With the LG G Watch R review raved because of its style, the bar is raised in the smartwatch race, with a release date yet to be announced next month.

With the LG G Watch R release date expected next month, official previews of the new smartwatch have insiders raving about its stylish interface, in spite of specs and performance where LG could've done better.

Technobuffalo didn't skimp on words to describe the new smartwatch on its LG G Watch R review. "One Very Beautiful Smartwatch:"

"The G Watch R is exciting because it strikes that balance of old and new; it sports a traditional look while highlighting the best features of Android Wear which, incidentally, recently received a major update.

After seeing the G Watch R in person, it certainly achieves that. I'm still not sure if it beats out the look of the Moto 360, but it's certainly in the same category, which in and of itself is an achievement.

The G Watch R sports a 1.3-inch circular P-OLED display, a 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor, 4GB of internal memory, 512MB of RAM, 410mAh battery and an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance."

LG President Dr. Jong Seek-Park also differentiates the LG G Watch R from its first incarnation, with emphasis on function as complement to form.

"While the original G Watch was designed to be a no-nonsense, pure Android Wear device, the G Watch R was developed with a more aesthetic eye."

CNET's LG G Watch R review also praised the new device's sleek design and interface, but offsets it with a comment on the installed software as well.

"Under the hood it's business as usual -- it's running the same software found on all Android Wear smartwatches. It'll therefore happily connect via Bluetooth to any Android phone running version 4.3 or later and display your incoming notifications and various other alerts from Google Now."