Does a more advanced smartwatch make for a better smartwatch? Sony's original SmartWatch last year didn't get too many people excited, but with the Samsung Galaxy Gear hitting the shelves and Apple's long-rumoured iWatch getting closer, the time is clearly ripe to release an updated version to stay in the increasingly high-stakes smart watch game.
Today we're going to review the Sony SmartWatch 2.
Design
The SW2 is beautifully compact at an almost-square 42x41mm, and just 9mm thick. The body is made from black-painted aluminium, with reflective silver trim. It weighs 123 grams, which is less than my own metal-banded analogue watch.
Compactness is one of the best things the SW2 has going for it.
Most of the smartwatches we’ve seen to date are bulky, oversized affairs. That’s not automatically a bad thing – many people choose to wear huge watches, or ranges such as Casio’s G-Shock wouldn’t exist. However, large watches are a matter of preference – a fashion statement some watch-wearers would prefer to avoid. Personally I have tiny wrists, so the SW2 suits me perfectly as a ‘normal’ sized accessory.
The watch is rated IP57, dust- and water-resistant: if you get caught in the rain or fall into a pool, it’ll be fine – just don’t go swimming in it.
The SW2 is sold with one of three watchband styles: silicone rubber, which is available in yellow, cyan, purple, pink, or black; leather, available in brown or black; and metal. Unlike some competitors (Samsung Galaxy Gear, I’m looking at you), Sony’s smartwatch is compatible with any standard (spring-bar) 24mm watch band.
In New Zealand, only the black silicone-rubber strap, and metal strap, are available. Only the black silicone-rubber strap is currently available through the Sony Australia website, though we’re unsure what models may be available through other Australian retailers.
Software and features
It's supposed to be compatible with any smartphone that uses Android 4.0 or later, which immediately makes it a much more flexible device than the Gear, that's limited to a very small number of Samsung handsets.
Download Sony's Smart Connect app from Google Play, touch the NFC-enabled device to the SmartWatch and it will automatically hook up. Most of its apps don't come preinstalled, but you can individually download apps for reading (not initiating) calls, texts, emails, Facebook, Twitter and more. You can't actually take calls on the SmartWatch as there's no microphone or speaker, though you can answer calls and then talk via a Bluetooth headset. Notifications popped up promptly and texts and emails appeared clearly, automatically sized to fit the screen when the phone was pocketed.
There are presently over 140 apps available for the SmartWatch (much more than the Gear), though it's the usual mix of pretty goods and so-whats, including exercise apps, games, languages and remote controls. Some, like the very limited and glitchy map app, are free, but others, including WhatsApp Alerts, cost a fee.
Email notifications are supported, and we tested with Gmail and Microsoft accounts (although it's worth noting you can't reply to them on the device). Currently Microsoft Exchange and Hotmail/Outlook emails only work for notifications if paired with a Sony Xperia Z1, as Sony has adapted its implementation of Android to support it; other Android devices cannot support Microsoft's email technology currently. Some software is also dependent on being used with Sony-created software. The music playback controls, for example, only work with Sony's Android music player; playing, pausing and skipping Spotify is a no-go area. Disappointing.
The 1.6-inch screen is the same size as the Gear's but it offers a lower resolution of 220x176 pixels -- not great, but it's fine for viewing updates and notifications. The battery life is considerably better than Samsung's competitor: leave it on all the time and you should get three to four days out of it, extending to a week or so if you switch it off at night.
Charging is via a standard microUSB slot hidden behind a rubber cover on the side. It powers up by pressing the outsize silver button on the side, which matches aesthetically with the power button on Sony's Xperia handsets.
Water resistance, battery life
The SmartWatch 2 has an IP57 water and dust resistance rating, meaning it can sit in one meter (3.3 ft.) of water for 30 minutes without going kaput. And indeed, we tested the smartwatch by dunking it in a glass of water, and saw no ill effects afterwards. In the realm of smartphones, Sony has taken water resistance more seriously than any other manufacturer, so we weren't surprised to see the company's smartwatch live up to that billing.
Sony advertises three to four days of battery life with typical use. Based on our testing, we'd say that's a solid estimate. It's nice not to have to charge every night, but you'll probably want to plug in its included microUSB cable once every two or three nights, just to be safe.
Hardware
The SmartWatch 2 isn't ridiculously thick or bulky. It has a depth of 9 mm. It feels fairly comfortable on the wrist, but, at least with the default band, we preferred the feel of both the Galaxy Gear and Pebble. The silicone strap version we tested (it's also sold with a stainless steel band) weighs 123 g (the watch face weighs 48 g), and we thought the strap looked and felt very cheap.
Even if you agree with us that the default silicone band feels subpar, there are options. That's because another feature the SW2 has in common with Pebble is that you can customize its band. If you want to go with something bolder like leather, bright colors, or, hell, 18k gold, then you can swap its default band for any standard 24 mm watch strap. There's also that variation with the metallic band, but we didn't test that version.
