An excellent Wear OS smartwatch

Wear OS smartwatches are popular choices among Android users. These Google-powered wearables pair well with most Android phones, and new options like Mobvoi's TicWatch Atlas emerge in a steady stream. some of the most Famous Wear OS Smartwatch Of course, the Pixel Watch and Samsung Galaxy Watch are included. But there are plenty of reasons why someone might be looking for an alternative to those big names, and Mobvoi's latest watch sets out to be exactly that.

Price, Availability and Specifications

The Mobvoi TicWatch Atlas is available directly from Mobvoi or through Amazon. It's offered in one case size and is currently only available in black – silver availability is expected soon – and launches with an MSRP of $350.

What's good about the Mobvoi TicWatch Atlas?

Is dedicated to brand improvement

The screen is the most notable feature of the Mobvoi TicWatch Atlas. (It doesn't have a primary OLED display, although that's also great.) The Atlas includes an ultra-low-power sublayer that uses minimal battery consumption to display important details like step count and heart rate at a glance. Is. This display is very similar to Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 5 Enduro, So don't expect any huge leaps if you're already using that model, but this is indeed a new feature for Mobvoi newcomers. That sublayer is much easier to read in direct daylight and doesn't put a significant strain on the battery.

As Steve pointed out in his review of the TicWatch Pro 5 Enduro last year, the TicWatch has had some minor software issues recently that can impact your overall experience. There's still something to be desired with the Atlas – for example, we still don't get the Google Assistant despite the watch having other Google functions – but the Atlas shows some improvements over its predecessors. The app experience is still not great. Garmin and Apple's companion apps are still largely superior, but TicWatch's app has at least improved.

First of all, I didn't feel like the Atlas lacked any health or fitness features for its price. It has all the sensors needed to complete exercise routines like running, going to the gym or doing Pilates at home. All data collected from the watch, including heart rate and pulse, daily steps and sleep data, is sent to the companion app, Mobvoi Health, where the user can review the data in simple, modular widgets.

While I still think Garmin is the overall leader when it comes to battery life, the TicWatch Atlas should not be underestimated.

The Mobvoi TicWatch Atlas' GPS is probably accurate enough for most users. In my experience, once I moved into the shade of the tree there was little chance of me plotting to move out of the way, but the final total on the clock for distance traveled was only less than a tenth of a mile. However, overall, the Atlas should cover all health and fitness tracking needs for most users.

Normally, if you ask me for a good smartwatch recommendation based on battery life alone, the first words out of my mouth would be Garmin. While I still think that overall the Garmin is the pack leader when it comes to battery life, the TicWatch Atlas should not be underestimated. For one, the Atlas's battery is huge – 625mAh, which is larger than many of Atlas' significant competitors. On my lightest usage days (where no fitness was tracked and notifications were minimal), the Atlas' battery dropped by 10 to 15%. On the most demanding day (including outdoor walks, indoor yoga, sleep tracking, and work notifications throughout the day), the battery dropped to 55% after a full 24 hours.

What's bad about the Mobvoi TicWatch Atlas?

One aesthetic is not suitable for everyone

Let me be clear: I like the way the Atlas looks. I like the way other watches look more; I'm also particularly impressed by the Pixel Watch aesthetic garmin beautiful lily 2When it comes to regular daily use watches.

The TicWatch Atlas is a big step away from the visual appeal of any of them, fully embracing its ruggedness, with a weight and silhouette that reminds me of Polar Grit X2 ProIts case is larger than that of the Garmin Fenix ​​8, the other watch that spent a lot of time on my wrist while testing the Atlas. With the dial and deep orange letters, as well as the watch's 83-gram footprint on your wrist, this is a watch you'd expect to see on the wrist of a cyclist, hiker or hunter, which isn't a bad thing at all. But it has its place.

Overall, my testing of the TicWatch Atlas' fitness tracking went without any hiccups. It showed surprisingly consistent phase accuracy and adequate GPS stability. However, the fall detection is a blip on Atlas' record. It was a smart feature to add, but I felt it was too eager to detect falls. It detected “falls” twice during yoga and once during a dance workout routine. I'm sure the fall detection feature is very useful in some scenarios (and when it works consistently), especially since fall detection can automatically trigger an SOS call if you get hurt in the woods alone. Are eating. But since most of my activities take place indoors this time of year, I turned off the feature after three false alarms.

Another fact to consider when looking at the Atlas is that it runs Wear OS 4, and will likely do so in the near future. However, most users will be perfectly fine with their Watch OS being a generation behind.

Should you buy it?

There are a lot of Android smartwatches out there vying to become your favorite. Even venturing outside of Wear OS circles, there are plenty of options from Garmin, a brand that syncs with any Android smartphone and has completely refined its companion app model. So, who is the Mobvoi TicWatch Atlas for?

This is definitely not for wearers with smaller wrists looking for a watch with reasonable proportions. The heaviness, bright orange accents and overall harsh tone will look out of place in some environments. For a smartwatch that works like the Ticwatch Atlas but with a much more minimalist approach pixel watch 3 Is a great option.

Overall, the Ticwatch Atlas is a great watch for Android users who don't want to splurge on new wearable accessories, and have relatively average needs when it comes to activity tracking and fitness. Mobvoi has taken the time to improve the glitches we previously saw in the TicWatch, and with a day-long battery life and its unique and compelling ultra-low-power OLED screen, the Atlas is a functional watch, even if it's not The most sophisticated.