If you want TLDR skip to edits in the end and camera TLDR.
Not going to repeat what is written in tons of review + specs you can find anywhere. Bought mine for 358EUR (incl. 6EUR prepaid card to be eligible for this price at O2).
For this price you receive heavy package with 4/64 version, but there is nothing in package besides fast charger and type C cable, no earphones, no case and the heaviest item it's guidebook in dozens of languages. My version it's COL-L29 8.1.0.100(C432) out of box with April security patch, no update available. With 64GB version you have available 50GB of space, though I guess already some of my stuff taking space.
Phone it's no problem to hold on the sides/edges in hand, but back it's really slippery on any surface and will have to buy case not to protect it but to make it less slippery. Even if there is less slope on sofa it will slide down. Length of phone it's same as (wife's) Redmi Note 3, phone is just much narrower and display longer (because of big bezels in RN3, RN5 was only slight improvement in this aspect).
I've had two options between Blue and Grey color. I checked blue in the shop and personally find it childish, it's nice if you are woman or teenager I guess, but I decided to go with boring grey to be surprised it's actually light blue (can post photos later), so quite nice.
Rear lens it's protruding a lot, not understand why they don't make it flush and rather won't put bigger battery inside.
Bezels around display are THICK, I was using years old TCL S950 Alcatel Idol X), one of the smallest and very thin 5" phones and even this budget phone from years ago has thinner side bezels.
Fingeprint sensor in front can be used as navigation which I switched on since I don't like wasting screen space and sadly Huawei haven't yet implemented Edge gestures I was using through Xposed on this temporary TCL S950. If you long press it acts as Home button and you will get haptic feedback, but if you just tap it it acts as Back button without any feedback which is kinda annoying. Swiping through from either side it acts as Recents button, but that's not very convenient and honestly I practically never use Recents button, but heavily use Last app switch which I haven't found here yet.
Default launcher it's agressively switching back to default instead of Lawnchair when changing some settings, but I guess after finishing setting up the phone it should stop trying to force itself on you.
Pretty much all third party apps can be removed, but there is ton of Huawei and Google bloatware. I mean I understand Huawei not letting you to disable or uninstall some of their apps, but why they don't allow uninstallation of Google apps it's mystery to me. You can just disable some of the Google crap (I am using only Play Store and Photos, nothing else), not uninstall it and some things I never heard (on LOS/NOS with pico opengapps) of like Carrier services you can't even disable.
At first I thought also because of phone I can't install Kii 2 keyboard, but aparently it disappeared from Play store for everyone, so will have to install APK or Swype, since preinstalled Swiftkey it's annoying.
Developer options are normally accessible, you can disable animations and change more settings than on LOS15.1 including switching Bluetooth codec to aptX and aptx HD.
I immediately disabled Notch and prefer black bar hiding it, but truth it's there is zero space for notifications because of crappy EMUI, on the left side of notch I have useless VolTE icon, two signal icons, wifi icon and network speed and nothing else, on the right side I have battery with percentage in indicator and miniature clock, not sure where are supposed to be displayed notification icons they mention in settings. Notifications are also displayed as annoying heads up which seem to be impossible globally switch off without 3rd party app.
I still haven't set up any security features, so I can switch on display directly with power button and what is more annoying also by holding fingerprint sensor which seem to be impossible to disable.
Battery doesn't seem to be anything to write about home, 3400mAh should be decent but we will see with longer testing and optimization. Out of the box I've had 70% capacity, now I am on 14% pretty much just setting up phone with lots of downloading through Wifi, no BT, no mobile data, no NFC, no GPS and taking maybe 50-100 photos. Screen according settings consumed 58% of all battery (including software) with 4hrs screen on time. Oh yeah I disabled Vivid display color mode to Normal, which immediately changes colors to much warmer, though color temperature it's on default. Apps not customized for 18/19:9 you can use in full screen and stretch them, it seem to work fine. There is also smart screen resolution to save battery by automatic switching from 2280x1080 to 1520x720, but not gonna use 720P on such big display.
There is no dedicated setting for custom LED color notifications, you can set them within apps, but no system setting as in NOS/LOS, so will need 3rd party app. LED notification it's very small, brightness it's fine but quite small.
The most interesting in the end - the camera. Focus it's nice fast, tested on baby, out of 11 photos of baby moving on bed 9-10 were sharp so focus speed it's right (that was my main reason to upgrading from Xiaomi Mi4c). But post processing oh my... Huawei it's using extreme post processing to make everything extremely sharp with high contrast losing colors/details adding noise, skin smoothened even with Beautify set to zero.
