Review: Moto 360

Text and photos by Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

Motorola presents the most cohesive concept of what an Android smartwatch could be today by offering a high-degree of customization, some variety in finishes, as well as useful health tracking features. 

A progenitor of many of today’s health-trackers and smart watches, Motorola’s MotoACTV was launched in 2011 to lukewarm interest. Fast-forward to 2013 and Motorola, now in transition between Google and new owner Lenovo, has taken the Motoactvs four-year old processor and built one of the most compelling smart watch offerings around it.

Android Wear is a new fork of the Android ecosystem, one that’s very much in its infancy and while features of the new OS are limited to push notifications from Google Now as well as a handful of third party apps, the potential is huge.

Motorola presents the most cohesive concept of what an Android smartwatch could be today by offering a high-degree of customization, some variety in finishes, as well as useful health tracking features. 

-Canadian Angle – 

Moto 360 is coming to Canada this Fall on TELUS which has the exclusive on the accompanying Moto X as well. While this is the third Android Wear device to come to market so far, its premium look and circular form factor makes it one of the most anticipated devices to come to market.

-Form

The round or semi-circle design of the Moto 360 is integral to the device’s identity. Looking at their earlier work, some of the failed devices released by competitors and the current LG and Samsung smart watches, Motorola felt like they would be forcibly cramming technology into a wrist, which wasn’t an ideal way to go.

Starting from scratch, the company decided to create a wristwatch first and let the functionality and ‘smart-ness’ follow suit. For this, they dug deep into the horological vocabulary, immersed themselves in the watchmaking world and decided on a round smartwatch because it’s an accepted, recognized and universal icon for a timepiece. Check out our special feature on the design story of the Moto 360 here.

Going straight for stainless steel, leather and other premium materials, Motorola set off to create a smart watch that would fit the enduring concepts of what a timepiece should look like and they even provide a selection of digital faces to represent some of the more historic watch faces as well as some trendy ones. 

The Moto 360 is a pleasant surprise, it can pass for a cool Fossil or Guess watch at first glance and while some users may find the size quite large, others will like it specifically for that feature.

It looks heavier than it actually is,  and you can wear it all day without even noticing it is there. The Moto 360 is also water resistant but having a leather strap makes it imperative that you don’t get it wet, in fact you may not even want to use it while you work out because sweat and leather=gross.

Thankfully, the strap is removable, but because of the stealthily designed enclosure, I would leave any bracelet replacement to a proper watch service centre. Various Moto 360 owners have already switched  their bands to nice metal bracelets using, of all things, the stainless steel accessory band of the Pebble Steel. 

While the shape of the Moto 360 is circular, the screen is not a perfect circle. A small band cuts off what could have been a perfect circle on the display, Motorola says this is where ambient sensors and some of the backlight components had to be placed. After a week of using the Moto 360 extensively, I wasn’t bothered by this bar at all and feel that this will bug few users. 

The black leather bracelet and the plastic clasp in my review unit were understated and rather muted which I like, other users might want a bit more pizzazz like a brighter case or a metal bracelet. Motorola has these and they’re quite attractive, but they’re coming in a few months and it isn’t certain if Canada will be getting them at all. 

-Function -  

Moto 360 runs Android Wear and has three ways for users to interact. You can tap on the screen and swipe to where you need to go, you can press the button that serves as a crown or you can voice activate it to call up Google Now’s services.

All of these require a Bluetooth connection to your compatible smartwatch and you can use the Moto 360 to set alarms, appointments, and reminders, send text messages, emails, set timers, agenda items and notes using Google Keep.  You can also check your steps and enable the heart monitor to check how you are doing with your fitness goals.

Voice is really the best way to interact with the Moto 360 because the menu system is a bit kludgy to use since there’s no way to search or type information. It reminds me of the early iPod navigation, which meant scrolling and drilling down to specific functions.

Thankfully, the voice component is quite natural and responsive but you sometimes have to try various phrases to get to where you want to go. 

Gestures are also part of the experience, the Moto 360’s screen stays dormant until you raise it up and it is supposed to light up as well as automatically adjust the screen to the current lighting conditions.

This didn’t always work for me, I found that raising it up doesn’t always bring up the screen and sometimes it takes a few tries for it to ‘hear’ your ‘Ok Google’ command. So, while it is great that hands-free use is front and centre, but not so great that it feels inconsistent at times. 

Just the other day, I was rushing through the airport and had my hands full, I just wanted to get the time, and as I raised the Moto 360 to my face, nothing happened. I repeated the motion to trigger the backlight or wake the device, but no cigar.

I had to use my nose to get the screen to turn on and even then it sputtered back to life with the wrong time before quickly correcting itself.

Navigation, another function rooted in Google services, works quite well. You can use your voice to ask to, “navigate to…” and the Moto 360 will give you a range of options, choose one and it will give visual turn-by-turn directions.

During times in between directions, the screen will go dark and then light up again as you’re approaching a turn or change in your direction. Motorola said this glance as you go system is ideal for cyclists. It is usable by drivers but it does distract you from keeping your eyes on the road, even for a split second.

The Moto 360 received a lot of flack for its battery life early on and I don't know why; my experience has been very good. I take the watch off the charging dock at 7 AM and have it on me until I get into bed around 11 PM and at that point there’s anywhere between 30% to 45% left (and it charges right up to full in around an hour). Maybe my use is lightweight or I don’t get that many emails, but I found the Moto 360’s battery life to be one of its best features. 

-Who is it For? 

That’s really the question isn’t it? I don’t just mean for the Moto 360, but for the whole wearable/ smart watch phenomenon. After spending a week and a half with the Moto 360, I feel it is everything I expected it to be and more, but at the same time I know I can live without it.

I love the round screen, the well-designed watch faces, having Google Now on demand, and the ability to get silent notifications without pulling out my smartphone. The pedometer seems accurate, the heart rate monitor is just okay, but it's not something that I use a lot or care for.

The hit or miss nature of the screen (doesn’t always wake from sleep), the occasional sputtering of animations and dinky menu system aren’t ideal and while a lot of this is due to the beta nature of Android Wear, some users will feel let down by this. I found out later on that you could opt to have the ambient screen on, this means that the Moto 360 is more aware of movement and any small movement will light it up in a dimmer mode. This all comes at an expense to battery life, at least users have choices on how they'd like the Moto 360 to react.

 

If you’ve desired an Android smart watch, the Moto 360 is likely the most unique option out there today. I know it runs on a four-year old processor, but Moto’s managed to make it work well despite this. The best of Moto 360 seems to be coming down the line in a few months with more premium-looking models as well as some sweet stainless steel bracelets.

-Conclusion

It’s still so very early in the smart watch game but we’re already seeing some great advancement. I loved my Pebble classic and used it constantly despite its limitations, but after using the Moto 360, I can’t seem to go back to the Pebble. 

 

As a modern timepiece, the Moto 360 is well designed, looks smart and is as functional as Android Wear allows it to be. The wireless charger works well, battery life is good, and anyone who already uses Motorola’s smartphones will have a nice companion smart watch.

Wristwatches are some of the most personal items out there, users should definitely ‘try before they buy’ and see if the Moto 360’s size, look, and function are what suits them best.

For me, the Moto 360 is the best thing right now, until a better thing comes along.

Rating: 4 out of 5