Reviews related to : Smart Watches
Want to stay in contact to your young child but do not want to risk them losing a phone? The answer may be this Disney offering from Vodafone that links to an app in your phone your child can message or even phone you via an eSIM in the watch but they cannot access the Internet or other places so this maybe a step to independence for them before you finally give in and let them have a phone.
While this is described as a ‘Kids’ watch it does not look especially ‘kids’ like and I can see it being useful for an older person with learning difficulties to enable them to contact someone should they find themselves in an unfamiliar area. The watch face is oval at just over 4x4cm and just under 1.5cm thick. The unit sent to me had a greeny blue strap and white sides on the watch. The strap was big enough to fit my adult wrist.
Gen 6 is the latest range of SmartWatches from Fossil. This offering has touch screen and three buttons on the right side and it can do almost anything once connected to your SmartPhone and indeed you could spend a lot of time getting to the screen you want to get to but sad to say so far it has stubbornly refused to make the coffee.
The Gen 6 smart watch from Fossil has a 44mm wide screen and is stated to run for 24 hours plus between charges. I pushed this and got just over 32 hours but it will always depend on what you do with it and if the screen is always on or not. It comes with a USB to magnetic connection to the watch back it is stated to charge to 80% in a little over 30 minutes, in my tests it took 42 minutes and a full recharge took just under the hour.
This latest offering from Fossil is a Solar Watch. Unless you live permanently in a darkened cave thinking about winding it up should never enter your mind. It was produced for Earth Day which for those who do not know was the 22nd of April. It is stated that eight hours of sunlight should power it for up to six weeks of continuous use and it can retain charge for three months.
The face is 4.2cm across and 5cm from top to bottom from strap lug to strap lug and 1.2cm thick, it weighs 48grams. Mine had a black face with white hands and a blue fabric recycled material strap with Velcro fixings. On the face from 8 to 4 there is a slash to show each hour, the area below this has a cut out area to show the various things like day and date among other choices. There are four buttons on the sides at 2, 4, 8, 10 and if you look closely at the face they are explained.
This is a watch although Honor call it a Band. In fact it is far more than a method of telling the time as it tells you your heart rate and a great deal more. In fact it does more than my own watch that is four times the price of this unit.
The Smart Watch measures 4.5x.2.3x.7cm and weighs 30 grams with the attached strap. The viewable screen is 3.5x2cm. It is stated to last up to two weeks between charges this is of course dependent on the amount of time the display is on and after eleven days I was down to 15% so this seems about right as I was testing all the modes for my review. Like most recent Smartwatches or Bands it works with an App on your Android device.
While this is a Smart Watch it can also be a standard watch but it has a battery that may only need recharging around once in two weeks. However link it to your mobile phone and you can get all sorts of notifications, play music and even view your favourite Apps and still have a standard watch face should you wish, or let it tell you far more.
The Skagen Hybrid HR smartwatch has a 42mm face mine was black with similar strap. It has three buttons on the right side which can do a range of things. Like a lot of recent watches it is controlled when you link it to your phone with an App available from the Apple or Google Play store.
A watch used to be for telling you the time, now lots do far more. This top of the range one from Polar does so much that there are no less than ten screens on the watch and when you sync the data you realise that what you saw on the watch was only a small proportion of the data it is keeping.
Let’s start with the watch as a timepiece it has one centimetre tall numerals in the centre of its always on display. In low light you may need to tap the display to get the backlight to show the result, you can also turn your wrist to activate the backlight. The first thing I liked was the fact you do not have to sync it with a phone you can do so and this will enable it to display the latest weather details.
With a title that clearly identifies the product's purpose, myFirst Fone is a watch-phone that is aimed at the young child member of the family. As the term watch-phone might not be too familiar to you, I should explain that this multifunction device combines the functionality of a wristwatch and a phone within a single product. The myFirst Fone is being aimed at children within the 6 to 12 year age group.
Built around a traditional circular wristwatch, this product sets out to provide features that might appeal to both the young child and parents. Befitting its targeted market, the myFirst Fone R1, to give it its full title, would hardly be considered a stylist item. However the bulky watch element and the rubber wrist strap, both coloured black in my review sample, should suit most children with its multifunction purpose rather than appearance being regarded as its main attribute.
Although this does not have ‘Smart’ in its name it is far more than just a watch it is taking your pulse counting your steps and is the first watch I have used that tells you your blood oxygen saturation and of course it also tells you the time.
The Honor Watch ES measures 4x2.5x.6cm and weighs 33grams with the strap. You need to link it to your phone via the Huawei App and a search down the various watches finds the Honor ES. Once linked you are met with a very bright and colourful display screen with the hours in yellow below this are the minutes in white with the day and date to the minutes left. Below this are three dials the red one is heart – pulse - turquoise blue for steps walked and green for battery state.
This is a watch that could help you lose weight and as such is an aid for those of us termed as ‘Obese’ and one of the vast range of subjects that the Government are working on apart from the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
The reason they care if we are obese is simple we are more likely to become diabetic and have other problems such as asthma and so those who are obese cost the government more as we will have more hospital visits. The watch is circular at 36mm and the surround is steel with a rubberized strap.
Having recently told you about a conventional watch whose straps are made from recycled plastic and the watch is solar powered. Here we are right up to date with a Smart Watch that can do almost everything while linked to your SmartPhone, so far I have discovered 16 different faces for the watch, some just tell the time others do much more with the Wear OS App.