And don't get me started on AI - it seem like some cheap filter which is just raising saturation by 20-30% so the grass or leaves on trees are extremely green, yellow building turn into orange, if you actually compare reality with photos the photo without AI has natural colors, AI photo is oversaturated.
When it detects people then it's one track mind - bokeh bokeh bokeh everywhere, results are quite funny with small children which are always moving, with still grown up people it's OK but it has problem with children (maybe pets too, dunno). It seem to work fine only with clothes/body, but when child held some toy motorbike in hand part of the wheel was blurred too, also a bit fingers holding it.
Basically only benefit of AI it's brightening the darker spots of picture, but otherwise colors are oversaturated and it's using too much bokeh, by my experience with those 50-100 photos in afternoon in 90% cases you need to disable AI afterwards, so maybe it's not really even worth keeping it on at all and defnitely this AI gimmick would not hold me from leaving EMUI for AOSP/LOS/RR. Pro mode works only with rear camera, not with front camera.
At selfies it's heavy postprocessing as always, if you don't shave few days your hair will be blurred and not sharp as it should be (though no AF on front camera so maybe too much expectation, but I've seen better front cameras for sure even at budget phones) because their postprocessing it's trying to give you baby skin. This is even more annoying considering my children have sometimes skin problems, so I know their skin is not perfect already at first sight at any photo. Hey Huawei, I am not 20yo Asian girl using whitening cream and umbrella, but adult caucasian man who doesn't give AF about creams!
Camera TLDR - silk/baby skin, bokeh/portrait scene for any photo of people, oversharpening, but focus it's fast. AI TLDR - oversaturating everything, but brightening dark parts it's OK.
Later can report on GPS speed, jack output quality, speaker loudness, signal, call quality, battery life etc. but for now I was just setting up phone and testing camera. As for heating haven't really noticed it except maybe one ocassion.
edit: grey color according Huawei
https://i.imgur.com/NKqgu73.jpg
full crop original vs "smart" AI - whole hand blurry, not only outer edge
edit 2: the battery life it's bad, only 6 hours SOT only on Wi-Fi without mobile data, BT, GPS, NFC, calls, gaming, with 2 active SIM, mostly at home with lower brightness, mostly Reddit and surfing, some Spotify and YouTube (both testing maximum volume of speaker and earphones but no longer than 20 minutes at max) in browser, shooting maybe 40-70 photos and about 1.5min H265 video, some with maximum brightness outside. I've had similar battery life with Mi4c running SD808 (!) though heavily optimized Nitrogen OS and smaller 5" display with basically no photos and one active SIM, I hope it's the relatively heavy use of camera although it's not shown in stats
edit 3: fingerprint unlock it's fast as any other Huawei device (didn't experience issues as in some YouTube reviews), face unlock it's even faster, when enrolling face they need only one photo which seem odd for accuracy
edit 4: OK battery life seem reasonable 6-8 hours SoT on Wi-Fi only with small use of camera. Wi-Fi reception is atrocious though, where i had average signal with Mi4c i am getting disconnected with H10, that's pertinent worst thing about this phone together with very small LED notification light almost useless. AI blur it's really stupid leaving always some areas not blurred or blurring shoes of person for example which should be in same focus
Hello @PeterMarkoff,
Thank you for the detailed and well structured review of the Honor 10. I really appreciate the effort you put in to write this and now I'm following you to get any updates you might have related to the device.
Hi, a few days ago I changed my watch to a TicWatch Pro 5, I have been testing it. I share some tricks I know to get the most out of the watch.
1. Default functionality of the physical buttons:
Crown button:
If you press once, it opens the application drawer.
If you press 2 times, it opens Google Wallet.
If you press and hold it, it opens the digital assistant you have installed or the app you have configured.
Auxiliary button:
If you press once, it opens the list of recently opened apps.
If you press 2 times, it opens the last open app.
If you hold it down for about 5", it opens the menu for shutdown or reboot.
f you hold it down for about 15", the watch reboot.
If you press both buttons simultaneously, it takes a screenshot.
If you press both buttons simultaneously (+ 8 seconds), it restarts the watch in bootloader mode.
