ASUS to Unveil Second Gen ZenWatch with Voice-Calling Support in Q3 2015

ASUS’ CEO Jerry Shen at the Taiwanese launch of the ZenWatch confirmed that a second version of ZenWatch is in the works. The Asus ZenWatch 2 will support independent voice-calling functionality like the Samsung Gear S smartwatch. The watch will support an SIM-card to make calls and will be released in Q3 2015.

It is possible a prototype or early version of the device may be showcased at the upcoming CES 2015 event in Las Vegas or MWC 2015 in Barcelona later in the year.

The Chinese company is said to launch two more wearable devices other than the ZenWatch that will focus on the user’s health and fitness. Also, these fitness-related devices will be priced lower than the Asus ZenWatch 2.

The first generation ZenWatch was launched in Taiwan at a price of NT$5,990 (US$188) in Taiwan. The ZenWatch runs on the Android Wear operating system, a version of Google Inc.’s popular Android system designed specifically for wearable devices and has a customized interface called Zen UI.

The watch features a 1.63-inch AMOLED touch display, curved glass, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 1.2GHz processor, 512MB of RAM, 4GB of internal memory and a 9-axis sensor.The smartwatch is waterproof with IP55 rating and has a biosensor that can measure your heart rate.
Asus has launched the first generation ZenWatch Taiwan, the United States and Japan. The ZenWatch is expected to hit select European markets, Hong Kong and China in a second-wave launch, according to Shen.

Asus also released two teaser videos for the next generation ZenFone handsets earlier this. The YouTube and Facebook videos indicate the smartphones to feature back buttons like seen in LG G2 and LG G3. The details on what functions will be carried by the rear buttons are still scarce. However, the buttons are speculated to act as camera shutter buttons, power buttons or a shortcut key for certain features.