screen resolution of 360 x 360 and is powered by an “armeabi-v7a.”
While we’re not too familiar with the word “smelt” outside the context “whoever smelt it, dealt it,” Webster’s also defines it as a “small silvery fish.” Makes sense given the original Moto 360 went by the codename “Minnow.”
Currently, Motorola’s only Android Wear device is the Moto 360 and only makes sense that this mysterious “Smelt” could be their replacement/sequel/followup for 2015. If that previous leak is anything to go by, we could be looking at a device that’s even more premium or luxurious than last year’s Moto 360.
At the very least, we’re hoping it’ll be better built as the plastic back on ours has already begun cracking. We’ll keep our eyes peeled for details.
