Having recently been released the TicWatch Pro has created a lot of excitement. This is part of a recent trend of up and coming companies taking a piece from the iconic market leaders such as Apple and Google. Here are the initial reactions to the 1GB Ram TicWatch Pro, both positive and negative.
At just $260 the price is very attractive and is probably the stand out feature of this tight little package. Produced by Mobvoi, the new 2020 TicWatch Pro has double the RAM of the 2018 model and it also has MIL-STD 810G Drop/shock resistance which means it’s very tough. The Wear OS smartphone app works a lot better than previous models. And let’s not forget you can also just use it as a watch when it is in Essential Mode. But where it really shines is the ability to function as a smartwatch while also acting as a fitness gadget.
Power and Display
With a layered display composed of a typical LCD screen and a smartphone standard AMOLED underneath, it combines a long battery life with brightness and is the best solution available at this stage. A silver material covers the back and there are a few holes there as well to track your heart rate. It has 2 buttons mounted on the right with the upper button being used to move between launching apps and showing the watch face. The lower button launches the TicExercise app but it can be customized to launch any app that you desire.
Battery life consists of 5 days of power before you need to recharge it according to Mobvoi. Be aware that this consists of 3 days of Essential Mode use. Or you can turn it to Essential Mode and extend the battery life to a month if that is what you wish. Or you can use up the power in 3.5 hours of music and GPS.
Performance
Using the Wear OS is easy because there are 6 swipe down controls that allow for a world of choices. These are airplane mode, sound toggle, find your phone, Google Pay, screen off and do not disturb. By hitting the gear icon you’ll be able to access all the different settings that are available. Installed apps include Fit Breathe, Fit Workout, the aforementioned Tic Exercise, Google Pay and TicPulse. The bad news is that they can’t be uninstalled.
Comfort
While the TicWatch Pro is big it also passes the comfort test easily and it doesn’t come across as gaudy or intrusive either. We all like to sneak a quick peek at the time while the boring business meeting is dragging on too long and this watch allows for that by being set on Essential Mode. With a RAM of 1GB it finally seems the aspiration of the smartphone is finally being delivered upon because it can deliver functionality without any latency or slowness which have been a bugbear of smartphones until now. Basically it can do what the smartphone does but in a much tighter package mounted on your wrist.
General Acceptance
While there is room for improvement it seems the TicWatch Pro represents the coming of age of the smartwatch and maybe they’ll become even cheaper in the long run. But all this represents a compromise between the convenience of wearing a watch and having to to put up with a small screen. It’s going to take some convincing to get people to watch their favorite shows on a wrist watch when it is so much more enjoyable to watch it on laptop, tablet or smartphone. However there is a call for convenient and useful packages and the TicWatch Pro fulfills that role expertly.
