Today I am comparing the Ticwatch 2 and the Pebble Time 2. I am evaluating the following categories:
Appearances. Price. Hardware. Software. Fitness.
Appearances
Ticwatch 2 has two bezel designs. One design uses black (Charcoal) or silver (Snow) anodized aluminum. The second, more premium design uses black plated (Onyx) or bare (Oak) cold forged 316L stainless steel. Regardless of which one you choose, they will set you apart from the crowd. All four materials have a silky texture that not only feels good in the hand, but also earns you compliments wherever you go.
The Pebble Time 2 is available in black, gold, and silver. All Time 2's use 316L stainless steel shells. However, they are square screens instead of traditional round screens like the Ticwatch 2.
Price
The Ticwatch 2 starts at $199 for the Charcoal and Snow models with Anodized Aluminum and Anti-Scratch Glass. The Oak and Onyx models with 316L Stainless Steel are available at $249 and $299. Oak model uses Anti-Scratch Glass. Onyx uses Sapphire screens. The Time 2 is priced at $199 for all three colors, black, gold, and silver. They use Gorilla Glass for all three styles. Unlike the Ticwatch 2, there is not an option to upgrade to an option built with Sapphire screen. Sapphire screens are one of the strongest screens available on watches. Pebble missed the boat on this one. Always give consumers the choice between a standard product and an upgraded one.
Hardware
The main hardware in the Ticwatch 2 are
- Strap Width 20mm
- Shell Anodized Aluminum/Forged 316L Stainless Steel & Polycarbonate
- OS Ticwear 4.0 Global Edition
- Compatibility iOS 8.0+/Android 4.3+
- Chipset MTK MT2601, 1.2GHZ dual-core
- RAM/Rom 512M/4G
- Display 1.4inch OLED display, 400x400, 287 dpi
- Always-on Mode Yes
- Bluetooth Bluetooth v4.1
- Wifi 802.11 b/g/n
- GPS Glonass + GPS + Beidou
- Sensors Optical Heart rate Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Accelerometer, Gyroscope
- Mic/Speaker Yes/Yes
- Battery 300 mah
- Charging Magnetic Wireless Charging
The main hardware in the Pebble Time 2 are
- Strap Width 22mm
- Shell 316L Stainless Steel
- OS Pebble OS
- Compatibility iOS 8.0+/Android 4.3+
- Chipset ARM Cortex M7, 144mhz
- RAM/Rom 128K/16MB
- Display 1.5inch 6 bit 64 colors, ePaper display, 200x228, 202 dpi
- Always-on Mode Yes
- Bluetooth Bluetooth v4.0
- Wifi N/A
- GPS N/A
- Sensors Heart Rate Sensor and Accelerometer
- Mic/Speaker Yes/No
- Battery N/A
- Charging Proprietary Charging Cable
The Shell
The shell of the Ticwatch 2 consists of a combination of Anodized Aluminum, 316L Stainless steel, and Polycarbonate depending on which model that you select. The Pebble Time 2 is available in marine grade stainless steel. You could choose to purchase the Pebble Time 2 in black, gold, and silver. Sure, "marine grade stainless steel," sounds cool, but it is only another name for stainless steel. Thus, both the Onyx and the Time 2 use the same shell materials. For both watches, different shells do not change internal hardware or software.. They are simply aesthetics.
Display
The display of a smartwatch is as, if not more important than the shell around it. Ticwatch 2 uses a round 1.4inch OLED display with a resolution of 400x400. Pebble Time 2 has a square 1.5 inch, ePaper display with a resolution of 200x228. The blacks on the Ticwatch 2 display are the deep blacks that we have come to expect from the OLED display technology.
Yes, the Time 2 has the ability to display colors, but it is limited to only 64 colors. The new screen is an improvement over black and white screens used in previous Pebbles, but it the colors are washed out and not as enjoyable as the Ticwatch 2's AMOLED screen. The difference is night and day. AMOLED, should be the standard until more refined screen technologies are released.
Display Glass
The Ticwatch 2 product line implements two types of screen materials, Anti-Scratch Glass and Sapphire. The Charcoal, Snow, and Oak models use Anti-Scratch Glass. The Onyx models uses Sapphire screens. Pebble used Gorilla Glass on all three colors. Some say that Gorilla Glass is great and resistant to all damage, but the truth is that it is not a significant improvement over other screen materials. On the other hand, Sapphire proves to be the holy grail of watch materials. Not only does it objectively look better under strong sunlight, it feels more premium than all other glass materials. If you value your investment and style, Sapphire is definitely worth the extra cost.
Connectivity
Ticwatch supports wireless 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.1. Besides Bluetooth 4.0, Pebble Time 2 does not support any other type of wireless connectivity. Ticwatch 2 has the option to use both its Bluetooth connection and its faster 802.11 b/g/n connection to download apps, watch faces, and biweekly OTA updates, all without using a phone. Unfortunately, the Pebble Time 2 requires you to use Bluetooth to download apps, watch faces, and OTA updates, only if your phone is in range. Pebble's choice to support only Bluetooth data transfer handicaps the smartwatch's capabilities. Wifi and and Bluetooth should be standard on all smartwatches.
