- [Speaker] About a year ago, while I was mourning the loss
of two of my favorite smartwatch makers to a Fitbit
acquisition, I was given hope for the future
by a wearable called the Ticwatch 2.
It featured an innovative operating system and a very
clever, touch-sensitive strip for controlling it.
Well, recently, almost twenty-thousand people pledged
about three-point-two million dollars on Kickstarter,
to bring it's sequel to life.
I'm Mr Mobile, and this is the Ticwatch S.
This is actually one of two new Ticwatches, the more
fitness oriented S model.
The less sporty E version, features a translucent casing
design, and it moves the GPS antennas from the band,
into the watch body, so the user can swap the straps.
I kinda wish I'd gotten to take a look at the E,
because I like it's look better, to me the S seems like
a pretty generic sports watch.
With a plastic and polyurethane build that fails to stand
out, apart from these superfluous bezel marks.
As with the last tech watch, the button is on the left side,
but unlike last year's model, it's hard as a rock,
with almost no physical feedback.
Also, last year's tickle strip,
that touch sensitive pad, is gone.
So, you're stuck with the screen alone,
for controlling the software.
This is the most confusing part of the whole product to me.
I understand why Mobvoi, the maker of the Ticwatch,
would ditch it's own software platform for Android Wear,
as it's done here.
I mean, the ecosystem of apps and watch faces is huge,
so that makes sense.
But, why eliminate a useful feature that helps the watch
stand out in an increasingly crowded landscape?
I mean, Samsung has the active bezel on it's gear line.
Apple, LG, and Movado use a rotating side button for
scrolling, and Ticwatch had the touch strip, until now.
And, this is more than just a superficial, or geeky thing,
a digital dial makes Android wear much more fluid to use.
And a touch strip would do the same.
But, maybe I'm expecting too much.
All the watches I just mentioned, are substantially more
expensive than the Ticwatch S or E.
Meanwhile, there's not a hint of penny pinching apparent
on the display, who's OLED panel is bright, sharp,
and quite beautiful.
I especially like the included watch faces, with colors that
closely match the bezel accents.
Nice attention to detail, there.
The watch is also IP67 rated for dust and water resistance,
and it offers a microphone, speaker, WIFI, in short, most
of the fundamentals.
The only major omissions are cellular connectivity, and NFC.
So, if you're looking for a stand-alone phone watch,
or something you can use with Android Pay, look elsewhere.
I've worn the Ticwatch S for about a week,
and it's been a positive experience.
The battery size is typical,
and so is the endurance it enables.
I get about a day-and-a-half between charges, as long as I
don't use that power-hungry GPS.
There were apparently some complaints about location
accuracy, on the last Ticwatch, they've been corrected here.
And, there's also a fitness sweep, that hits the basics,
if you don't want to use Google Fit for whatever reason.
For charging, I initially missed having an included pedestal
for bedside table use, but then I remembered how cheap,
and rubbery, and just awful it was on the Ticwatch 2.
So, I came around to liking the low-profile included cable.
You definitely need to take this magnetic charger with you
on a trip, but it takes up so little space,
you probably won't mind much.
The Ticwatch S retails for 199, while the E model comes in
cheaper, at 159.
And it's that appeal to the frugal, that makes this rather
typical smartwatch, notable.
Those prices are much lower than most of the competition
I've covered this year;
like the LG Watch Sport, or the Casio Pro Trek F20.
Now, if you head over to Amazon and sort the Android Wear
catalog by price, there are a few solid options that are as
good, or better, right in the same neighborhood.
But, the majority of them are older,
or even discontinued models.
So, if what you want is a new product, and the design
speaks to you, the Ticwatch S and E
are definitely worth a look.
I just wish they carried over more of the innovative spirit
of their forerunner.
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