Which Watch?

[DigbyTheDog]

Hi. It looks like I am needing to look for a new watch. I currently have a Fitbit Versa 2 but the battery is not holding a charge anymore and it keeps disconnecting from Bluetooth, so I'm not getting notifications consistently. Which smart watches (available in Canada) meet the following criteria:
- Always on display
- Alarms via vibration
- Notifications for email
- Notifications for text
- Notifications for phone
- works with both Android and Google
- minimum battery life of 2 days
- software/security updates (i.e. it is still supported by the company)
- an added bonus would be sleep tracking
- budget of about $250 Canadian

Are there any watches you would stay away from?

 

[SpookDroid]

Does it have to be Android Wear? Hard to recommend any of those over either an Apple Watch or a Samsung one. The Samsung Active 2 should be within your budget, especially if you wait until the Watch 3 is announced (which probably will bring down the price of the Active 2 or at least show some promos for it).

 

[B. Diddy]

Misfit still has their sale going on: www.misfit.com/. It's a "DIY" sale, where you buy the case separately from the band (and charger). I recently ordered the Vapor X (case only) for $60. I already have a couple of compatible bands I had gotten for my Falster 2, as well as its compatible charger. The Vapor X has the newer Snapdragon 3100 (meaning more battery efficient, not faster); however, it still only has 512 MB RAM, not the 1 GB that seems to really improve performance. Reviewers described it as very similar to the Fossil Sport, but without the 1 GB RAM. Still, for that price, it was an easy sale for me.

BTW, the Falster 2 (from Skagen, but made by Fossil as well) fell apart after 6 months -- the back of the case popped off. This is apparently a common defect for the Falster 2, but from what I could find on the web, not an issue with the Vapor X. Fortunately, Skagen agreed to cover the case under warranty (technically, case, band, and crystal aren't covered, but since this has been identified as a common defect, they cover this problem).

 

[recDNA]

I like Fossil 5 Carlyle but I hear Fossil has new one in the pipeline

 

[B. Diddy]

I like Fossil 5 Carlyle but I hear Fossil has new one in the pipeline

Yep, you can currently get a refurb for $179 on the Fossil site: https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...-stainless-steel/FTW4024J.html&token=b7UkMWfJ. Sign up for their email first and you should get a $25 discount as well (I think they send the discount code in the first email).

 

[recDNA]

Read the reviews on Fossil refurbished. Junk.

 

[B. Diddy]

Read the reviews on Fossil refurbished. Junk.

Hmm, glad I didn't order one. Still has a 2 year warranty, but again, that doesn't seem to cover case, crystal, nor band.

 

[recDNA]

Hmm, glad I didn't order one. Still has a 2 year warranty, but again, that doesn't seem to cover case, crystal, nor band.

I wouldn't mind returning a refurbished watch with scratches or torn band to a Best Buy but mailing it back is a pita.
I also read delivery is slow. I really wanted a refurb Carlyle but won't take the chance of getting a dud.

 

[DigbyTheDog]

Hmm. The reviews I'm seeing for Wear OS aren't great. Would Samsung's watches be better than Fossil's?

 

[B. Diddy]

Yeah, Wear OS is still pretty mediocre -- I just prefer it for the wider variety of hardware and the "Googleness" of it. Most Samsung watch owners really like theirs -- from what I understand, they're a lot smoother and have better performance. They should be compatible with non-Samsung phones as well. Not being in the Samsung ecosystem, though, I've never been interested in them, because I don't want the extraneous Samsung stuff.

 

[DigbyTheDog]

Yeah, I'm not sure I want Samsung. I hated the skins and horrible/non-existent updates when I used their phones and tablets.
Do you know how reliable the Bluetooth connection for Fossil is? I'm getting annoyed with loosing the connection with my Fitbit multiple times a day.

 

[B. Diddy]

I don't have a Fossil-branded watch, but they make most of the other brands anyway, like Michael Kors and Falster (both of which I do have), so it's pretty much the same hardware and firmware. There are times when I'll notice the BT connection is temporarily off, but I think that's a battery-saving feature -- it's usually when the watch has been sitting idle somewhere off my wrist, and then I wake it. BT then reconnects after about 10-15 seconds.

 

[avngedsvenfold]

I have used a Samsung Frontier 3 for 2-3yrs (can't remember exactly). I also use a Samsung phone so compatible it very smooth. I used to use a Moto 360 with Android Wear and was happy with it. When they rebranded it Wear OS and completely overhauled everything it was virtually unusable to me.

Recently, like 2 weeks ago, I bought a Ticwatch Pro to give Wear OS another chance, thought maybe in the 2-3yrs since I left surely it had gotten better. Nope, it's still just about as bad. I don't get it. It's made by GOOGLE and it still sucks. How is it possible Tizen works better with android than Googles own wear OS?? Sad.

 

[cknobman]

Been wearing a Fossil Sport for about 5 months now I picked up brand new at BB on sale for $80.

Love my watch!!!

I turn off the heartrate monitor being on all the time and make it only come on when I am working out.

Battery lasts all day long. I charge every night or morning.

Best $80 watch I've ever owned.

 

[DigbyTheDog]

cknobman, that's great to hear. I am actually leaning towards the Fossil Sport. My birthday is next month, so I've asked for one for my birthday. Crossing my fingers that's what my brother get's me.

 

[DigbyTheDog]

avngedsvenfold, I don't use Samsung phones, so I'm concerned that although it works great with Samsung phones, Tizen won't work well with other Android phones and iPhones. I am currently using an iPhone, but may switch back to a Android (very likely not Samsung) during the life of the watch.

 

[DigbyTheDog]

B. Diddy, that's great to hear. One of the main things I use my watch for is being able to quickly see my notifications so I can decide if I should pull out my phone right away, or wait till later to address it. I want a watch I can count on to give me those notifications.

 

[Natanaelvh]

Yeah, I bought a TicWatch C2 last year (it looks pretty nice, but it feels a little laggy),

 

[SpookDroid]

avngedsvenfold, I don't use Samsung phones, so I'm concerned that although it works great with Samsung phones, Tizen won't work well with other Android phones and iPhones. I am currently using an iPhone, but may switch back to a Android (very likely not Samsung) during the life of the watch.

Having used a few Android Wear watches in the past, I think Fossil's top-liners are the best ones for AW. That being said, the experience is buggy. VERY buggy. Yes, it will (on paper) do all the things you want, but that comes with the caveat of 'when it works'. Also, AW watches seem to lag heavily with time, so you'll find yourself rebooting it often and feeling you need to reset it after a few months of use. But you do you have a few more apps for the watch.

Using now a Samsung Active 2 I can tell you the experience is night and day. Still does what you want but has more health-geared features. Other than the Samsung wearable app and the Health app (optional), you don't need any Samsung software on your phone for it to work and display/action your notifications. It also lasts longer (the last Fossil I had would not last a whole day with Always-on display, but the Active 2 lasts a day and then some with Always On, 2 days with gesture wake up (twist your wrist) and a little over 3 days if you just set it up to wake with a screen tap).

When it comes with iOS compatibility, both will be limited, but Android Wear is at the bottom of the pile (not by far... Again, if you use iOS, you really should be using an Apple Watch).

 

[Chris Laarman]

I have two Wear OS watches (paired with Android smartphones) and one Android Wear watch (paired with an Android tablet) in use.
Well, there currently are few occasions for me to wear a smartwatch, and of these most go to an Apple Watch paired with an iPhone.