TicWatch Pro in review: The durable smartwatch with two displays
A TEST REPORT from David Wurm 
on October 29, 2018, 15:49 p.m. | Write a comment
I've had the TicWatch Pro on my wrist for almost two months now in everyday life. Now it's time for a conclusion: Was the smartwatch able to convince me and what makes the wearable with its two displays really unique? All this and more in my review.
Exactly two months ago today I had it TicWatch Pro unpacked for you here in the blog. So I won't go into all the details, such as the scope of delivery, in this review. Rather, review today, I will clarify all the technical details, tracking of sports and performance and battery power in everyday life. Here we go.
The technical details
A not unimportant point when choosing technology: the technical equipment. That's why I'm listing all the technical details of the TicWatch Pro here in an overview.
- Dimensions: 45 × 12,6 mm
- Battery: 415 mAh
- Operating system: Wear OS 2.1 (as of the test report)
- Display: 1,39-inch AMOLED 400 x 400 pixels + FSTN display
- Connectivity: Bluetooth: 4.2 / WLAN: 802.11bgn 2.4GHz / NFC
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 2100
- Sensors: accelerometer, magnetic sensor, heart rate monitor, ambient light sensor, GPS
- Memory: 512 MB RAM and 4 GB internal memory
- Water and dust proof: IP68 certification
Processing and feeling
The TicWatch Pro is really comfortable to wear in everyday life and doesn't really stand out because of its low weight. Unfortunately, it looks a bit bulky under a T-shirt or sweater - so it's better to wear it over it. All buttons are also well made and have a good pressure point. The leather strap that comes with it also feels pretty good - the underside of the strap is made of ribbed silicone. Definitely an advantage when doing sports or sweating.
Due to the dimensions of 45 x 12,6mm, the watch probably looks a bit too bulky for women, and is therefore more suitable for a man's wrist. I also wore the watch for various activities and couldn't find any scratches on the case.
The scope of delivery of the TicWatch Pro. (Image: © 2018 TechnikNews)
Design
Sure – there are perhaps more elegant watches than the TicWatch Pro. Due to the materials used, the smartwatch looks both classy and sporty. If you set the watch faces to suit the occasion, you can prowear it to every event. Whether with a shirt, jacket or sports suit. If you like it rimless, you might prefer the current one Fossil Q Explorer HR.
The TicWatch Pro looks classy. (Image: © 2018 TechnikNews)
The numbered metal ring around the smartwatch is prone to fingerprints. But if you wipe it off, everything looks perfect again. So it's not really a problem. But I don't understand why they didn't use a rotating bezel like on Samsung's smartwatches. In my opinion, the metal ring could have been thinner, especially the part on the top and bottom with the arrow.
Everyday performance and operation
Everyone has to decide for themselves whether the operation of Wear OS is intuitive. However, the latest version of Google's smartwatch operating system makes operation much more comfortable and pleasant. Until now, you could change the watch face by swiping from left to right or vice versa - this is no longer the case. Now, for example, swiping to the right opens a Google Now-like stream. However, swiping to the left on the TicWatch Pro does not take you to Google Fit, but to Mobvoi's own fitness app - a shame.
A few impressions of the TicWatch Pro software. (Image: © 2018 TechnikNews)
During my test, the performance was pretty good - except immediately after starting up - and apps opened quickly and responded quickly to any input. Typing on the keyboard to reply to messages was also no problem and was quite pleasant due to the rather generous display.
A smartwatch for athletes?
The TicWatch Pro is also highly recommended for sports enthusiasts. Thanks to the integrated GPS and heart rate monitor, the smartwatch can be used for running or other activities without a smartphone without any problems. The recording of a test run was quite accurate and detailed - even in the forest. After a workout, the distance, duration and calories burned are displayed. A little further down, you get information about your average heart rate and, over time, the speed and pace information. There is also a display of the step frequency and step length, how many steps and the length of these you take on average. pro minute done.
The TicWatch Pro is also suitable for athletes thanks to its GPS and heart rate monitor. (Image: © 2018 TechnikNews)
30 days of battery life - thanks to two displays
No other smartwatch I know of currently lasts as long as the TicWatch Pro. What is special about this model is definitely the two displays, which make such a long battery life possible. When the smartwatch is not currently in use, the watch switches to the relatively energy-efficient FSTN display by default. This also gives the watch a certain retro feel, also known from older digital watches.
The second display provides a retro look and also helps to save electricity. (Image: © 2018 TechnikNews)
This display shows the current time, together with the date, today's number of steps and the most recently measured heart rate. Either the second display can be activated permanently in "essential mode" or otherwise always when the watch is turned away from the face. In addition, this mode can be activated automatically when the battery drops below 5%. During a workout, the current time, kilometers and heart rate are also displayed. For me, the smartwatch lasted almost 2-3 days in normal mode,
Conclusion
The TicWatch Pro is a cheap smartwatch compared to the competition and their features. For its current price of 249 euros, it is of course not a bargain and perhaps not the prettiest watch either. However, it offers a complete package with unbeatable battery life, GPS and good performance. There is also a speaker and a microphone. The former does not sound particularly high quality, but is sufficient for conversations on the smartwatch. NFC is also built in for payments using Google Pay - but I was unable to test it in Austria due to a lack of availability here.
You can also use the TicWatch Pro in water or while swimming, but it is not necessarily recommended. In my test, the watch face changed when I jumped into the water. I can recommend the smartwatch to anyone at any time, but I still wouldn't buy it now. Qualcomm recently introduced the new smartwatch processor and this could bring us even more energy-efficient and faster smartwatches onto the market. So for now, it's better to wait and see.