2. How to reassign physical button functions?
With the help of Button Launcher, you can make the functionality of the watch buttons increase, and you could program them to activate the apps or functions you want depending on the combinations of short presses and long presses you make, you are allowed to program up to eight actions however in TicWatch Pro 5 you can program only 2 combinations, for example, I have programmed:
Long press on crown button: Google Assistant Go
2 long presses on crown button: Google Maps
There are other apps that also allow you to customize the buttons, such as JSyntax Button Remap and SPayRemap, but I find Button Launcher more flexible and it doesn't override the original functions.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
3. How to access the most frequently used apps?
To avoid searching for an app in the endless app drawer of the watch, install Wear Favorite Apps Launcher, and select 9 apps that you want to have quick access to and set the app to a Watchface complication or run with a combination of buttons with Button Launcher app.
4. How to make certain apps more accessible in the app drawer?
Press and hold an app and it will scroll to the top of the list for quick access in the app drawer.
5. How to uninstall/Disable Bloatware applications from the watch?
If there are preinstalled apps that you don't use you can uninstall or disable them on the watch, I recommend disabling because it doesn't take up space in RAM or in the app drawer, and it's not as aggressive as uninstalling. In my case I have disabled Mobvoi Treadmill (since I don't use Treadmill treadmills) and TimeShow (I don't need paid watchfaces).There are several ways to disable a system app, go to "Settings > Apps & Notifications > Apps info". Drag to the bottom of the list, tap on System apps, select the app you don't want and finally tap on "disable" (if it had updates you have to uninstall them first). You can re-enable whenever you want by going back to the same place.Another method, from a PC download Wear OS Tools, run the tool, link to the watch and select option 1.4. The packages mentioned above are com.mobvoi.ticwear.treadmill and com.mobvoi.mwf.magicfaces.
6. How to change the backlight color of secondary display?
There are 18 colors available. Go to "Settings > Display > Always-on Screen > Backlight color". From here you can also activate to change the color of the backlit display according to the heart rate.
7. How to activate customized wrist gestures?
Install Bubble Cloud Wear OS Launcher.
8. How to install an alternative to Google Assistant?
Until Google Assistant is officially launched you can download from APKMirror, Google Assistant Go and install APK file by sideload (Wear Installer 2, Bugjaeger or Wear OS Tools). Also select the default assistant in "Settings > Apps & Notifications > Default apps".It is almost fully functional, and you can ask for directions, make phone calls, play music in the same way as the full Google Assistant. To activate it I recommend that you configure it in Button Launcher to open with a combination of buttons, as its voice activation (ok Google) with this version is not available.Another alternative is to install the Amazon assistant, Amazon Alexa. You must also install the app on the phone, and once configured on both sides set up a tile or a combination of buttons with the Button Launcher app to easily open this assistant. Also select the default assistant in "Settings > Apps & Notifications > Default apps".
9. How to recover strength training from Google Fit?
Older users will remember this function that Google Fit had, in which it detected repetitions very precisely and automatically recognized the exercise you were performing according to the repetitive movement you were making. In addition, you could time the rest times between sets. Google removed this functionality in May 2021 without knowing the reason. To recover it download from here and install by sideload a version of Google Fit prior to that date and Fit Strength Training also by sideload to have direct access to strength training as weight machines or dumbbell exercises. You should also disable automatic updates to prevent Google Fit from updating to the latest version. More info about this here.
10. Alternative to Mobvoi Voice Memos:
Mobvoi included preinstalled in its previous models an app to record voice notes, in this watch has not included nor I could extract it from my TWP3, there is an alternative by installing Google Keep and activating the tile of the app you will have a very quick access to take voice notes.
11. How to install Google Translate?
I don't know the reason, but Google translate was removed from the Play Store years ago, it is not available neither for Wear OS 2 nor Wear OS 3, however, I had it preinstalled on TicWatch Pro 3 and the APK file works on TicWatch Pro 5. Here where to download it and install by sideload (Wear Installer 2, Bugjaeger or Wear OS Tools).The app supports more than 40 languages and allows you to translate phrases into different languages by voice. Once translated into text, turn your wrist slightly to enlarge the translation for your contact to see it.
12. How to use the Google camera app remotely?
If you have a Google Pixel phone or any of the latest Samsung phones you can control the camera from the watch using Google's app, Google Camera (v6.1 or higher). The moment you open Google Camera on the phone, the watch will show a new card called "Remote". If you touch it, the screen of your watch will become a viewfinder of what you see through the phone's camera, from the watch you can also set a timer (self-timer) so that, for example, you have time to position yourself since you press the shutter release on the watch, it also allows you to switch from the front camera to the rear, or vice versa.
