The SmartBand talk is a crossbreed between SmartWatch and fitness band.
It looks like the latter, but has some of the features you would expect of a SmartWatch.
Released at a time when the tech communities are smitten with Android Wear SmartWatches,
how does this alternative work out.
Lets start at the ‘core’.
The core is the brains, of this whole operation to which the interchangeable wrist straps
connect.
The core unit, also known as the SWR30.
This weighs in at a very light 24 grams and built into this is a 1.4” Black and White
E Ink touchscreen display with a resolution of 96 x128 and 192 dots per inch.
It is 9.5mm thick.
It has an IP68 rating meaning it can be submerged in fresh water at a depth of 1.5 meters for
30 minutes.
The core comprises of a 70mAh battery, a microphone, speaker, volume keys, function button, accelerometer,
Bluetooth, NFC and MicroUSB connector.
Included in the box are 2 straps of different sizes that should fit most peoples wrists.
They are fairly simple to remove and refit.
The unit itself is available in either Black or White and there are other colour straps
available for purchase separately.
Unlike a SmartWatch the band still functions without a phone being paired to it, but some
features are limited.
Time and step tracking are not.
Initial pairing can be done via NFC, quick and simple or with the old fashioned Bluetooth
pairing process.
When the band is connected you can use it if you choose like a Bluetooth headset for
the phone, albeit, it is attached to the wrist.
When a call comes in, the band can vibrate and it does so strongly, as well as display
the number or caller ID if the number is saved on the phone.
You can then press to accept the call and take the call on your wrist.
The speaker is impressively loud and the quality is really quite good all told.
The volume buttons on the side of the band can be used to control the sound levels.
Generally speaking I did not need it at full volume.
You need not lift the band to your face but it can be helpful if there is background noise.
I personally believe the current crop of Android Wear devices are missing a trick with this.
Core to the functionality is the SmartBand Talk app which you need to install on your
phone to make the product function.
It is also important to note that the SmartBand Talk currently works only with Android devices
with Bluetooth 4 and software version 4.4 or above.
Inside the app is where you control most of the features of the band.
The app is split into 3 core sections.
Status Settings
Apps
Within Status you can see The connection status
The bands battery power You can locate the SmartBand
You can open Lifelog - This is the companion app that handles steps and more.
Within Settings you can manage: Smart wake up alarm
Use the band as an alarm to wake you up at the optimum time within your sleep cycle but
before you must be awake.
Notifications Turn them on or off as well as manage what
notifications are delivered to your wrist.
Incoming calls Turn notification of these on or off
Don not disturb Set time periods when you receive no notifications
as well as turning the feature on or off in its entirety.
Xperia phone alarm Whether you want the band to vibrate or sound
in conjunction with your phones alarm.
Text orientation Choose which way up you want the text to be
displayed for your right or left arm.
Display colour Light - Black writing on a white screen
Dark - White writing on a black screen
Within ‘My Apps’ is where you can install, add and organise apps for the band.
These apps are actually extensions which are downloaded from the Play Store.
Audio recorder - Record extended audio files - Saved to the phone.
Voice note - Ideal for quick ‘buy milk’ scenarios, but longer notes possible.
Links in with Evernote Smart badge - Shows key information of your
choice Smart control - Choose for it to do things
such as show the phones battery, turn on or off WiFi.
A list of preconfigured options.
Smart camera - Remotely activate and capture images with the camera on your phone
World clock - The time in a different part of the world, your choice.
Find phone - Locate your phone by getting it to ring.
Need to be in Bluetooth range.
Calendar - Upcoming appointments Weather - Weather information in an area of
your choice.
Media player - Play, pause and stop music on your phone.
Music does not play on the band itself.
Call favourite - A contact of your choice, just tap to dial.
Life bookmark - Records a special moment within the lifelog app.
Activity details - SHows your steps, time spent walking and running.
It is frustrating you have to download these extensions but the positive is that this keeps
the app small, just a bit cumbersome.
Including the ‘main’ clock screen (which can not be changed) you can have up to a further
9 screens on the SmartBand Talk.
On the band itself, you use the lower button to cycle through these.
It would be nice if there was not a limit to the number of the screens as I feel you
can not get full functionality from it.
Within the app you can rearrange the order in which they display.
Things like calls, emails and Whatsapp messages amongst others all come through to your wrist
if you have configured in the settings to allow this.
The display of the notification on your wrist helps manage that desire to constantly need
to refer to the phone.
See it is an email and wait until later, see it is an email from the boss and you now stop
what you are doing and action that email.
Now it gets a bit complicated.
Lets say you got a text message, it tells you and you can read the majority of it on
screen.
However, you ignore the notification and you now get an email.
The text message remains unread on the phone, but you can only now see the email on your
wrist.
Get 2 text messages or emails come in at once or in very quick succession.
You will see just a list of who they are from rather than being able to go into each one.
It is not a big issue.
However I found myself during testing away from my phone.
I received about 5 notifications in quick succession, but I could only see the last
notification so had to resort to the phone to see them all.
It would be good if they were ‘stored’ and could be accessed through cycling through
the notifications received.
The screen is touch sensitive, but you need to give it a firm press, it is very resistive
compared to ‘normal’ displays.
I prefered the black text with white screen, the alternative left a ghosting to the display
and you could see app icons behind the screen you were on.
Reading the screen in low or no light is almost out of the question.
You simply can not see it and there is no backlight.
Sunlight is not a problem.
I found the tracking to be quite accurate with the steps and the ability to set targets
within the Lifelog app is easy and it tells you have hit your step goal, but it does little
more than this.
No heart rate monitor is built in.
Over the time I was using it, i actually received a larger than average call volume and achieved
a battery life of 2-2.5 days, but I see 3 being easily achievable.
Charging takes about an hour.
Having spent best part of a week with the SmartBand Talk I am somewhat confused about
how I feel about it.
Initially I was wowed and thought I could see myself opting for this, but as time went
on not so much.
It does not offer the scope of an Android Wear product but is slightly cheaper, lighter
and lasts longer.
Taking calls on this is a massive bonus and surprisingly good quality.
The way it handles notifications frustrates me personally and the screen is unreadable
in the dark.
It is more intelligent than your average fitness band, but the lack of added fitness features
such as heart rate and stop watch are things will put avid exercisers off I believe.
The TalkBand is a great product, it has a purpose but I believe a purpose for a select
number of users.
Those who are aware of the advantages and disadvantages or like certain features will
find value in it, but for this to be really useful to a wider market there needs to be
a few improvements in my opinion.