- Every time I review a luxury tech product
I come away thinking I must've missed something.
Because, once again,
I've got a thousand dollar product on my desk
and, once again it's very nice
but it seems like the only reason
to pay that price is the name on the back.
This is the Summit 2 smartwatch from Montblanc
and this is the Mr. Mobile review.
(upbeat techno music)
With a lead in like that you might think
I have nothing good to say about this watch
but that's not true.
In fact, this is my favorite smartwatch hardware of 2018.
The 42 millimeter casing is water resistant
and weighted so well that,
while you can upgrade to a titanium version,
I wouldn't want to.
It feels just perfect in stainless steel.
Also nearly perfect, the 1.2 inch display
which is brilliantly bright
and pixel packed with the kind of contrasty color
that only OLED can provide.
While you can of course tap and swipe
on the sapphire watch face to interact with the software,
any time you have to opportunity to use
that rotating side button instead, you should.
It's so perfectly synced with the software
that it almost feels like some internal spring or string
is pulling you through the menus mechanically.
And the Montblanc logo on the crown,
it's a nice touch too.
Even on the software side there's plenty nice to say.
Google's new wear OS is exactly the usability
and design update the platform needed.
And special kudos to Google Assistant,
which has gotten much better
at giving you important information at any given moment.
I mean sometimes it does feel like you're wearing
a successories poster on your wrist but, it's okay.
Now Montblanc is positioning the Summit 2
as an accessory for globetrotters
and to sell that narrative its included two notable apps.
Travel info is really basic with an uneven smattering
of social advice for different countries
which is somehow at once too broad
and also weirdly specific.
I didn't know about this salt shaker thing in Spain.
But the other one, time shifter, that's great.
It's basically a coach for helping you minimize jet lag.
Tell it where you're going and when
and starting a day in advance it'll advise you
on when to start and stop drinking coffee,
when to get more or less light,
and when to go to sleep and wake up.
I used it on my trip to Qualcomm's tech summit in Hawaii
and it really did help minimize my jet lag
while I was there.
Now on the way back I did not follow it's advice
and uh, well let me tell you, I am still feeling it.
(techno music)
That's a lot of pluses so,
why am I so down on the Summit 2?
Well here's the thing, when you're buying a luxury brand
part of what you're paying for is the name on the box.
What I can't abide is when these upscale brands
use that as an opportunity to skimp on the fundamentals.
Biggest among these is battery life.
The Summit 2 is a one day smartwatch.
Meaning you need to charge it every night.
That's a huge disappointment
because the Qualcomm Snapdragon 3100 inside
was specifically designed to give these watches
more staying power.
I had a chat with Qualcomm about this while I was in Hawaii
and while the company VP was careful
to avoid assigning blame, I got the sense that
the problem might lie in how Wear OS
utilizes the hardware.
In short, it could be a software thing.
Which means it's possible updates could help
squeeze more life out of that big battery in the future.
Qualcomm did say I wasn't the first to ask these questions.
According to reviews the Fossil Sport
has similar battery issues on the same chip set.
So for now, this isn't a problem unique to Montblanc.
But, for the price tag of one Summit 2,
you could buy almost four Fossil Sport's
or a similar number of Galaxy watches or Fit Bit Ionic's.
Each of those last about three to five days per charge.
And with any of those watches
you wouldn't have to deal with the Summit 2's
finicky charging cradle with an old Micro USB port
and magnets so weak that it's just a circus
to charge this thing.
Seriously, it's the worst.
Then there's the inconsistent apps.
Montblanc offers a world clock,
stopwatch, and a timer and the latter
is notable for mainly just how slow it feels.
By the way the buttons I've set as shortcut's to those apps
are also utterly lacking any kind of physical feedback.
They don't move at all.
And while I really like these watch faces,
the complications don't always display properly
on the always on display.
I keep this one on the left here
set to a different time zone
and it's basically never correct.
(beeps)
Finally, take the presentation.
This box is serviceable
but when I'm paying a thousand dollars
I expect not fabric and cardboard,
but wood and leather.
It's fine if you think I'm crazy for saying so
but recall that way back in 2015
Huawei was giving people that exact experience
on Android Wear for half the price.
If the Summit 2 were half the price,
it would be an easy recommendation despite its shortfalls.
And I'll say it once more,
this is some of the most beautiful hardware
you're gonna find in smartwatches.
I'm gonna keep it on my wrist
right up until the minute Qualcomm asks for it back.
But justifying a $995.00 starting price tag
to me means you just need to get closer
to the summit of perfection then this one does.
Folks be sure to keep your eye on the comments.
I've reached out to Montblanc
about some of the issues with my review device
and if the company has a response
I'll be sure to include it down there.
While you're there be sure to subscribe
to theMrMobile on YouTube
and for another interesting take on the modern smartwatch
checkout my review of LG's watch W7
with analog hands over a digital face.
Until next time, thanks for watching.
And stay mobile my friends.