13. How to link a pectoral heart rate strap?
The watch measures heart rate from the wrist quite accurately, but if you still want more accuracy, you can use chest bands, the Mobvoi app, TicExercise does not support pairing with chest bands, but Google Fit does. Install the app, and go to "Settings > Bluetooth sensors".
14. Application Recommendation
By Play Store
Google HomeGoogle Keep NotesGoogle Camera (*)Amazon Alexa: (*)Spotify Wear Casts: (*) Podcast playerShazam: Identify musicPeek News: (*) RSS feed reader.Seven: (*) Sports training appWear Favorite apps Launcher: Select favorite apps and access them as quickly as possible.Wear GPS Fix: Forces to get the GPS location of the watch.Wear Notification Helper: Another app to improve notification vibrations and more customizations.Bubble Cloud Wear OS LauncherLeftly: left-handed mode
By Sideload:
Install Wear Installer 2 and follow the steps in this video, basically it is to enable "developer options" and "debugging over Wi-Fi", pair the watch to Wear Installer 2, download the APk file of the app you want to install on the watch and install it with Wear Installer 2. Other methods are also available (Bugjaeger or Wear OS Tools).
Google TranslateGoogle Assistant GoButton Launcher: Customize physical buttonsJSyntax Button Remap: Customize physical buttonsSPayRemap: Customize physical buttonsFit Strength Training: restores strength training functionality that was removed from Google FitMusic Center for Wear: (*) Improve music controls of the watch You must install the version for both the phone and the watch.Vibration Center for Wear (*) Application for managing notification vibrations.WhatsApp: (*) For now, it is only functional Beta version on phone and watch.Note: (*) Also requires phone version.
15. How to change the ringtone to a custom ringtone?
Place an MP3 or OGG sound file in the "Ringtones" folder in the internal memory of the watch, and finally select that sound in the watch settings. You can make it easier with Wear OS Tools.As for the notification and alarm sounds, I have not found a way to change them, I guess it is blocked by Google, I hope that in future updates they will unlock the limitation.
16. How can it be configured so that only certain apps send notifications to the watch?
In the Mobvoi Health app on your phone, click on the "device" tab, then select "Settings" > "Apps and Notifications" and finally disable the apps that you do not want to receive notifications on the watch.
17. How to customize vibration patterns of notifications arriving on the watch?
Most notifications only vibrate for a short period of time so it is difficult to notice them. Install Wear Notification Helper or Vibration Center for Wear. Apps provide different vibration patterns to make the arrival of a notification noticeable
18. How to drain water from the speaker?
After swimming or showering, water may enter the speaker (this is the hole on the right side of the watch), and may change the sound quality. Select the water drop icon from the quick settings curtain (from the dial by dragging up and down). It will play a kind of audio trill that will expel the water that has accumulated in the speaker.
19. The hidden easter egg in the flashlight app does not work:
Not that it's a trick, but a curiosity, Google has eliminated in Wear OS 3 (in Wear OS 2 it still works) the easter egg of the Wear OS drum machine that appeared when pressing several times in the center of the screen with the flashlight app open.
20. How to use the watch's own GPS?
Disable GPS or Bluetooth on your phone. The watch by default first acquires GPS positioning via the phone, and if it does not detect it (e.g., because it is not connected via Bluetooth) it will activate its own GPS module.Another method is through the Wear GPS Fix app that forces the GPS location using the GPS module of the watch.In addition, to improve the location when you are training, activate the "High Performance Mode" option in TicExercises, this way it will update the GPS location more frequently.
21. How to adapt the watch to left-handers, i.e., to put it on the right wrist?
With the help of the Leftly app, the app inverts the interface 180 degrees so that the watch can be worn on the right wrist, ideal if you are left-handed and usually wear your watch on your right wrist. With this app you avoid the buttons facing your body, when they should be facing outwards.Once you open the app for the first time, enable the permissions for "Show on other apps" and "Modify system settings", and then enable accessibility for "Lefty". Finally, tapping the purple "Rotate" button in the app will invert the entire watch interface 180°. This will affect the apps, the watchface, the settings, basically everything on the watch, however, it is not reversed in essential mode.
