review – If you’ve been looking for a smartwatch lately, I can’t blame you for being overwhelmed. Of course, there are mainstream top-tier smartwatches like the Apple Watch, Samsung Galaxy Watch, and Google’s upcoming Pixel Watch, which are getting quite a bit of attention. While these watches have top-notch features, they also come with top-notch prices. So if you look at the budget smartwatch space, you’ll quickly find that you have more options than you could possibly bargain for. Let’s review one of them: the ACHOICE smartwatch.
what is it?
ACHOICE is an inexpensive smartwatch ($49.99) that at first glance will make you think it’s an Apple Watch. But it works with both Apple and Android phones.
What’s in the box?
- ACHOICE Smart Watch
- 26 inch USB magnetic charging cable
Manufacturer Specifications
- Model: ID207 Mini
- screen size: 1.5 inches
- weight: 5.9 oz
- Watch size: 0.33″ thick, 1.57″ high, 1.25″ wide
- Phone Compatibility: Android 6.0 and above, iOS 9.0 and above
- 5ATM waterproof
- Battery: 210 mAh Li-Ion battery. 5-10 days for each use, 30 days for standby. 2 hours charging time.
- Bluetooth: 5.1
- Silicone strap
installation and setup
Using ACHOICE smartwatches is very easy. When you turn it on (press and hold the circular button on the side), you’ll see a QR code that you can scan to go to the app store where you download the VeryFit app. The watch uses Bluetooth to communicate with your phone, so when you bring the watch close to your phone (with Bluetooth turned on, of course), the devices will recognize and pair with each other. Once paired, you can enable many features and options, which I’ll cover in the next section.
Design and Features
ACHOICE looks like an Apple Watch at first glance. In fact, several people noticed I was wearing ACHOICE and asked if I liked my Apple Watch. But there are some pretty clear differences between this watch and the more expensive ones.
The ACHOICE smartwatch is definitely lighter than the Apple Watch, the silicone band is super easy to put on, and it has plenty of grooves to fit any size wrist. You can also easily remove the strap to place another. There’s a circular button on the side of the watch, just like the Apple Watch, and pressing it activates the screen. This button does nothing other than activate the screen. On Apple Watch, you can scroll the button to move through menus, press it to select options, press and hold it to perform certain functions, and more. But it doesn’t do much on ACHOICE except to activate the screen.
On the back of ACHOICE, you’ll see a charging connection using a magnetic charging USB cable. You’ll also see that the heart monitor has to touch your skin for the watch to collect your health data.
Performance
In addition to my ACHOICE smartwatch, I have my wife and daughter wear it to compare with their devices. My wife has a FitBit Charge 2 strap and my daughter has an Apple Watch series 3. They all swear by their devices and use them every day, so comparing ACHOICE to more expensive ones is a good test. Here are some pictures comparing ACHOICE to the Apple Watch:
When wearing ACHOICE, I found that if I didn’t wear it tightly around my wrist, it couldn’t collect health data from my body. My wife and daughter found the same thing. My daughter says she doesn’t have to wear the Apple Watch so snugly.
The three of us use ACHOICE 24 hours a day and we all use it for about 3-4 days before needing a charge. ACHOICE says you should use 5-10 days, but we never got that much. Having said that, my wife says the battery performance is comparable to her FitBit, and my daughter says she basically has to charge her Apple Watch every day because she uses it a lot. So I think the battery of the ACHOICE smartwatch is pretty good.
The first thing you’ll notice is that when you’re navigating the screen on ACHOICE with your finger, there’s a slight delay when swiping or pressing the screen to select an option. It’s just not as smooth as more expensive devices. My daughter noticed it right away, she often mis-presses things she didn’t want to.
ACHOICE’s feature list is impressive. The VeryFit app is great and allows you to set all your watch options without having to navigate the watch screen. You can set 14 workout modes, which I found to be more than adequate for my needs. My daughter wanted more options. She often does activities like rock climbing and kickboxing at her fitness center, which ACHOICE doesn’t have, so she finds herself often opting for a generic “fitness” mode. The device is also sold internationally, so if you find yourself standing in front of a wicket with a bat in hand, you’ll find the “Cricket” option! My daughter also said that ACHOICE doesn’t seem to be as accurate as her Apple Watch. She runs 3 miles a day, and she says her Apple Watch shows her 3 miles, but ACHOICE always shows her about 2.75 miles. She experienced the same thing while counting her steps. She believes that ACHOICE slightly underestimates her step count compared to the Apple Watch.
You can set 3 weather locations for real-time information. You can use the Find My Phone feature to find where you put your phone. You can control the music while exercising, which works great for me. The screen activates when you lift your wrist, which is what you’d expect. Of course there are alarms. There are 4 brightness levels and I have no problem using it in bright sunlight. You can also change the watch face to suit your style, which is easy to do in the VeryFit app. It also collects all the standard health data you can expect…heart rate, steps, distance, calories burned and blood oxygen. It also measures your “stress level”, pretty neat. You can even set your ACHOICE smartwatch to remind you to get up and get some water! It even has a feature called “breathing training,” which is a great way to calm, relax, and slow your breathing.
You can also use a “family” feature, which I can’t test since I only have 1 ACHOICE. If other family members also have ACHOICE, you can both connect your watch to the VeryFit app and track each other’s health data. I think this would be a great way to get your kids involved in healthy activities and make them healthier by challenging each other.
You can also choose to get notifications from your phone calendar as well as incoming calls and text messages. However, you can’t take calls or reply to text messages like you can on more expensive smartwatches. Honestly, I find this refreshing. I used to wear a Samsung Galaxy smartwatch and when I got a text or a call I felt obligated to reply because I could. I can’t explain it, but it’s instinctive that the watch is an extension of my phone, so I usually just answer calls and reply to texts by voice on the spot. My daughter said the same thing to her Apple Watch. What we’ve all experienced with ACHOICE is that it’s nice to be notified that we’re getting calls and texts, but the stress of not responding right away because our bodies can’t do it is refreshing. As strange as it sounds, using ACHOICE is an unexpected benefit.
Finally, the feature I use the most on ACHOICE is monitoring my sleep. Every morning I pick up my phone and check the VeryFit app to see how many hours I slept, how much light versus deep sleep I have, and how well I sleep. It records months of data so you can compare how your sleep has progressed over time. My wife and I have started comparing our sleep data, motivating us to compete with each other on quality sleep.
what do I like
- It’s light, and the strap fits easily on anyone’s wrist
- battery is good
- great price
- Customizable home screen design
- The list of features is long, such as stress levels, breathing training, weather, music controls, and more.
- You can’t reply to text messages or answer phone calls (some might put this in the “What I want to change” section!)
what would i change
- There is a slight delay when swiping the screen, and sometimes you tap something you don’t want to tap
- Exercise data is not 100% accurate
- More expensive smartwatches have fewer sport modes
final thoughts
If you want a full-featured smartwatch that can take calls, reply to text messages, and even use it when you’re away from your smartphone, then the ACHOICE smartwatch isn’t for you. But $49.99 gives you a pretty impressive list of features that cover a lot of budget bases. If you want to monitor your health and sleep, and you can just see notifications from calls, messages, and calendar items, and manage your music while you work out, this watch is a great choice. And I guess it doesn’t hurt that it looks like an Apple Watch at first glance, right?
price: $39.99
where to buy (this: Amazon (Safe $5 with Instant Clips coupon and $8+ with coupon code: 7JZJIONC expires June 19, 2022)
resource: The samples for this review were provided by ACHOICE.
