LG G Watch receives update in response to complaints about corrosion and skin irritation

The LG G Watch is receiving an OTA update, taking the build number from KMV78V to KMV78Y. While no official changelog has been posted for the update, its likely purpose is to fix the growing problem of corrosion buildup on the exposed POGO pins located on the back of the smartwatch by turning off the power to these pins when the device is not being charged.

This issue was first explained to a user of the G Watch, during an online chat session with an LG representative. Now a Google representative has also confirmed that LG would be rolling out a maintenance release over the next few days that will disable the current when the G Watch was not on its charging dock. The Google rep. went on to apologize for the inconvenience to users and ensured that the over-the-air update to the G Watch would fix the issue.

The fix comes at the correct time, as complaints have been mounting over the last few weeks, as G Watch users have reported issues with charging their smartwatch due to the buildup on the charging pins. This is the result of galvanic corrosion, a chemical process that results from running an electrical current through two different materials (usually metals) and an electrolyte (in this case, our sweat). Some owners have also noted feelings of discomfort while wearing the watch, and in a couple of instances, burns on their skin. These problems have been attributed to a constant electrical current running through two of the metal contacts. The update from LG simply disables the current while the device is not connected to the charging cradle. This should completely eliminate any risk of burns or feelings of discomfort; but there may still be some corrosion if there is any salt accumulated on the contacts while the watch is charging.

If you are an LG G Watch owner, you should be receiving the update anytime now. It seems that the issues will disappear once the power to those pins were disabled. It is not known if the update bring any other new features and improvements to the table, but we encourage you to share anything new you may discover.


source - Android Police