22. How to automatically unlock the phone with the help of the watch and Smart Lock?
To avoid entering the PIN on the phone every time the (phone) screen turns off when you are near it, go (on the phone) to Settings > security > smart Lock, and add the watch as a trusted device.
23. What information is displayed on the secondary display?
The LCD screen provides a very important battery saving. It is intended for more basic use, however from the main screen of the LCD layer (showing date, time, steps taken and heart rate in the last minute) if you turn the digital crown you will scroll through 4 more tiles that provide real-time information.Note: You must turn one more turn to avoid accidentally activating these modes.
Real-time heart rate
Calories consumed
Blood oxygen saturation level
Compasst
24. How do the TicExercise heart rate training zones work?
During a sports training or when it detects that a sports activity is in progress, the backlight on the LCD display lights up in different colors to show at a glance which training zone you are in according to your heart rate, very useful to avoid looking at the display to see a particular metric. In total, there are 5 different colors to indicate different training zones.
Blue-green light indicates a light workout or warm-up (50%-60% of maximum heart rate).
Yellow light indicates that you are in the fat burning zone (60%-70% of HRmax).
Orange light indicates that you are in the endurance or cardiovascular zone (70%-80% of HRmax).
Purple light indicates that you are in the anaerobic zone (80%-90% of HRmax).
Red light, you are in the dangerous heart rate zone (90%-100% of HRmax).
25. How to activate developer mode in TicHealth and in TicExercises?
For now, I don't see any practical use for it other than to activate it and that's it.
In TicHealth, go to Settings and tap several times on "Version", and the option "TicFit Developer" will be activated underneath.
In TicExercises, go to settings, drag to the bottom and tap several on the app version number.
26. How to scroll through the tiles with the digital crown?
Go to "Settings > General", and enable "Horizontal scrolling between cards". If this feature is disabled you will scroll through the notification curtain and Quick settings.27. How to expand your training information?
From h.mobvoi.com you can access the platform where your workouts and other health data are recorded. It allows you to analyze your progress over the last 7 days showing metrics such as blood oxygen, heart rate and stress. It allows you to download reports in TCX format and is compatible with other services such as Strava and Garmin Connect.
28. How to 3D print a charging base for the watch?
There are downloadable templates on the Internet to print charging bases for the watch that in my opinion are even more attractive than the ones for sale, in my case I use the one I ordered with TWP3 some time ago, which works perfectly on TicWatch Pro 5.These 3D prints are housings just the right size to fit the watch's serial cable (TWP3 and TWP5 share the same cable). Basically, you would download the template file and go to a 3D printing store (if you don't have a printer, of course). I printed one and it cost me 10€, I was surprised by the finish, better than I expected. As a reference, I ordered the base in the first link with the following characteristics:
Material: PLA 3D850
Quality: Medium
Filling: 20%.
Here are links to some templates for the TicWatch Pro 3 (which I reiterate work on TWP5):https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4747297https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4618850https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4781821
29. Recommendation of 24mm Straps at Amazon & AliExpress
Replacing the strap is to give a complete facelift to the watch, a good combination can give an extra touch of style to your watch. Among the types of straps, by the material with which they have been manufactured you can find leather straps, imitation leather, stainless steel, titanium, platinum, silicone, resin, rubber, textile, nylon and ceramic.Note: Suunto straps are compatible with the watch, as they also use 24mm straps.The Asian market such as AliExpress is the one where you can find the widest variety of accessories with the best price, on Amazon you will also find accessories but as a general rule although you will receive the product before they are more expensive.To search for a particular accessory and narrow the search to the maximum, just type in the search box of AliExpress, Amazon or even Google accessory name + watch model. In the case of straps you only have to write the width of the strap, you can even include the type of strap material to narrow down much more what you are looking for.AmazonAliExpress
REVIEW TICWATCH PRO 5
I have owned the TicWatch Pro 3 since early 2021. It is a watch currently wearing Wear OS 2, the last system update it received was in August 2022.
When it was launched in summer 2021 Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 was considered the most powerful watch at the time, but I let it go, I didn't buy it. It was the first watch with Wear OS 3 (also exclusively) but it had and has too much dependence on the Samsung universe, with apps and functions on the watch that only worked if you have a Samsung phone paired, plus I personally preferred a purer Wear OS experience, without the One UI layer that Samsung put on top of Wear OS.
A year later the Galaxy Watch 5 was released, becoming the most powerful Wear OS watch, and for the same reason as Galaxy Watch 4 I didn't buy it.