It has a 42mm face with a rubberised strap, it weighs 48grams. It is quite thick at .9mm there are three buttons on the right edge. There is a fold out 10.5x10.5cm card, three sides of this are useful, Charge and Power on, Download and Pair and Useful Tips these end with two web sites one for the watch and the other for Wear OS the operating system. While the Charge and Power on bit was easy enough using the supplied 1 metre long USB to magnetic connection that attaches to the back of the watch.
Well-known for its work in the development of E ink display phone cases, Oaxis the award-winning technology company, has branched out with its product line up. This new addition, launched via the Kickstarter route, is entitled Timepiece with a price tag of £95 for Early Bird backers.
As its title might indicate, this new product is a wrist watch of the analogue variety. Designed as a fashionable device, the Oaxis Timepiece is available in a choice of four distinct styles featuring different colours and strap combinations. In the case of my review sample of the Timepiece, the watch consisted of a black, stainless steel case with a double domed glass face covering a black face with red pointer arms plus indicators at five minute intervals.
Many will think of this as the same as that offered by Withings the company taken over by Nokia last year, there are some changes but these are mostly on the cosmetic side such as different straps being options with the unit and wider availability of the 40mm option.
This is an analogue watch but it also is a full featured health and fitness device that works in conjunctions with your Android or iOS device, so it can truly be called the best of both worlds a timepiece and even possibly a life saver. Anyone looking at the 36mm round face will see a conventional stylish analogue watch, as the name suggests it is stainless steel and has what looks like a conventional winder on the right side.
This is an analogue watch but it also is a full featured health and fitness device that works in conjunctions with your Android or iOS device, so it can truly be called the best of both worlds a timepiece and even possibly a life saver.
Anyone looking at the 36mm round face will see a conventional stylish analogue watch, as the name suggests it is stainless steel and has what looks like a conventional winder on the right side. Look closely at the dial and you will see larger flashes every five seconds round the dial and smaller flashes for the other four. There are two smaller 1.2cm dials top and bottom of the display.
Almost every bus journey I make sees babies in a pram or pushchair playing with their parents SmartPhone. Now the SmartWatch is growing in popularity kids are going to want to play with that as well so here something that might prevent that confrontation.
This looks like a SmartWatch for kids. In truth it initially seems little more than a watch with extra screens and items to keep them occupied. This I suppose makes the watch Smart as most parents dream of keeping their small charges occupied; at home this task might fall to the TV or video/download. When at pre-school then this falls to the teacher or teaching assistant, but on a journey be it on a bus, train or car it’s down to the parent or guardian.
Having told you in the last few months about their excellent SmartPhone, their rather good MateBook computer I now get the chance to tell you about their watch that can bring both into focus in different ways, here the Huawei Watch.
Perhaps calling it a display aid for a SmartPhone might be a more accurate description. Unusually for a SmartWatch the software it uses is AndriodWare and not anything proprietary. The watch is 4.2x5x1cm and comes with a black leather strap. First job is to charge it using the supplied cradle that fits onto the back and the other end of the hard wired cable to any USB port be it on a PC or to a wall socket front.
Wrist watches are less popular now than at any time since people stopped using a pocket watch. However fitness devices worn on the wrist are now so popular that the fact they also tell the time is perhaps often overlooked by many.
The Asus VivoWatrch measures is 3.5x4.5x1cm and weights only 48grams with the attached strap.
This is the latest watch from iHealth but do not think of it as a tool to tell the time, it will do that but this is a fitness tool aimed predominately at those who swim for fitness it will also tell you how well you sleep and if you wish will even wake you up.
Its name is iHealth Wave and it is a Wireless Activity, Swim and Sleep Tracker. In the box is a watch with a 4cm stainless steel circular dial and attached black rubber strap. There is also another blue strap in the box for those who are colour conscious. There is a proprietary 20cm long charging cable that attaches to the back of the watch the other end goes to any USB port to charge. A small multi-language booklet is included with the first ten pages in English.
Having recently told you about the latest Alcatel Smart Watch called the ‘Go Watch’ I now have the chance to see how they arrived there by looking at its predecessor which should still be on sale in some outlets and its look may suit the older user.
It has a chrome finish and a black leather look rubber strap. The dial is round at 4cm but with close to a centimetre closed off at the base. It uses a proprietary charging device that plugs into one end of the strap and runs to a standard USB port. Just like its younger relation it charges quickly around 70 minutes from empty. The clip mechanism that fastens the watch to your wrist can be a little fiddly to adjust to get the size exactly right.
Alcatel better known for budget phones have made a venture into Smart Watches this latest version is aimed at the 18-30+ plus market so as someone who is definitely 30+ I gave an early sample the once and twice over to see what it could do.
My sample was white – but I am told other colours will be available. The dial is 3.3cm across by 2.6cm top to bottom; the bottom area is squared off. There are just two buttons, on/off on the right side and touch below the screen to light the display. On first touch of the display you get an analogue watch with a rather nice display which stays for five seconds unless you press something again.
Health issues played a major part in the products displayed at the recent Wearable Technology Show.
It was over a decade ago that I first came across the Mio brand of devices. These were various products offering SatNav functionality for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. Recently, following a visit to the Wearable Show held at the Excel Exhibition Centre, I was re-introduced to Mio and the company’s range of activity trackers such as the Mio Alpha 2 which forms the basis of this next review.
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