Huawei Talkband B1: review, photos and reviews. Smart watches and bracelets

As a result of Huawei's first attempt to conquer the world of portable electronics, a really rare device appeared, which on the market can not be found infrequently. TalkBand B1, which was first demonstrated in February 2014, is a fitness tracker that can connect to the phone. However, instead of simply displaying call information, the device actually functions as a Bluetooth headset. Huawei TalkBand B1 is sold at a price of $ 166.

Two in one

The gadget is very similar to the FitBit family or even to the Sony SmartBand. In fact, this is a plastic strap, which houses the main unit, which tracks the distance traveled and sleep. The difference from other similar devices is that the core of the gadget, taken from the bracelet, becomes a full-featured Bluetooth-headset.

Huawei TalkBand B1: Design Review

The strap of the fitness tracker is made of hypoallergenic materials and is resistant to sweat and ultraviolet radiation to prevent its fading. Large (16-20 cm) and small (13.5-17 cm) sizes are available. Degree of protection of Huawei TalkBand B1 from dust and water is equal to ip57, which means the possibility of submerging 1 m under water for up to 30 minutes. Although it allows you to swim, it is better to limit your shower. There are only two buttons on the B1: there is a switch on the side, which also serves as an interface switch, and on the bracelet there is a button that ejects the earpiece when it becomes necessary.

The detachable part has a slightly curved 1.4-inch screen. It is not touch-sensitive and simple to the extreme, but its OLED technology provides good readability in daylight. By default, the display does not show anything. Using the side button, you can display the current time and battery level. Each subsequent click causes the number of steps passed, the sleep time, the number of calories burned, and returns back to the clock. In addition, the gadget displays the caller's data on an incoming call.

The headphone is slightly larger than most other Bluetooth headsets, but these devices do not have a screen. Although few users are fans of blue, the B1 is quite comfortable to wear, and the bracelet is completely securely attached to the arm. Nevertheless, southpaws are likely to require a device check before purchase, since the placement of the button and the orientation of the display are best suited for wearing on the right hand. In general, Huawei TalkBand B1 reviews of owners are praised for the rather neat design.

Battery life

The battery capacity of 95 mAh, according to Huawei, provides 6 days of battery life, although long conversations quickly bring this time to nothing - as a gadget gadget will last 7 hours. The Huawei TalkBand B1 fitness bracelet is advantageous in that, for charging or connecting to The docking station does not require the use of a special cable. With the earphone installed, you can simply flip the end of the strap to open the charging system and simply plug it into any USB port or charger. Completely the battery is restored in 2 hours.

Functionality

The user can specify a gadget to make a signal in case of inactivity of its owner, set the rate of steps and set up a smart alarm clock. Like other similar fitness trackers, Huawei TalkBand B1, when the sleep cycle goes into a shallow phase, vibrates for a while to wake up its owner. For example, you can set an alarm at 7 am with a ten-minute window. To give a signal, from 6:50 the tracker will wait for an exit from deep sleep. In addition, TalkBand has one little realized feature of a smart alarm clock - it can wake a person who is going to fall asleep. This will please students, gamers, truck drivers and TV lovers.

Bluetooth Headset

Smart-bracelet Huawei TalkBand B1 Black performs two different functions - a Bluetooth-headset and a fitness tracker. The earphone becomes a device if it is removed from the strap. In this case, the headset connects to the phone and changes the function of a single button module - it allows you to pick up the phone or end the conversation. The volume control is not provided. In terms of quality of communication and voice, B1 is a reliable device. According to the owners who used it both indoors and outdoors, the sound is clear, at the other end of the communication line the voice is heard clearly, albeit with a slight metallic echo. You can answer the call if you remove B1 from the bracelet. This is accompanied by a slightly strange sensation, but the device functions well, even if you have to dig a little to find and remove the earpiece. For some users, the Bluetooth headset is not suitable. The kit includes silicone nozzles in three sizes, but none of them fit. According to them, it seems to them that the device is about to drop out of the ear. This does not happen, but you have to constantly worry about the safety of the headset.

Fitness Tracker

According to some users, they were disappointed that the Huawei TalkBand B1 application does not allow you to track the execution of individual exercises. But those of them who simply searched for a reliable pedometer, do not see any problems in this. The recorders of the steps and the duration of sleep work accurately, but the relatively large size of B1 means that it is not very comfortable to wear at night. In addition, since you can not specify the time of falling asleep, the device takes into account any period of inactivity as a dream - if you remove it while working at the table, the gadget will fix the sleep period in the middle of the day. If a fitness tracker is worn while running or other fairly intense activity, then the bracelet quickly causes profuse sweating. Although TalkBand is waterproof, like Sony's SmartBand, water can penetrate the gap around the main unit, so owners quickly stop taking a shower with it.

Although B1 can be worn as a clock, the need to press a button to see the time causes discomfort. In this case, the gadget has all the necessary sensors, so that the display turns on when the bracelet is brought to your eyes. This is realized in modern smart watches. Of course, this is only a fitness tracker, but if its main screen represents a clock, then this desire does not seem excessive.

Huawei TalkBand B1: instructions for working with TalkBand app

With regard to the TalkBand application, Huawei seems to have taken a course on a tough fool protection policy - the user interface is simply nowhere to go. First you need to enter your gender, age, height and weight, needed to calculate the calories burned. The default interface allows you to monitor the number of steps passed and the duration of sleep. Clicking on any of the indicators displays an hourly breakdown throughout the day. Or you can compare sleep and steps throughout the week or month.

The data collected by Huawei TalkBand B1 Blue is synchronized with a Bluetooth-enabled smartphone using the Huawei TalkBand application installed on it, which is available for devices running Android and iOS. There is no automatic data download capability (probably for energy saving reasons). Synchronization is performed when the application is opened or forcedly updated. The main screen of the program contains information about how the sleep passed, and the current fitness information. If you drag your finger to the left, you can go back to the history of the data collected day after day, or by touching any measurements (the number of steps, distance, calories, sleep), filter the information for the selected parameter. You can look at beautiful simple charts for the day, week or month. Application settings are minimal - you must enter personal data, set the daily rate of the steps, enable or disable the reminder and, if necessary, set the alarm parameters. The application definitely does not do an in-depth analysis and does not provide mountains of useful information, but it works without problems and at any time allows access to data.

Conclusion

Bracelet Huawei TalkBand B1 is not exactly a "jack of all trades", but the device is approaching this. Trying to perform two different functions, the manufacturer company proved to be competent in both, but in none of them was not up to par. This is, of course, a reasonable concept, ideal for those wishing to have a Bluetooth-headset without the need for its permanent wearing. But you can find earphones and trackers better. So, unless there is an urgent need for a device that combines them, it's better to wait for the next generation of TalkBand.