Last October, Pixel Watch was launched, the truth is that I had high hopes for that watch, but I did not buy it either, finally it did not meet my expectations and there was very little of it that could leave me satisfied: The battery did not last more than 24 hours, screen much smaller than my old TWP3 and the design did not seem reliable for outdoor sports with the screen so exposed to shocks.
Since my TicWatch Pro 3 was still working fine, I was in no hurry to buy another Wear OS watch that wouldn't leave me at least as satisfied with my current one, until the TicWatch Pro 5 arrived, and this one really caught my attention.
Comparing the watch to the other Wear OS 3 watches currently on the market ...
... it outperforms them all in almost every important aspect:
Battery: Thanks to a 628 mAh battery (the largest of all Wear OS watches) and the cool trick of the dual screen that manages to reduce consumption to the maximum, there is no Wear OS watch on the market that lasts longer without charging it than TicWatch Pro 5 (3 days at least).
The screen: It has the largest screen (1.43"), The Pixel Watch has 1.2" and the closest is the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro with 1.4". For me this is important if you do outdoor sports and that you can see the information provided by the watch comfortably.
Size: It is the one with the largest size (48mm wide), if you come from the TicWatch Pro 3 (44 mm) you will hardly notice any difference, but if your previous watch was the Pixel Watch (41 mm) the difference is ostensible. If it's your first Wear OS watch and you have a small wrist it may feel awkward at first, but I reckon the larger screen certainly feels like a worthwhile benefit.
Power: It sports Qualcomm's Snapdragon W5+ Gen 1 processor which gives it the most power and battery life of any Wear OS watch out there.
Memory and Capacity: It is the watch with the largest storage capacity (32 GB) and RAM (2 GB). There is no other watch that even matches it in this right now.
Water resistance: It has MIL-STD-810H and 5 ATM certification, and supports swimming in open water, only Galaxy Watch 5 matches it in this aspect.
It is not the best, but it is among the best…
Sensors: TicWatch Pro 5 has a heart rate sensor (PPG) and blood oxygen saturation sensor (SpO2) like most Wear OS 3 watches. It also has a skin temperature sensor that for now is only being used in sleep metrics and also has Galaxy Watch 5. The latter watch has 2 sensors that the TicWatch Pro 5 does not have, however, these are more oriented to give health information than directed to sport, it is the ECG sensor to detect cardiac abnormalities and the bioelectrical impedance analysis sensor to measure the percentage of body fat, among other data.
Shock resistance: The Galaxy 5 Pro is probably more resistant thanks to the titanium body and sapphire glass covering the screen, as opposed to the aluminum body (and stainless steel bezel) and Gorilla Glass of TicWatch Pro 5, however, I must say that the hardness of TWP5 is not little by what I have checked for several years in my old TWP3 that has materials of lower hardness compared to TWP5 and has received countless blows without showing any blow to the body of the watch, plus it has obtained military certification MIL-STD-810H (only Galaxy Watch 5 has also achieved that certification).
They could improve on…
There is only one configuration available, with an obsidian black casing, as opposed to other Wear OS 3 watches such as Pixel Watch with several colors to choose from.
The charger is the same small connector with magnetic pins for charging that Mobvoi supplies from TicWatch Pro 3, I wish Mobvoi would just follow the industry trend and supply a "dock" style charger.
The buttons cannot be customized (officially) and there are no native wrist gestures. Interestingly, TicWatch Pro 3 does allow you to customize one of the watch buttons from the settings.
This watch has too many preinstalled apps. It includes Google's apps, obviously, and a huge suite of Mobvoi apps that work very well but that should be integrated several of them under a single app, especially the health and fitness apps (I count about 10 apps, TicHealth, One Tap Measurement, TicCare, TicOxygen, TicPulse, TicSleep, TicBreathe, TicZen, TicExercise and Mobvoi Treadmill), plus Mobvoi includes 2 navigation tools (TicCompass and TicBarometer) and 5 other apps with different themes (Timeshow Watchface, Calculator, Mobvoi Privacy, Media Control and Essential Mode Settings).
It does not allow you to change notification and alarm sound, only ringtone, however, I think it is a Google issue not Mobvoi's, as all Wear OS 3 watches have the same limitation.
Although it has a specific sensor to measure body temperature, you cannot make manual measurements, for now it is only used in the sleep metrics automatically, I guess in future updates will add some functionality that allows it.
