The ‘Smartwatch’ is not a particularly new concept but within the last few months
the hardware and software that make up such a product have taken a radical step forward.
Samsung and Sony have been pushing the market along with their versions but the availability
of ‘Android Wear’ from Google has helped take the smartwatch concept from something
that a ‘geek’ may wear to something that anyone on the street may consider as an option.
Personally not sold on the idea of a Smartwatch, for the last 6 weeks I have been using the
G Watch and after a few weeks of use I can honestly say that my opinion is changing.
Packed into the little square box is a lot of technology. A 400mAh battery, a 1.65”
IPS LCD display with a resolution of 280 x 280, a 1.2GHz processor, 512MB RAM and 4GB
internal storage.
On the whole, it has been relatively comfortable to wear. At 63g and 9.95mm thick it is not
the lightest so I did feel the difference against a normal watch, but only occasionally.
Whilst it is possible to change the wristband to any other 22mm strap, I have chosen not
to, as I found the silicone one provided comfortable enough.
The watch has taken a few knocks, inevitable of something worn on the wrist, but it bares
no obvious battle scars. Instinctively I ended up checking for damage on the G Watch more
than I would on a normal watch, but the fact that after 6 weeks there is no damage is a
good sign.
Whilst you might, I do not wear a watch in bed. I did try it with the G Watch, but it
was just a bit bulky for me, catching on the duvet or pillow.
Being IP rated is a major bonus. Whilst you do not want to soak in the bath with it on
or go swimming in the sea, it will survive the rain, a splash from the sink and a few
dunks in the washing up bowl.
Whilst the G Watch screen does not have the same resolution of the Samsung alternative
I found it perfectly useable for the type of information I received on my wrist.
I found the screen size to be ideal for my wrist. I know others may desire bigger screens,
but there has to be an element of practicality.
For the majority of the time, I had the screen set to medium brightness and rarely felt the
need to increase it. In almost all conditions, unless particularly bright sunlight did I
need to shield the screen. A bonus too is that fingerprints do not seem to be too much
of an issue on the display.
I found the touch element of the display to also be pretty good when it came to responsiveness,
but one criticism is that you can a little too easily active the screen inadvertently.
For example, if I crossed my arms, my opposing wrist or forearm may activate the screen.
There is a 9 axis accelerometer/gyro built into the G Watch. This worked ok, but I felt
sometimes when on my wrist to activate the screen without voice I had to exaggerate the
motion of turning my wrist for the backlight to come on.
So unlike a conventional watch, the G Watch needs charging. Most will charge it daily,
but depending on your use you may get 2 days out of it.
On the back of the G Watch are 4 gold pins. These align up with 4 pins in a provided charging
dock. The dock is magnetised to the watch and holds firmly in place. It will not fall
off.
A normal microUSB cable then connects to the dock and charges the watch in around 1 hour.
What I like about the dock is that on the base is double sided tape, that can be used
to fix it in a position on your desktop. Great if you leave it in one place, not so great
if you want to take the charger with you.
This is where the G Watch perhaps falls down. Whilst no fiddly connectors on the watch,
the provision of, or the ability to purchase a spare charging dock would go a long way.
In my testing I got 39 hours out if from full charge to turning itself off. That included
a full working day, an 8 hour sleep and then the remaining hours working under what I would
deem average conditions.
I was very pleased by this and thought that this was admirable when you consider how much
it can actually do.
When it is running out of power, it will vibrate at several intervals when you reach 20% remaining
power.
The hardware is one thing, the software is another and this is ultimately what it is
all about.
Android Wear is incredibly powerful. It definitely has a ‘wow’ factor and my mum (who is
not in to tech) was amazed at how it all worked. She did ask the question as to why and this
is a very valid question.
To benefit and see the value you have to be a connected individual and those who check
their emails every few days and could not care for social media, at this time will see
less value in Android Wear.
Just to be clear, Android Wear is Google’s wearable technology software and is based
on Android and integrates at the time of writing only with smartphones running Android 4.3
or higher and Bluetooth 4.0.
This does limit many users of Android and other OS platforms.
Interaction with Android Wear is via voice or the fingertip.
‘OK Google’ SET AN ALARM
You can do anything from a web search for your favourite celebrity to changing the music
playing to finding out how many steps you have taken.
The result you will be given will depend on what you ask of it. So you may get a web search
result or you may get a screen showing your steps.
VIDEO ON SCREEN :
Swipe up and down to access different cards.
Swipe left to find out further information on that card or do more such as open it on
It can be a little too easy to clear notifications when you do not intend to. This might just
be me as a user getting a bit carried away, but swipe it right too quick and it has gone,
unless you go to the app on the phone to retrieve it.
