Whoever says anything, Motorola is a glorious brand. It was this company that was one of the first to release smartwatches based on the Android Wear platform. The first two generations of the iconic Moto 360 emphasized the brand’s distinctive style.
The Canadian company eBuyNow was already engaged in the development and release of the new generation. Together with Motorola, they tried to do everything to fix a bunch of shortcomings and keep the uniqueness of the watch. Has it really become good? Today we will tell you.
Appearance and material
Moto 360 is made in a classic design with a round screen. Diameter – 42,8 mm, thickness – 11,68 mm, and strap width – 20 mm. The size of the watch is optimal for both men and girls to wear them. Moreover, in addition to the versions with the color Phantom Black and Steel Gray, the Rose Gold option is offered.
The body is made of solid stainless steel. The coverage differs depending on the version of the watch. For example, Phantom Black has a scratch-resistant DLC coating, which is a diamond-like carbon coating. It is resistant to salts, acids and all kinds of alkaline liquids.
Steel Gray and Rose Gold have PVD coating. It is a vapor-phase condensation spray that can prevent scratches.
Among other things, the Moto 360 can be submerged in water to a depth of 30 meters, so you can shower with it without any problems. You can also safely enter the sea, because the watch has successfully passed the test for 10 swims.
Any classic-sized straps can be fitted here. Perhaps this does not make any sense, since two straps are put in the kit for the Moto 360 at once – leather and silicone.
The latter is hypoallergenic and is recommended for use during sports. The straps are really good, since they do not cause skin irritation, and in themselves they are very pleasant both to the sight and to the touch.
However, in addition to straps and watches, you can find a charger and documentation in the kit. By the way, I really like the idea of making the box with the kit round. Looks stylish, you don’t even want to throw it away.
The bottom of the Moto 360 is made of plastic. The heart rate sensor does not stick out much, so it does not leave marks on the skin. There are two buttons on the right side of the case.
The first one rotates and is responsible for navigating through the menu screens, the second one allows you to launch the action selected in the settings.
In addition, in sports mode, this key allows you to pause or continue training recording. It’s too bad the buttons don’t have a tactile feedback. Moreover, there is no talk of any functional chips. Any double or triple clicks are not provided here.
Front metal and black frame. Looks great, but I have a complaint about the second frame. I don’t understand why she’s here. With it, the display visually becomes smaller, especially after installing light dials.
Display
The third generation Moto 360 finally has an AMOLED screen. The diagonal is 1,2 inches, the resolution is 390 × 390, and the pixel density is 327 ppi. There are no questions about the quality of the display. It is bright and rich, and the picture is not distorted at wide angles.
If you look closely, the pixel grain is still noticeable. Not critical, but with such a high density you expect something else. The display also supports Always On Display: a useful feature, but at night the screen with it remains too bright.
The display is covered with Gorilla Glass 3. I am sure it is more durable in comparison with previous generations, and all because the previous versions had a slightly convex glass.
Here the glass is slightly recessed into the body. Surprisingly, dust and dirt around the edges rarely collects. The oleophobic coating is at a very high level here. I think that some watches from other companies are critically lacking such a plus.
Software and functionality
The watch runs on the Wear OS platform, which was previously referred to as Android Wear. It is a clean shell with a nice interface and smooth animations. Its only drawback is the lack of cool chips: everything is simple and concise. Fortunately, they are sometimes added with updates. The most interesting thing I noticed here is the support for various gestures.
The lack of useful programs is compensated by the possibility of free downloading directly from the built-in Google Play. All your favorite apps are click-to-install, like Telegram, Spotify, Uber and more.
If you want to track your activity during your workouts, you can download programs such as Strava and Nike Run Club. Fortunately, the watch has a GPS, a heart rate sensor, a calorie counter and a pedometer.
A Snapdragon Wear 360 processor is installed inside the Moto 3100. Today it is already a slightly outdated version, since it was released back in 2018. RAM – 1 GB, constant – 8 GB, of which 5,5 GB is available for installing applications and downloading music.
The clock works well with no noticeable lags. Connecting to the network is via Wi-Fi at 2,4 GHz, and synchronization with a smartphone via Bluetooth 4.2. By the way, about the control from the phone. There are no proprietary normal applications, you have to use the standard Google Fit and Wear OS.
With the first program, physical activity can be monitored and analyzed. With Google Fit, you can automatically track your strength training. Among all platforms for smartwatches, here for the first time, automatic recognition of any strength exercise has been implemented.
For example, Moto 360 is independently capable of recognizing more than 30 types of exercises, the number of repetitions and breaks. This feature is enabled in the Google Fit settings in the “Workout” – “Strength training.”
And while Google Fit is packed with functionality, the Wear OS app is too boring.
It allows you to select watch faces, view scheduled events, manage voice assistant settings, and even take a screenshot of the watch screen. The only strange thing is that the latter feature is available only to Android users.
Thanks to the built-in NFC chip, you can use contactless payments with Moto 360: using the Google Pay app, the bank card is linked with lightning speed. I am glad that I did not have any problems at the checkout when making a payment.
Autonomy
The Moto 360 has a decent 355 mAh battery. If not for Wear OS, the watch could last a couple of days without recharging, as the manufacturer promises. But in fact, the gadget is discharged on the morning of the second day.
This means that by the evening of the first day, the watch should be put on charge. It’s nice that they have provided fast charging technology, thanks to which the watch is able to replenish its energy supply from zero to one hundred in just an hour.
There is no wireless charging here. However, this is not a problem. A standard USB device connects to the Moto 360 using a magnetic connector, allowing the watch to be placed horizontally on a table. What for? For example, to follow notifications from social networks.
Price and withdrawal
Today in Russia you will have to pay for Moto 360 25 990 rubles… Let me remind you that the watch went on sale in April 2020: it is available on the Moto website, as well as in partner stores. All users who bought Moto 360 in a branded store are provided with 2 years of official warranty and support, as well as a guarantee against any liquid damage.
The watch has a great design and a great screen. The hardware may seem outdated, but there are currently no options on the market with a more recent processor from Qualcomm. Wear OS is the freshest here.
It’s intuitive, but I want to point out that skins from other manufacturers offer more options. However, the watch is getting updates, and every time there are more features. And you can expand the functionality of the watch using the Play Market application store.
And I would also like much better autonomy than now. It is not very pleasant when the manufacturer promises one thing, but in practice it turns out to be a sad story.
In spite of everything, this is the best smartwatch among all Moto 360. The new generation has come to us with a bunch of fixed problems and nice innovations.