It does not include an app to record audio and take voice notes as it did in TWP3.
About the update policy, Mobvoi is clearly not the best at it. TicWatch Pro 3 has not received an update since August last year, and its owners have been waiting a long time for the promised update to Wear OS 3, considering also that other brands in similar conditions, such as Fossil, have updated their watch to Wear OS 3 many months ago. Although they have missed the deadline, and many of us like to have the latest features as soon as possible, I must say that the update to Wear OS 3 of TicWatch Pro 3 would not be critical, that is, the watch currently works on Wear OS 2 normally, I've been using it as a daily watch for years and continues to track my workouts and alerts notifications. The update to Wear OS 3 mostly involves aesthetic changes to the interface and being able to use some app that are only compatible with Wear OS 3. The fact that it hasn't been updated hasn't written off your watch, the apps still work, I know there is a lot of upset, but I would still call for restraint, which from what I read from time to time seems to be the worst thing since 9/11.
Who knows what will happen with TicWatch Pro 5 updates, interestingly the watch has already received a small update since launch. Google has already announced that Wear OS 4 will be released soon, nothing is known about that, however, I am hopeful that they will not delay times.
I love it…
The TicWatch Pro 5 has the same design as the TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra. That's not really surprising because all TicWatch Pro models have shared virtually the same design. Their distinctive design gives them a sporty look and makes them instantly recognizable.
Mobvoi's version of Wear OS 3 is clean and nearly identical to what you'll find on a Pixel Watch. The only real difference you'll find comes from Mobvoi's preloaded apps.
The screen is protected by a glass of Gorilla Glass, which apart from the logical thing, namely that it protects against bumps and scratches is also able to repel fingerprints and dust. I love that I don't see the print of my index finger marked on the watch's display.
The digital crown allows you to scroll through the app drawer or notifications, increase or decrease the volume of music, it integrates with some apps for additional controls such as Google Maps or Spotify which allows for example to zoom in and out of maps with ease. The crown, therefore, has a very versatile control, it can even be used with gloves and the touch is pleasant.
Fast Charging, Mobvoi says that the watch should get a 65% charge in the first 30 minutes and that it takes just over an hour to fully charge, I can confirm, it does, they have not exaggerated anything. When charging it shows the charge level in decimals which I find very illustrative of how the fast charge is performing.
The smart essential mode allows you to set a time to automatically turn the watch on or off, so it won't enter that mode until it detects that you are sleeping or have taken it off your wrist. This is a wonderful feature to use during the night, as it still monitors your sleep, but uses even less battery than simply putting the watch into bedtime mode.
The "TicExercise" app, you can scroll through different views that allow you to see different metrics in real time (distance, pace, speed, heart rate, cumulative ascent etc.). You can even track workouts from the secondary display. On TWP3 I didn't like the Mobvoi sports tracking app, and had it disabled. They've improved it a lot and now I find it very reliable, in fact, it's the one I use on a daily basis. Also, the data can be automatically synced to Google Fit and Strava.
The 5 tiles that provide additional information in the essential mode when you're doing a sports workout, much like what you get with the color display. If you turn the crown button you can scroll through the screens, providing heart rate, calories burned, blood oxygen percentage and even a compass. Although I see some use for it, I find it a bit cumbersome to move through them when you're training, maybe Mobvoi should give this a whirl.
Also, if the watch practically runs out of battery, it will no longer become completely useless, now it can still track my workouts and even measure heart rate from the essential display.
During a sports workout or when it detects that a sports exercise is being performed, the backlight in the essential mode lights up in different colors to show at a glance which training zone you are in according to your heart rate and to avoid looking at the display for a particular metric. In total, there are 5 different colors to indicate different training zones.
Blue-green light is for gentle training or warm-up (50%-60% of maximum heart rate).
Yellow light for fat burning (60%-70% of FCmax)
Orange light indicates that you are in endurance or cardiovascular zone (70%-80% of FCmax).
Purple light, indicates that you are in anaerobic zone (80%-90% of FCmax).
Red light, which is in dangerous heart rate zone (90%-100% of HRmax).
The "TicMotion" function to detect a workout: It identifies if you are walking, running or cycling automatically, for example, if for at least 5 minutes you walk fast the watch will vibrate, identify that it is a walk and start to track it in real time, in the same way if it detects that you have stopped at a certain time, it will end the tracking automatically and generate the exercise log. If you are running it will start tracking after 3 minutes.
