Large, complicated and unnecessary are the first adjectives that jumped to mind when opening the packaging of this device, and so I immediately plunged into despair thinking that the ZenWatch would be bulky and unwieldy.

Elegant design; Flawless assembly; ZenWatch Manager app

Price still seems high; even at $200; Android Wear with ZenUI still unstable

While the initial batch of smartwatches may have been found wanting in terms of design, opting for functionality over style, things have taken a turn for the better with the current crop of Android Wear devices at our disposal.

Premium design and build quality; Classy appearance; Great battery life; Beautiful display; Competitive price; Useful software additions

Clunky charger; Inconveniently placed power button

Android Wear is rapidly coming of age, and manufacturers have realised wearables have to look good before customers will get on board with the technology. With the Zenwatch, Asus has proved that's possible without mimicking traditional watches completely; the square screen works in its favour and...

We've now seen the entire first generation of Android Wear watches, many of which have their own angle-a reason for being, if you will. The Sony SmartWatch 3 is great for outdoors, the Moto 360 is pretty and round, the G Watch R is rounder, and the original G Watch is cheap (sometimes).

"Fine Watch Craftsmanship" is how Asus describes its first wearable device, the ZenWatch WI500Q. The fact that it associates it with the Zen branding rather than the EEE family means that the Taiwanese company looks to position it as an upmarket product wrist device.

Design and build Visually the Zenwatch is fairly distinctive, and features a pebble-shaped metal chassis and leather wrist strap.

Asus easily has one of the top two Android Wear devices out there, alongside the G Watch R. Both make very different design choices, however, which means they will probably appeal to different buyers.

Excellent design; Best strap out of the box of any Android Wear device

Still too large for smaller wrists; Whole lotta bezel

ASUS is one of those companies that surprises us every now and then. For as nondescript as some of its tablets and computers have been, it also comes out with some real gems from time to time. And the ZenWatch definitely is a diamond in the rough.

For years, I've wanted a smartwatch: a device that would blend style with digital convenience. Unfortunately, the first crop of smartwatches have predominantly been bulky pieces of plastic and glass for which adjectives like "elegant" seem disingenuous.

Despite some impressive designs from Motorola, Samsung, LG, and Sony, Asus has delivered a smartwatch that's very much its own; It's a great-looking timepiece that you won't mind wearing, and one that effectively combines digital convenience with personal style

Attractive design; Bright screen; Good value versus competitors

Limited functionality; Too much swiping; Insecure clasp