Smart wearable devices–smartwatches and smartbands–have started to make inroads in the commoners’ lives.
Traditional watches are going obsolete by the hour.
More people are going for digital timekeepers in place of their traditional analog cousins.
This has given birth to two replacements for conventional wrist watches: smartbands and smartwatches.
It may seem confusing to some but the differences between them are noteworthy.
Simply put, smartwatches are like tiny smartphones on your wrist–with some limitations.
And smartbands are smartwatches without some gimmicky features.
Let’s know each in brief.
SmartWatches
An almost 3 inched screen placed on your wrist. Bulky? Yes!
It’s like having a compact smartphone right on your wrist.
You can make calls, reply to your WhatsApp, email, and use some apps.
It can also track your fitness parameters like steps walked, heart rate, blood oxygen, sleeping patterns, and much more.
These functions vary among particular models, though.
They ship with dedicated operating systems. And, the apps are well tailored to give optimal experience with the smaller screens.
That being said, you can’t effectively replace your smartphone with a smart watch.
Owing to the much smaller screen, a sudden shift from the huge smartphone displays feels tough.
E.g., typing is not that easy, even with voice typing.
Practically, there is a limit to how much short you can go with screens.
You could have excused a switch from desktop screens to smartphones. But it’s not the same with wrist-mounted displays.
Ultimately, the smaller real estate becomes a hindrance for the smartwatch to become smartphone-level productive.
Additionally, you need to charge it daily or maybe twice a day.
So, they’re not ideal for 24 hours tracking because you’ll lose some tracking hours while your smartwatch juices itself up.
Some brands claim up to two days of battery life, but that’s the best case.
SmartBands
In line with their athletic look, they are more value for money.
They were originally designed for fitness enthusiasts. But people from all spheres are now choosing to have one on their wrists.
Like smartwatches, they can also monitor your bodily functions.
Their screens measure up to 1 inch. Consequently, they are smaller and much comfortable to wear.
Their battery lives can range anywhere between 5 to 20 days or even more.
They come with a bare-bones operating system. As a result, no apps, no emails, and no calls.
Although, it can notify you about calls and messages.
SmartWatches vs SmartBands
Smartwatches were invented as a blend of smartphones and traditional watches. But I doubt it’s doing justice to either.
It’s more like a fancy toy on your wrist–although sophisticated.
It’s hard to compare smartwatches and smartphones other than in price and battery life.
Smartphones are way more efficient–thanks to their bigger displays and powerful processors.
Smartwatches are good for fitness fanatics, but then you have smartbands doing all that at one-fifth of the price.
Great battery life and smaller price tags put smart bands way ahead of smartwatches.
Both come with some sort of waterproofing.
Smart bands come with rubber straps. So, they can withstand water easily.
But, smartwatches come with all sorts of strap materials–leather, metal, fabric, etc.
So, you must check the water resistance of individual strap material before jumping in the pool. Otherwise, you can keep the replacement strap ready.
Final Words
This article might have may felt like beating the life out of smartwatches.
And rightly so, after all, they ended up as an expensive plaything more than anything else.
Smart bands and smartphones are a perfect combination. You may need both, separately, at times.
But, such a duo can’t be made with a smartwatch being one of its member.
It feels like a liability on the wrist which isn’t exclusively great at anything.
Smartwatch are like the least productive version of a smartphone, and a way too expensive gadget for a fitness tracker.
Conclusively, purchase a smart band because either way, a substitute for a smartphone is not on the shelf yet.
It’s an efficient and great value-for-money wearable device.
