The high-end fashion world has been trying to embrace smartwatches for years. But apart from Fossil, luxury houses (and most tech companies) have given up on Google’s Wear OS. Gone are the Movado Connect smartwatch, the LG Watch Style and the Moto 360. In their place sit a slew of smartwatches made by Fossil, that are basically the same device in various styles. It’s not surprising, then, that for its third effort at a connected timepiece, Louis Vuitton is leaving Google’s OS behind and using its own proprietary software instead.
Like previous generations, the LV Tambour Horizon Light Up starts at about $3,400 and features a loud design that’s definitely not for everyone. But given the recent launch of Wear OS 3, which promises to be more useful and responsive, I was curious to see if LV’s own platform might be good enough for a device that costs thousands of dollars.
But first, the hardware. Because anyone considering dropping $3,500 on the Tambour Horizon Light Up is probably more interested in how this thing looks and feels.
Frankly, I’m surprised by how much I didn’t hate the design. Sure, the ostentatious markings all around the 1.2-inch screen could be considered gaudy. [Ed. note: Cher, what?! – Dana] But the watch faces themselves were bold and colorful in a way that I found amusing at first but soon grew to appreciate. Each time I saw a new face, or when the 24 LEDs in the monogram ring surrounding the screen lit up in RGB colors, I gleefully sent pictures to my coworkers, intending to revel in shared mockery. But most of us agreed that not only did the faces not suck, we actually kind of liked them. (Except Dana, who wrote this parenthetical.)
This focus on travel is a feature unique to LV’s OS, but it’s not difficult to replicate on Apple’s watchOS or even Wear OS. For the most part, you can either use Apple Wallet or the Google Assistant to find similar ticket-related data or install a third party app. But the integration here is more seamless and requires fewer steps. I also like the way LV presents the data in an easy-to-read format, and the graphics and icons here are cute, if hard to understand at first.
Because I connected the Tambour Horizon to my iPhone, I’m not able to reply to messages from my wrist. But basically everything else about the watch’s OS feels functional, if a bit limited. It doesn’t offer constant heart-rate monitoring, sleep or fitness tracking or third-party apps, for example. It’s worth noting that most modern smartwatches do that, so if you’re willing to overlook the lack of features for the price, you’re probably a hardcore LV fan.
Perhaps because it’s doing less in the background, the watch generally lasted about a day and a half of average use. Despite packing the latest Snapdragon Wear 4100 processor, though, the Tambour Horizon occasionally felt laggy, something I’ll chalk up to possible inefficiencies in the software (rather than a problem with the chip).
Was it ever slow enough to frustrate me? No. Are LV’s travel and customization-minded features enough to outshine Wear OS? Also no. But in leaving Google’s platform behind, LV has been able to deliver a unique and surprisingly satisfying experience, albeit in a chunky device that might not appeal to all. Especially not for upwards of $3,000. But with the Tambour Horizon Light Up, LV has demonstrated that it’s possible to build a workable smartwatch without Google’s help.
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