I felt the black or the brushed steel was a little less bulky looking on smaller wrists. But it's all personal preference.
Louis Vuitton Tambour Horizon - LV Smart Watch
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I was able to test out the Tambour Horizon for a day and am really impressed by it. This is by far the most luxurious smartwatch I've seen in terms of craftsmanship. I have the Apple Watch Hermes, which is great, however in terms of style, it's bound by the standard Apple Watch design, whereas this is full Louis Vuitton.
The watch faces are stunning. From customization with Mon Monogram or backgrounds with Monogram or Damier patters, all the faces look great. Because it's using Android Wear you have an 'always on' face which is dimmed, but can always be glanced at for the time. The AMOLED screen is very nice and holds a great static image which at first glance could be mistaken for an actual watch face.
Using it on iOS is adequate. The watch didn't have a problem receiving all notifications from email to Instagram, but it's definitely meant to be integrated with an Android phone. Maps and navigation didn't seem to function at all and it won't relay iMessages to the watch. Also the watch doesn't have a microphone, so no sound notifications and no voice calls.
The watch bands are amazing and direct from the Tambour Moon line. Each can be interchanged with a solid hook snap. The standard rubber and monogram straps are $300 and the alligator straps are $495.
The battery drained about 20% in 3 hours, so I would estimate about 12-15 hours of normal use. It definitely needs to be charged overnight, every day.
iPhone owners definitely sacrifice a lot of functionality with this over the Apple Watch. But the build quality and aesthetics of the watch are in a league of its own.
The watch faces are stunning. From customization with Mon Monogram or backgrounds with Monogram or Damier patters, all the faces look great. Because it's using Android Wear you have an 'always on' face which is dimmed, but can always be glanced at for the time. The AMOLED screen is very nice and holds a great static image which at first glance could be mistaken for an actual watch face.
Using it on iOS is adequate. The watch didn't have a problem receiving all notifications from email to Instagram, but it's definitely meant to be integrated with an Android phone. Maps and navigation didn't seem to function at all and it won't relay iMessages to the watch. Also the watch doesn't have a microphone, so no sound notifications and no voice calls.
The watch bands are amazing and direct from the Tambour Moon line. Each can be interchanged with a solid hook snap. The standard rubber and monogram straps are $300 and the alligator straps are $495.
The battery drained about 20% in 3 hours, so I would estimate about 12-15 hours of normal use. It definitely needs to be charged overnight, every day.
iPhone owners definitely sacrifice a lot of functionality with this over the Apple Watch. But the build quality and aesthetics of the watch are in a league of its own.
Thanks for the in-depth review. The lack of iMessage notification with iOS makes this an unlikely purchase for me.
That's an awesome review. And I agree with your last paragraph. The reason I couldn't pull the trigger was that I'm too deeply rely on the Apple's ecosystem I can't sacrifice any of that productivity for this watch. But it's surely a gorgeous and well-made device.
Got my Tambour Horizon and it's great. Love the packaging and accessories the watch came with. The charger cord is placed in one of two clochettes that comes standard with the watch (both of them!). Remember these were first shown as part of the earbud case for the Eye Trunk iPhone case? Such a fun idea! You can use the clochette for anything!
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I got a sneak preview in my boutique a couple weeks ago. Like others have said, I thought it was bulky on my wrist - and there is only one face size (unlike Apple watch). As a smart watch, it doesn't warrant the price. Apple watch is far superior technologically and has many more usable productivity features. There is no way that this watch will ever be on par. Even considering it only as a luxury piece, I'd rather spend the $ on a Rolex which will always hold it's value and function effectively. Though I won't be buying one, I will say the bands were gorgeous and I absolutely loved the personalization of the watch face. Like a wearable mon-monogram piece! You can create dozens of different faces to coordinate with different watch straps or with your outfits, etc.
Great review thanks. I also had a play and can confirm there is a small microphone which I used to ask for directions. Not sure if it's only for instructions and not voice calls though.
I love the watch bands! I still wish they had made bands for the Apple Watch.
My mistake. I meant to write it doesn't have a speaker for sound notifications or voice calls. Yes, it does have a microphone for voice commands to use in apps like Google Translate or OK Google.
I was able to use the Google Maps Android Wear app to track my location and it seems to work independent from the Google Maps iPhone app. You can see where you are and view nearby Points of Interest, however, on iOS it can't initiate any navigation on the watch or command the phone to do so. Also, it seems to require the phone to utilize navigation so I don't think there is a GPS inside unlike the new Tag Heuer Connected 45.
The City Guide app is great, though I need to go back to LA to see how it fully works. In a supported city you can access the Near Me feature which will let you know recommend POIs near you. When you're not in one of the seven major cities you can view travel guides that have great info on nightlife, restaurant, and other recommendations. LV says they will update the City Guide app with additional cities in the future.
Yesterday, the battery lasted about 12 hours before going to 10% battery saver mode.
Didn't realize this thread existed and such a lively one. 
I saw the watch about a week ago and was not too impressed. I would have preferred if they had used the classic tambour housing for this watch rather than the new style. The swapping of the watch band is very clever and easy now with the release button - this now applies to their regular watches as well. I didn't buy it even thou the price is cheap compared to their quartz watches, same problem as all digi watches which is poor battery life.
Regular quartz watches can last for years on a battery and automatic watch doesn't need charging. Digital watches are a major step backward with its requirement to charge every day and potential to die before reaching the day ends.
I think the potential solution with be a self-charging battery paired with automatic movement. Then if you do wear the watch often it is self-charging as you wear it. And if you are not wearing it, it would be charging on a dock. Not sure of the technical details to achieve this, but it needs to be done.
I saw the watch about a week ago and was not too impressed. I would have preferred if they had used the classic tambour housing for this watch rather than the new style. The swapping of the watch band is very clever and easy now with the release button - this now applies to their regular watches as well. I didn't buy it even thou the price is cheap compared to their quartz watches, same problem as all digi watches which is poor battery life.
Regular quartz watches can last for years on a battery and automatic watch doesn't need charging. Digital watches are a major step backward with its requirement to charge every day and potential to die before reaching the day ends.
I think the potential solution with be a self-charging battery paired with automatic movement. Then if you do wear the watch often it is self-charging as you wear it. And if you are not wearing it, it would be charging on a dock. Not sure of the technical details to achieve this, but it needs to be done.
I don’t think it’s sad to make only watch bands. After all, the same argument could be made for phone cases. Why make just a case when you could make an entire phone be the collaboration? In fact, Hermès now sells the bands by themselves so anyone can use them on any Apple Watch. I’m sure it would sell very well if LV made watch bands.
But I completely agree with all of your other points.
But I completely agree with all of your other points.
The SA I worked with in Paris showed this to me. It was fine. I'd never buy one, though. If I were going to spend this much money on a watch, I'd buy a pre-owned Rolex. If I need a smartwatch (which I don't), then I have my Apple Watch. I'll stick with my Rolex.
Sure, LV bands would be nice, even I would buy a few. But the Hermes-Apple collab is the only official one, Hermes gets the connector parts for the bands directly from Apple, all other manufacturer need to make their own. And just like Coach, LV would not be a menu item on the Apple website, unlike Hermes. I don't know, I just feel that as opposed to the phone case game, where there are no official partners for the iPhone, there are one for the Watch, there is another level, and if a lux brand needs to settle for a position inferior to that (being not the official partner, but only a 3rd party as everyone else), that might be not good enough. This would be my thinking if I'd work for LV, but I am sure they had their own reasons.
But maybe I am just overcomplicating this
