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Battery
Battery life on smartwatches is typically pretty unimpressive, and the Ticwatch S is no exception in this.
Mobvoi claims that it has a battery life of 48+ hours, but we were only able to eke this sort of life out of it by turning the brightness down to its lowest, turning 'always-on display' off, and not using it for anything more than checking the time.
Realistically, you'll get a day and a half out of it with moderate use, one day if you're also using it for fitness, which considering it's the 'sport' version of the watch is a little disappointing, although perhaps not surprising.
What is nice is how quick and easy it is to charge. There's a magnetic clip that attaches to the underside of the Ticwatch, making it pretty much impossible to get wrong, and a full charge will take a little over an hour when plugged into a USB port.
One other thing that's worth noting is that the Ticwatch will drain your battery life on your phone. It's not a massive drain, but it did make a more noticeable difference to the battery life of our phone than some of the non-smartphone fitness trackers that we've tried.
Verdict
The Ticwatch S packs a surprising amount of features into a durable package at a price that is well below what you’d expect from such a sophisticated smartwatch.
The battery life is underwhelming, and the sports features are a let-down for something selling itself as a 'sports edition' but that didn't stop us being impressed with this wearable.
One of the most impressive things about the Ticwatch S is the voice integration. Dictating a text message was so swift and accurate, it made us actually want to use the feature. The Ticwatch S may have a budget price tag, but it feels anything but.
Who's it for?
The Ticwatch S is tailored towards the type of person who may be looking for their first foray in the world of smartwatches.
It's cheap enough to not break the bank, but sophisticated enough that you're not going to feel like you bought something cheap.
It has clearly been made for sports enthusiasts, and while there are elements of the design (GPS, TPU strap) that will really work for fitness fans, this isn't going to match up to a dedicated fitness tracker in terms of its features.
If you're put off by fitness trackers being a little cold, and the price of smart watches is a bit daunting, then the Ticwatch could be just the thing you're looking for.
Should I buy it?
We wholeheartedly recommend the Ticwatch S. Every once in awhile we get a device in for review that we want to buy while we're reviewing it. The Ticwatch S is one of those.
It's cheap without feeling it, looks great, is well made, and is easy to use. Don't get us wrong, there are better smartwatches out there. Better fitness trackers too. But for this price we think you’d be hard pushed to find better.
- Still not found what you're looking for? Check out: Best smartwatch: the top choices you can buy in 2017
