Asus’ first wearable is called the ZenWatch, coming to the UK before Christmas for less than £200

There may well be rumors swirling of a $400 Apple wearable device on the horizon, but Asus today unveiled its first wearable device: the ZenWatch.

Eschewing a circular design, Asus has clearly put time into making the ZenWatch more appealing than some of the other smartwatch efforts that we’ve seen so far. You even get a real leather strap.

The 💜 of EU tech

The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!

On the tech side, the device has a 1.63-inch display and will pair with any phone running Android 4.3 or higher and the company says that it also serves “as a personal wellness manager in conjunction with the ASUS ZenUI Wellness app”.

As you’d expect of a companion smartwatch, the device will show you incoming calls, messages and other notifications. There’s also a range of more advanced functionality like control over the watch face design and Find My Phone, as well as more things like using it as a remote viewfinder for your smartphone’s camera. There are a few features designed to only work with Asus’ own Android phones too.

Asus said the Wellness app works by measuring “relaxation levels”, and then providing tips on how to improve your relaxation score. More normal measurements include tracking things like steps taken, calories burned, activity duration, heart rate and exercise intensity – all of which is tracked directly in the Wellness app.

A spokesperson told TNW that the device would be arriving in the UK before Christmas and would cost “under £199”, but couldn’t confirm availability or pricing for the US or other regions.