Playground.ph BW300 Smartwatch Review
Playground has announced another cool device that for sure sporty and casual people will love. Meet the BW300 a Sports type Smartwatch with a durable rubber material. The BW300 is a very easy to use device, no complicated setup on usage just pair it with your bluetooth device and download the dedicated app its good to go.
[section label=”Build and Design” anchor=”design”]
Build and Design
Let’s take a look at first the build and design.
Technically it has a polycarbonate plastic material that I can say it’s a solid build and will not easily break. It’s rubber strap is seamlessly wrap around the watch which makes it really neat and stylish, it’s a combination of grey and neon green color, the rubber material is the same as the materials used by branded sports wearable like Nike. a IP67 certified which makes it a water-resistant but not waterproof of course so don’t tempt to soak it on a liquid.
The the strap lock is a pure metallic material with a very large strap hole for easy locking on wrist. In terms of design playground didn’t put any branding with this device as you notice not a single logo of playground will be seen in this watch only when you bootup the watch and that is only 2 seconds.
The glass or display is transflective which means every on a bright daylight usage the images or text in the display will still be clear and not washed out. its a touchscreen display also which makes navigating very easy with just simple gestures of swiping from left,right, up and down.
It only comes with a single button and the purpose of that is to power up the device and unlock the screen, but I do wished they added a tap to wake up on this device since pressing the button sometimes needs a harder press. but that is just nit-picking from me 🙂
In front is a 240 x 240 pixel screen with a circle on top of it and that is the UV sensor or Ultra violet sensor, a feature of the device that I will discuss later.
Now moving to the actual functionality of the watch, the device can be paired to any Android devices running on Android KitKat or Lollipop and also for iOS devices running on iOS 7 and above. In order to maximize the feature it needs to pair with your device and also download the dedicated app that can be seen in the settings then scroll down and see the Download App , then it will load the QR Code for you to download the app.
Another way to download the app is to go to the Google Play Store and search for the MediaTek Smart Device it’s also similar with the one on the watch itself the only difference is if there is a firmware update you need to use the dedicated app that is built-in to the watch, but either or both are functional.
[section label=”Feature” anchor=”feature”]
Feature
Here are the list of the device features
- Phonebook — This syncs all your phone contacts and can remotely access using the watch
- Remote Dialer — It has a virtual dialer in the watch itself and you can dial from it and even make calls the watch has a built-in speaker and microphone but I do not recommend using it when making calls since kinda akward. You can also pair it will other bluetooth devices like the BH200 simultaneously and disable the one on the watch so that the call will go thru the bluetooth headset and not on the watch.
- Call Logs — same with the phonebook you will see all your received call and missed calls
- Messaging — It’s only a Message viewer from your smartphone , there will be a reply and call button but the reply only shows template message and there is no way to edit or add custom reply but the call button will automatically dial the number which is really convenient for quick calls.
- Remote Notifier — the watch will receive all the notifications on your smartwatch unless you turn off the app that you don’t want to be notified on your watch , take note that having all the notifications on you watch will drain your battery faster.
- Find my device — this feature will alarm your device and vice versa it will also alarm the watch in case you lost your watch but take note that this will only work if the device in near the Bluetooth signal coverage.
- Alarm — Works as an alarm clock and it’s very loud and vibrates so for sure you will wake up with this feature.
- Calendar — simple calendar viewer
- Bluetooth Music — remote control for your smartphone Music player. This will only control your built-in app not the downloaded apps like spotify and others.
- Remote Camera — it launches the camera with no buttons and the watch will act as a remote shutter button and view finder , after taking the shot it will show a preview of the shot taken from in the watch
- Bluetooth Connection — you will see all your Bluetooth devices
- Settings — all the settings will be seen here.
- Ultra Violet — app that show how the sunlight affects your skin, it shows some smileys to show if the sunlight is too harsh
- Pedometer — Step tracker
- Yahoo Weather — weather app
[section label=”Battery Life and Charing” anchor=”battery”]
Battery life and Charging
The BW300 includes a dedicated USB charger but the adapter is not included. but any charger will work it less than an hour it’s already fully charged. The battery life is a case to case basis if you’re going to optimize your notifications and just turn on only the apps that you want to get notified let’s say Facebook , Instagram, Messages you can have a battery life of 1–2 days. but if you turn on all of your notifications it can only last less than a day so be sure to optimize the apps you only want.
All of that can be adjusted in the App for the smartphone. But if you disable all the features and you will just use it just for looking at the time it will give you a battery life of 3–5 days which I think not bad for a smartwatch.
The charging port is quite sensitive and can be easily detach so be sure to put in on a place that it will not be moved also the charging cable is not invertable so be sure to put it in the right position.
[section label=”Verdict” anchor=”verdict”]
Verdict
Overall comparing to other local smartwatches I have tried the BW300 is as of now my favorite for the price tag of Php3,990 you can what you want a sporty look watch that is not to bulky and heavy to wear then a functional features that works. I’ve been using it for almost 2 weeks already and I can say the rubber material is really sturdy and durable. but there are times that it get’s disconnected with the smartphone once it got less than 40% of battery juice and if you turn on the alerts like find my device it will alarm continuously so be sure to disable it if you don’t want to get annoyed.
But then if you’re looking for a smartwatch that you want to use for your sports and outdoor activities I highly recommend the BW300 it’s perfect for any outfit even in tuxedo since it looks futuristic but none the less playground did great job again with this device the additional watch faces is a nice addition to choose with.
