At this year's IFA 2014, ASUS also released its Android Wear device, called ZenWatch. Unfortunately, this small stone with less outstanding appearance failed to stir up a thousand waves on the IFA with star products. Just when it was about to be forgotten, we picked up this low-key device again to explore its heart.

Appearance design and hardware:

As for the appearance of ZenWatch, to be honest, it is not the appearance design of MOTO 360 and LG G WATCH R that can make people feel "wow handsome" at a glance. The practical square screen, the black silver color matching body, and the original factory's standard khaki watchband have nothing to show.

However, after I started playing, I began to slowly learn to appreciate the watch with thick materials on my wrist. The stainless steel body exudes a high-end flavor, but the ZenWatch is not heavy, on the contrary, it is very light, which may be related to its small body, and the original watchband uses leather, which makes the ZenWatch very comfortable to wear.

The earthy yellow watchband may not match clothes well, but it doesn't matter, ZenWatch's watchband is a universal type, which can be freely replaced by users, and it is also very easy to remove the watchband. There is a small switch on the watchband, which can be removed by pressing it gently without any tools. The design of the watch buckle is the same as that of traditional watches, which is not outstanding, but easy to use.

The most unsatisfying thing about ZenWatch is the power button. This power button is hidden near the back of the watch body. It's hard to find and press it. Fortunately, this power button is rarely used for ZenWatch. In terms of hardware, ZenWatch has a built-in pedometer and heart rate sensor, and its body has IP55 level waterproof and dust-proof capability. In general, ZenWatch is one of the smartwatches with the best hardware design and workmanship on the market.

Screen performance:

The ZenWatch screen is a 1.63-inch AMOLED screen with a resolution of 320 × 320. The color of this screen is full and vivid, the viewing angle is very wide, and the brightness is high enough. There is no problem when it is used outdoors. The screen surface is covered by an arc glass, and the fingers slide on it comfortably and naturally, But the frame of the screen can run a horse (after all, there are many sensors inside).

The traditional advantage of AMOLED screen is black. The ZenWatch screen can be completely integrated with the frame when displaying black, which reduces the visual drop caused by the wide frame to a certain extent.

Performance:

1.2Ghz Snapdragon 400 processor plus 512MB RAM, ZenWatch's configuration of hardware performance is very mainstream, and this performance is more than enough for a watch. ZenWatch responds quickly in daily operations, and the UI does not have any stuttering or frame dropping, so there is no need to worry about a standardized system and hardware.

Software:

Google has completely blocked the way for manufacturers to customize the system on the Android Wear platform, which makes the systems of various smart watches on the market completely consistent. Manufacturers have to do everything possible to make a variety of dials to make themselves different. ZenWatch's dials choose the latter between beauty and functionality. The optional dials can display dates Remaining power, missed calls, weather and pedometer.

In terms of supporting APP, ASUS has developed the ZenWatch Manager, which allows users to further customize the ZenWatch dial, or select the information to be displayed on the dial, and ZenWatch can also provide the function of near unlocking, so when the phone is opened with a watch, if the phone detects that the ZenWatch is nearby, it will automatically skip the password input; When there is an incoming call or alarm clock, cover the dial with your palm to turn off the alarm clock or ringing tone; In addition, you can control your mobile phone with a watch to send an emergency call message to the preset emergency contact person; Use a watch to remotely control the phone to take photos; As for finding mobile phones, preventing loss and other functions, these are all small tricks.

Battery life and charging:

The built-in battery capacity of ZenWatch is 360 mAh. Asus claims that the endurance of ZenWatch can reach a whole day. In the past few days when I use it, The endurance of ZenWatch is far beyond the official data of ASUS. The average endurance of ZenWatch has reached two days when the open screen is always on. AMOLED screen should be the biggest contributor. If the dial background is set to black, the endurance may be further improved.

The ZenWatch's charging interface is located on the back. Charging it requires a dedicated charging base. However, this charging base is really ugly and cheap. It seems that ASUS has implemented pragmatism thoroughly.

Summary:

As a result, this is the case with ZenWatch. The classic low-key design and solid materials make it easy for those who are familiar with ZenWatch to feel good about it, while the smooth system like cloud and water makes this good impression spread to the watch itself. The complete sensor configuration and excellent endurance make ZenWatch a good smart watch.

However, the most satisfying part of ZenWatch is the price of 199.99 US dollars, which is almost one of the cheapest smart watches at present. ZenWatch has indeed achieved low prices and high quality. There is no doubt that ZenWatch is the ultimate representative of pragmatism in smart watch products.

advantage:

Classic low-key design and solid materials;

Excellent battery life;

Excellent screen performance;

Low price;

The software has rich functions.

Disadvantages:

The charging base is too ugly and cheap;

The design of the power button is anti human.

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