If you’re shopping for a new smartwatch in the Google Play Store, you’re faced with a sea of choices from chic to super-minimal … but only one stands out as a watch that would survive an extended dose of real-world use and abuse. If that’s the kind of thing that winds your crown, then the LG G Watch R is very possibly your next Android Wear smartwatch.

The G Watch R brings more to the table than its hulking stainless-steel body, of course. Its P-OLED display is just as sharp and vibrant as the Super AMOLED on Samsung’s Gear Live, and it’s a perfect circle to boot. Its software load is more packed with custom watchfaces than almost any other Android wearable, and its battery is a large 410 mAh pack that keeps the G Watch R soldiering on for two to three days (even with Ambience Mode enabled).

But all this Beefaroni comes at a price. At $299, the G Watch R is $50-$100 more expensive than any other Android Wear device in the Google Play Store – pricier even than its next-roundest competition, the Moto 360. Combine that with a smaller display, a stiff stock wristband, and bezels that only a mother could love, and you’ve got a smartwatch ripe for some holiday discounts. But assuming the G Watch R goes the way of its R-less predecessor and resists the markdown gun for a while, is it worth the extra dough?

Find out, in our LG G Watch R review!

LG G Watch R review (Video)

 

LG G Watch R vs Moto 360 (Video)

Looking for our thoughts on the Android Wear platform itself? Hop on over to our full review to see why we think it’s not (yet) as smart as it thinks it is. Want to know what we think about the other round Android watch? Check out our Moto 360 review. Tired of all this Android Wear stuff and looking for other wearables? We’ve got you covered there, too! And be sure to tune in to last week’s Pocketnow Weekly podcast for all the G Watch R editorializing you can handle.