TicWatch Pro 3 in review: The breakthrough of Wear OS?

The TicWatch Pro 3 could be a huge step for Wear OS. The smartwatch is the first Wear OS smartwatch to come onto the market with the new Snapdragon Wear 4100 and costs 300 euros. We tested the smartwatch.

Delivery

In addition to the smartwatch, the scope of delivery also includes a charging cable, unfortunately no charger. But every customer should have this anyway.

Design and workmanship

On first impression I didn't like the watch as much as the Skagen Falster 3, but after a few weeks I got used to the design. It is a bit bigger than the Skagen watch, but there is also more technology in the watch. The workmanship is also really good, I couldn't find any defects during my test period. What I really missed a lot is a crown that scrolls through the menu. This is available from the competition from Skagen and has made operation a lot easier.

The TicWatch Pro 3 sits well on the arm and is unnoticeable. (Image: TechnikNews)

Hardware of the TicWatch Pro 3

The smartwatch is the first watch on the market that is equipped with the Snapdragon Wear 4100. Compared to the Snapdragon Wear 3100, this should offer 85% more performance and power consumption should also be reduced by around 25%.

The main memory is 1 GB and the internal memory has a capacity of 8 GB. The working memory has become a lot faster compared to my old Wear OS watch, which still had 512 MB working memory. Wear OS is finally running as fast as it should be.

The displays are 1,4 "in size. The displays? Yes, the watch has two displays, which are one above the other. The lower display is a 454 x 454 pixel sharp AMOLED display and the second display is an FSTN, which is used as an always-on display. This is done to save power, which can be clearly seen in the battery life.

Some have also been installed on sensors. In addition to GPS, Beidou, Glonass, Galileo, QZSS for navigation, there is also NFC for Google Pay and a loudspeaker with microphone for the Google Assistant and for phone calls. The latter can only be done via Bluetooth, as there is no eSIM functionality.

In addition, the watch is waterproof thanks to the IP68 standard; during my testing period, the watch had no problems with water.

The always-on display of the TicWatch Pro 3 is very good for battery life! (Image: TechnikNews)

Software

Google's Wear OS is used as software, for me the software that is theoretically best suited for interaction with Android smartphones. Unfortunately, Google treats the software very negligently, as the example of "YouTube Music" makes very clear.

A small digression - Google stopped their "Google Play Music" service this year because they switched their music streaming to YouTube Music. In my opinion, this was a good move because YouTube Music has some better features. It wouldn't be a problem at all if Google had developed a Wear OS app for YouTube Music, but they haven't. Why is that so bad? If I want to go jogging with the watch and listen to music through my headphones, which I have connected to the watch via Bluetooth, the music has to be stored offline. This was possible with Google Play Music, but this is no longer the case. It doesn't work with Spotify either because they have a deal with Samsung that it is only available on Samsung watches.

Otherwise offers Wear OS many useful functions. You can reply to messages, make calls like James Bond via the watch, as long as your smartphone is within Bluetooth range. In addition, the Google Assistant can answer many questions and with Google Fit all kinds of sports can be tracked. The manufacturer Mobvoi has even adapted the app overview, the app logos are now much larger and clearer.

Mobvoi has also preinstalled some apps, in addition to useful things such as sleep tracking or a calculator, some fitness apps are also preinstalled. However, these do not come close to the functionality of Google.

Fitness

Due to the closure of the fitness studios in Germany, it was more difficult for me to test the complete fitness functions, but I was still able to jog once with the watch. The 5 km that have been measured are definitely correct. The pulse measurement is of course only a recommendation and should by no means be taken as a medical value. So the sports tracking is really very good thanks to Google Fit and the sensors.

The TicWatch Pro 3 can track jogging very well. (Screenshot: TechnikNews)

TicWatch Pro 3 battery

The battery life with Wear OS was always the biggest problem. The functions could be as good as they wanted, but if the watch only lasted until midday, like my Asus Zenwatch 3 did, it was practically unnecessary. The TicWatch Pro 3 is supposed to solve this with a 595mAh battery, the Snapdragon Wear 4100 and the FSTN display. They have actually managed to do it and it was an unusual feeling not having to charge the watch in the evening. Even with intensive use, the battery life was easily two days, and if I had the first energy saving mode activated, even three days.

The battery life of the TicWatch Pro 3 is finally at a good level. (Screenshot: TechnikNews)

This is finally the battery life I wanted, but the charging time of two hours is still a bit too long. I would also have liked QI Wireless Charging, which is unfortunately not built in.

TicWatch Pro 3 Conclusion

The TicWatch Pro 3 is the smartwatch that I have wanted for a long time. Finally a good processor that makes the watch run much more smoothly. The display is very good despite the second panel above the main display and the workmanship is also impressive. Personally, I don't like the design as much as the Skagen Falster 3, but that is a matter of taste. I also miss the rotating crown of the watch, which definitely needs to be touched up.

The crown would have made operation a lot easier, I would be happy if it was included in a successor. Wear OS is still my favorite smartwatch system for Android smartphones, but the lack of a YouTube Music app and the non-existent Spotify download function makes streaming music - especially during workouts - virtually impossible. The battery life of 2 to 3 days is outstanding for Wear OS and brings every other Wear OS watch to its knees. So if you want a top Wear OS watch, you should go for the TicWatch Pro 3. If the design doesn't appeal to you, you should wait for the competitors' smartwatches in 2021.

This review was made possible by a TicWatch Pro 3, which was provided by Mobvoi. We did not receive any money for this review and Mobvoi had no influence on the article. We would like to thank Mobvoi for providing this.