Fitness Tracking
The Ticwatch 2 has a whole suite of sensors and antennas that allow you to use it as a standalone fitness tracker and music player. Its Glonass, GPS, and Beidou chipsets makes it possible for users to leave their phone at home and still track their workout and running details. The data is instantly available on their phone and synced to Google Fit, Runkeeper, and Strada. Ticwatch companion takes in the information and creates a map of your workout path. You can quickly share it on social media using the convenient sharing icon. The Pebble Time 2 is marketed as tool for fitness tracking, but it does not offer GPS to use it as a standalone fitness tracker like the Ticwatch 2. It uses its accelerometer to record the number of steps that you took, but it can not save GPS information and visualize your routes on a map. Time 2's lack of GPS forces athletes to carry their cellphones if they wish to record more than their heart rate and step count. A true fitness tracker has heart rate monitors and GPS.
Software
The Ticwatch 2 runs on Ticwear OS Global Edition last updated in November, 2016. The Mobvoi team has committed to biweekly updates for the Ticwatch 2. Your Ticwatch 2 will always be on the latest operating system. Pebble used to promise monthly or bimonthly updates, as needed. They never officially announced their update cycle. The figure is based on my first experience with Pebble smartwatches.
Both the Ticwatch 2 Pebble Time 2 support Android and iOS devices. It is quite convenient to not have to purchase a new smartwatch when you switch mobile platforms. You can simply charge the watch at night and choose whichever phone you would like to use. It will work with your phone, just get up and go.
Ticwatch 2 has a feature called Tickle, a touch sensitive strip on the side opposite from the crown. It offers an intuitive method of navigating through applications and throughout the Ticware OS Global Edition. Pebble Time 2 forces you to use buttons on the watch to navigate through its user interface. It is not as intuitive as the Tickle since you have to think about which buttons to press to accomplish your task. The Tickle strip will allows you to quickly scroll through lists of notifications and menus and find what you are looking for.
Another important difference between the two smartwatches is the ability to be used as fitness tracker without requiring the user to pair a phone to it. The Apple Watch is not able to do this, thus if you want to use it as a fully functional fitness tracker you must bring your phone with you. Ticwatch 2 allows you track your workouts without forcing you to bring your phone with you. Despite buying armbands and running vests, it is still very cumbersome to keep my phone on me while running. Using the Ticwatch 2 phone-free fitness tracking with GPS recording solved my issues.
Screenshots. It is impossible to take a screenshot on Pebble Time 2 without connecting it to a computer using developer tools and command line. Even then, it is not completely reliable, sometimes impossible. On the Ticwatch 2, all you have to do is double tap the Crown and a screenshot is sent to your phone. It is a better user experience than the Pebble.
AI Voice Interaction
Only the Ticwatch 2 offers AI (Artificial Intelligence) voice assistants. You can use the voice assistant to do just about everything you could do on your phone. Call a friend, view and reply to texts and notifications, find a restaurant, or even call an Uber. Even though the Pebble Time 2 has microphones, it does not have a voice assistant feature. Some users speculate that the feature was removed to reduce the power usage. Others think that the watch lacks the processing power required to understand and send the commands between the watch and phone. At the end of the day, it is unacceptable for the Pebble Time 2 to not support basic voice commands.
Hands-free Gesture Control
The Ticwatch 2 supports using Flip and Knock gestures to answer phone calls, activate AI voice assistance, and controlling your music players. Despite the fact that Pebble Time 2 is Pebble's fifth smartwatch, the Time 2 still does not offer any hands-free gestures besides lift to wake. There are no technological or hardware limitations that prevents Pebble from supporting these features. Hand gestures significantly enhance the user experience and improves safety while driving.
Phone Companion Apps
Both watches have companion apps on the phone that allow you to control settings on the watch. The Ticwatch 2 companion app allows users to add and change watchfaces, manage notification settings, and launch the Ticwear Store to download more apps for your Ticwatch. The companion app for Pebble Time 2 has feature sets similar to the Ticwatch app. Companion apps for both watches were well made with little to no issues during my testing.
Final Verdict
My experience with the Ticwatch 2 and Pebble Time 2 taught me that immense hype does not translate into a decent product. Time 2 is not Pebble's first smartwatch, it is their fifth one. Thus, consumers and media clamored to receive their watch. Ticwatch 2 is Mobvoi's second foray into the wearables industry. But, it met the Time 2's expectations and more. Ticwatch 2 impressed me with its built-in GPS and locally stored music, two features glaringly missing from the Time 2. The Ticwatch 2 has an interactive AI voice assistant that can call me an Uber and hands-free gestures that allowed me to safely answer and reject calls while driving. The Time 2 does not compare in both style nor functionality. Therefore, the Ticwatch 2 deserves a spot on your wrist.
Check out the Ticwatch 2 at the following link (https://en.ticwear.com)