The estimated time needed to recover from the activity: Provides an estimate of how long it will take you to fully recover and be ready for your next workout of the same intensity. Recovery time can range from 0 hours to 4 days. As you log more activities, it will learn more about your overall fitness level, giving you a more accurate recovery time.
The Sports & Health platform: Accessed from h.mobvoi.com, it shows all the activities that have been recorded from the mobile, statistics and you can make comparisons with other workouts.
The "One Tap Measurement" app provides in 90 seconds, 5 metrics at once (heart rate, blood oxygen, respiratory rate, stress and an overall heart health score).
The apps "TicBarometer" and "TicCompass": The first one measures the atmospheric pressure changes and the altitude where you are, and the second one is a very functional compass. Interestingly TWP3 has also barometric sensor and compass, but they didn't include official apps for these sensors, you had to use third party apps.
I don't know what they have done, but clearly, they have improved Google's Gboard keyboard, despite the size of the keyboard now you get without barely correct all the time, when I was typing in TWP3 it was agonic, you can clearly notice the difference.
The Bluetooth handsfree calls, works very well, you hear and are heard correctly. Very useful if you have your hands busy or you are doing sports. Also, the contact book of your phone is synchronized with the watch and you can make calls to any contact.
Other considerations:
With the strap they have changed from the 22mm size used on all previous TicWatch Pro models to a new 24mm size. The 24mm strap size somewhat limits the choice of third-party straps, though there is availability of course, plus it's not a proprietary design as the Pixel Watch strap system is. They can be perfectly interchangeable, as it uses a classic spring pin system and you can put on any strap with that width.
There is no LTE version of the watch, nor have they communicated anything regarding an upcoming release, however, it is possible that Mobvoi will release an LTE version of the watch in a couple of months in the same way they did with TicWatch Pro 3 in 2020 and TicWatch Pro 3 Ultra in 2021, where they released LTE version, 2-3 months after the GPS version.
TicWatch Pro 5 (and all other watches with Wear OS 3) no longer use the "Wear OS by Google" app on the phone as a companion app. Each watch manufacturer will now provide its own app. TWP5's is "Mobvoi Health" which in addition to helping pair the phone to the watch, manage health and fitness, you will find typical stats, such as steps, heart rate and sleep, as well as workouts.
All the functions and apps of the watch work completely with any Android 8 or higher watch, that is, practically all Android phones. In addition, I believe it can also be paired to an iPhone (I don't know how it does it), but from what I've read not all of its functions are available, for example, it misses out on the quick response, reserved for Android phones.
With Wear OS 3 you gain compatibility with apps that in Wear OS 2 you can't use, I highlight 3 apps: Google Home, Deezer and Strava.
For now, the Google Assistant is not included, it is possible that this lack is caused by a Google/Samsung exclusivity agreement as other models such as Fossil Gen 6 which is updated to Wear OS 3 since last October does not carry it either.
Using the watch for daily use and workouts I found that the heart rate and GPS tracking were on par with other watches such as Garmin. I went for a run with the TicWatch Pro 5 and Garmin's Forerunner 255, and although the Mobvoi watch took a little longer than the Garmin to latch onto my location, it positioned well once it did.
This is useful information . Thank you
I am waiting for my ticwatch 5 pro to be delivered at present i have Samsung Watch3,4 classic,5 pro. wanted more internal memory
which samsung arrogantly refuses to give.
I would like to know if you have tried sideloading the Google assistant apk from Samsung watch 4 or 5
Nice hints. I'll wait for LTE version and consinder upgrading from my TWP3U then.
By the way, recently I came to know that the updated version of our beloved FeelTheWear app has been released: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lavaray.feelthewear2&hl=en_US
It's still limited in features comparing the version for WearOS 2, but it's definitely worth to keep an eye on
kingwicked said:
This is useful information . Thank you
I am waiting for my ticwatch 5 pro to be delivered at present i have Samsung Watch3,4 classic,5 pro. wanted more internal memory
which samsung arrogantly refuses to give.
I would like to know if you have tried sideloading the Google assistant apk from Samsung watch 4 or 5
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have Galaxy Watch 4/5, however I don't think it can be migrated, I'm sure someone has tried it with Fossil Gen 6 which has been on the market for a while and is in the same situation as Ticwatch Pro 5. If the migration would have been successful they would have reported it. on the forums.