On first use the layout is not particularly intuitive and getting to the settings and
certain features feels a bit fiddly. The lack of buttons has something to do with this,
but the installation of a third party app called Wear Mini Launcher transformed this
experience and I feel is something that is necessary for Google to look to include as
standard in later revisions.
How useful and powerful Android Wear is to you will depend on what phone features and
apps you rely on.
A casing point is that I was testing this with my Sony Xperia Z1 Compact. Whilst I could
dictate a text message, I could not reply to one by voice because I use the default
Sony messaging app rather than hangouts.
An email on the other hand that arrived in my Gmail account could be replied to by voice.
More and more apps are extending support for Android Wear, but most notifications come
through without issue.
With the likes of Gmail, you get a notification, tap the notification and for plain text emails
you can read the whole email right there on your wrist. Swipe right to open it on your
phone or reply.
The whole voice dictation thing does work, but it is a bit hit and miss. I found that
75% of the time I got what I wanted, but 25% of the time it misinterpreted what I said
or the environment was too busy etc. It is proof that the concept works, but for the
vast majority it is just not there yet.
I did accidently send text messages to the wrong people on ocassiosn because of similar
names or Google not quite interpreting what I said. Whilst there is an option to cancel
the send, this is less than 10 seconds and by the time you get to cancel it or realise
something is wrong, the message has gone.
On occasions there is an apparent delay and sometimes it comes up and says it is disconnected
at the end of trying to search when it was connected just 30 seconds earlier.
They are small frustrations, that spoil some of the experience.
Ask Google to navigate you to a local petrol station or attraction and it goes off and
gets the route. Ask it to navigate to a particular postcode or contact and it is not yet possible.
However plot this in from your phone and the directions are put on your wrist. I found
this particularly useful on foot or when driving for a quick glance. You do also get a vibrate
just before a change of direction.
You can use your voice to change the music you may be listening too.
DEMO CHANGING MUSIC IN CAR - VOCALS AS IN CAR
The watch is a screen that can distract you. I do not encourage in vehicle use, but you
can probably understand how this could be considered dangerous.
Depending on what you ask of Google will depend on the result. For example, asking ‘What
is the time in New York’ will result in a nice card that shows the time, whilst ‘Where
can I buy shoes’ is going to give you an optimised web page listing. Great, but you
now have to open it on your phone to actually view it.
The integration with Google Keep is particularly useful and saving quick reminders is excellent.
MILK, BREAD…
In most situations, if you got a notification on your phone you may look at it if convenient,
but you might not take a look at it if you are in a meeting with your boss. With Android
Wear the notification still comes through to your wrist and vibrates (unless you mute
it), so you will likely have a quick glance at your wrist. All well and good, but on a
few occasions, people thought I was clock watching, when in fact I was looking at what
notification I had.
With the always on screen, at night the watch face was quite bright and a little inconvenient.
Whilst you can switch the device off it is not that simple or practical. I ended up turning
it over most of the time to dull the light.
The G Watch will vibrate and show you who is calling. You can answer, reject or reject
with a text message that call. Only issue is you can not then complete that call from
the watch, you need to get your phone out. There is no speaker, so whilst speaking to
my wrist and having it play back the call audio is not something I would want in every
scenario, it would be useful on occasions.
Google Fit, is a pedometer element of the Android Wear OS and is fairly basic at the
moment. There is no ability to add other activities for more detailed tracking. For example putting
in a cycle, a swim and maybe what you have eaten for the more fitness conscious. I am
sure this will all come in time, but it is not there yet. It also stores only 7 days
of steps, which is poor really.
As I mentioned other additions are coming and some nice ones I have already tried and
can confirm work reasonably well are a calculator app, remote camera shutter button and viewfinder,
find my phone and IFTTT amongst others.
What you add to Android Wear will be based on your desires and lifestyle. Some may add
flight apps, whilst others may integrate news. This is the appeal of Wear. Based off of Google
Now, it intelligently delivers to your wrist the information you need, when you want it.
Android Wear is an exciting evolution in mobile and wearable technology. In the few weeks
I have been using it I have already seen advances and more reason to own such a product. I know
I will personally purchase one of the Android Wear products in the not too distant future.
If has without doubt meant me interacting less with my smartphone, leaving emails or
messages for longer and generally better managing my time.
Many will still deem the technology applicable only to ‘geeks’ and for the next year
or so, there is likely to be some truth in this.
However, time and investment from developers and designers will transition this into something
that most will see the value in.
The hardware will affect the desirability of this product. Making the watches more suitable
for different wrist sizes and design tastes will affect the success.
You need to try it to see the long term benefits of Android Wear, but if you regularly interact
with your phone there are clear advantages to Android Wear and wearable technology like
this.
Sell yourself into an ecosystem you do, but you do it at the price of efficiency and convenience
and in today’s world there is a lot of argument for this.
Android Wear and wearables is the future and I will be watching with real interest.