Basic gets a bad rap these days. But when I think about the word “basic,” I associate the words “essential” and “crucial.” And that’s what I believe audio maker Soundpeats tried to aim for with the Soundpeats Watch 1, its first attempt at a health and fitness tracker/smartwatch.
Here are some reasons why the SoundPEATS Watch 1 should be on your radar.
Tracks the essentials
If you’re a newbie in the wearable/smartwatch space, the simplicity of the Watch 1 and what it can track will appeal to you. It monitors 12 different sport modes, including jogging, fast walking, biking, climbing, spinning, yoga, indoor running, integrated training, gymnastics, basketball, football, and rowing. With an IP68 waterproof rating, you can even take the Watch 1 on a swim. But, unfortunately, it doesn’t have a swimming mode.
It can also track your steps, distance traveled, calories, heart rate, and sleep. You can practice your breathing with the Watch 1, too.
All the data is viewable through the SoundPEATS SPORTS app, which is available on iOS and Android. You’ll get the app immediately after you power up the Watch 1 because you’ll need it for the setup. It’s a pretty painless affair, having you up and running in a few minutes.
It’s crucial to get acquainted with the app, because most of its settings are activated or deactivated through it. It’s also where the Watch 1 will get firmware updates.
Long battery life
One advantage of a more basic smartwatch is that you get more mileage out of a single charge. According to SoundPEATS, typical use can eke out around 10 days on a single charge. And it’s a claim that you can believe, especially if you aren’t constantly waking up the screen and letting it just track your workouts and vitals through the day.
I’ve used it as I would other wearables and got around five days on a single charge, which is still impressive in my book. I tend to activate raise to wake a lot when I have a smartwatch on. So, when I turned off the raise to wake feature, I could get close to the 10-day claim.
The Watch 1 tracked my daily 30-minute workout and my sleep. I used its timers and alarm, and I received my smartphone notifications on it. Sometimes, I would use it to control music on my smartphone or help locate it.
I also kept the brightness on its 1.4-inch display at the lowest setting because it was sufficiently bright for me, even when I was outside under the blazing summer sun. This possibly contributed to getting more prolonged periods of use before needing to charge.
Pro tip #1: Turn off raise to wake at night, so you don’t get blinded by the Watch 1’s light while in a dark room.
To top up the Watch 1, you’ll need to use the proprietary magnetic charging cable, which takes around two hours to completely juice up the wearable.
Lightweight for all-day use
At 54g, the Soundpeats Watch 1 is barely noticeable when you wear it. It’s comfortable to sleep with, exercise with, or go about your day with. While its only button sticks out a bit from the side, I didn’t at any point accidentally press it while I worked out or stretched.
For those who love a bit of color in their lives, the Watch 1 might not be for you. It only comes in black and its Apple Watch-like rectangular shape. It’s not an accessory that’s meant to stand out. It has five watch faces built into the wearable. Unfortunately, if you wanted more, there isn’t any way to get additional options right now.
Pro tip #2: Clumsy folks like me need to make sure you have it on securely. I accidentally dropped it from a height a bit above my waist and dinged one of its sides. The smartwatch worked fine even with that slight cosmetic damage.
Get your notifications at a glance
I’m trying to pick my phone up less, especially when I’m working. So, having notifications available on the Soundpeats Watch 1 is a great feature to have. It allows you to customize what apps can notify you or accept or reject calls.
As I mentioned, you can use it to control music playing on your phone. And it can be your silent alarm clock or timer, too. I use these a lot because I use the Pomodoro Technique when I work. I also prefer using the mute, vibrating alarms on smartwatches because I don’t like being woken up by loud alarms.
Pro tip #3: Make sure you enable Do Not Disturb on your phone at night unless you want the Watch 1 to continue to vibrate while you sleep. Inversely, make sure this wearable’s Do Not Disturb is disabled if you have an alarm set because it won’t shake then.
The vibration is a bit on the softer side, though. So, if you need a bit more of a jolt, you might need an alarm clock instead.
Pro tip #4: You can only set your alarms on the SoundPEATS SPORTS app. Timers are accessible on the watch, but for your daily alarms, you need to configure those in the app.
Final thoughts
I admittedly came in with minimal expectations for the Soundpeats Watch 1. That’s probably for the best because it surprised me with what it can do. For its price, you get a lot more than expected. It’s a decent first attempt from SoundPEATS and a great starter smartwatch for any curious first-timers.
The SoundPEATS Watch 1 is available through Digital Walker for PHP 2,490, but right now, it’s on sale for PHP 1,090. Online, you can find it on Home Office, Lazada, and Shopee.
Buy the SoundPEATS Watch 1 from Lazada HERE. *
Buy the SoundPEATS Watch 1 from Shopee HERE.
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