This time of the year has seen a lot of fitness-focused smartwatches being released. The Moto 360 second generation smartwatch was announced by Google earlier this year and the company confirmed that a sport model would be coming too. It is the company’s first sport and fitness focused watch. At least this will motivate us to be more active. GPS system was integrated with this second Android smartwatch. It is set to hit the US market on January 7th and I managed to get my hands on one of them.
Design
The Moto 360 Sport is somehow similar to the 2nd Gen model that was released earlier in the year. The design is very beautiful and quite similar. The internal design and screen size is also similar to that of the 2nd Gen model. However, there are some slight noticeable changes. The Silicon band is integrated and cannot be changed like in the standard Moto 360 2015 Edition. It is durable and sweat proof. It feels very comfortable on the wrist. The only problem is that it gets dirty within a very short time. The mic is located on the lower left side. Its display features a brand new Motorola AnyLight Hybrid Display tech whcih easily adapts to the environment. The backlighting looks great in the dark.
Internally, the Moto 360 is nothing short of awesome. It is powered by a 1.2 GHz Quad-core processor. The RAM is 512MB and the internal storage is an impressive 4GB. The battery is quite smaller at 300 mAh. There is an optical heart rate monitor that is positioned on the center of the back. Just like in the standard Moto 360, charging is performed wirelessly on a dock.
Software
The Moto 360 Sport runs the Android Wear 1.3.0.x and it is performing perfectly so far. There are some fitness focused applications and a fitness watch face. The Moto Body and the Moto Body Running are some of the applications. It allows you to view your heart rate, step goal status and the calories burned status. The start button close to the middle of the display launches the Moto Body Running app that gives you different options on how to start your run. All you have to do is flip the display for more information while running. The inbuilt GPS sensor allows the user to enjoy the features of the smartwatch without being connected to a smartphone.
Features
The most interesting feature of the Moto 360 Sport is definitely the inbuilt GPS sensor which is uncommon in many smartwatches. You can take the Moto 360 with you on a run in the field or to the gym and do many other things without having to carry your phone with you. You can still track your steps, heart rate, count calories and much more with the inbuilt GPS sensor.
There is another feature that is known as “Anytime Display” that makes the smartwatch to look a lot better than its competitors especially when outdoors. It features a brand new hybrid display technology and it automatically adjusts to maximum brightness while outdoors. I found that it looks awesome in direct sunlight especially if it is switched to the lower power black and white state. The display is just the same as others when on full colors.
Performance
I put on the Moto Sport together with some other smartwatches for comparison. I put on a Gear S2 and a polar V800 to see how they would all do. I went out for a run while running the Moto Body app. The polar V800 was running Polar Flow and the Gear S2 was running Nike+. The distance was the same on both Moto Sport and the V800 Polar while the Gear S2 was slightly higher. It showed a slightly lower value for the calories burned than the other two.
The battery life is supposed to last a whole day when the hybrid display is set to auto according to Motorola. This is improved by the ambient light sensor which automates the screen brightness. You can turn this off and set the brightness yourself and this will help you get an even longer battery life.
Conclusion
The first impressions of the Moto Sport look very favorable so far. The smartwatch is very comfortable, has a very light weight and the silicon band feels great on the wrist. I almost forget that I was wearing it and all the fitness information you can ever imagine can be received by simply flipping your wrist. I have only spent a few hours with it and I already love it. If you are a fitness enthusiast looking for a smartwatch that suits your needs and your personality, I think you should give it a try.
