At the time of this review (JAN2024), a few software updates have helped to ensure a more stable experience. It wasn't the cleanest first few months as far as stability goes. Such is life with a first gen piece of tech.
Things I like: coming from the Pixel Watch, I appreciated the new form factor and material selection. The screen, button tactility and band all feel top notch for a watch at this price point.
Things that left me wanting: the software experience leaves much to be desired. I guess my specific needs for a smartwatch have found their way into the premium price segments, things that should be present in any smartwatch. I'll explain:
Disconnects. The watch will disconnect from the host device [Nothing Phone (2)] seemingly at random. I change timezones often throughout a day. It's not ideal that the watch will disconnect and therefore will no longer poll current GPS data to make the change, creating confusing moments that make me have to overlook the watch and go back to my phone just to observe time. This could be solved by allowing users to select a default time zone [such as UTC] but that's not an option currently.
Notifications. After seeing how obnoxious pure native notifications can be to manage, it was a nice change of pace to only see important notifications such as RCS/SMS and a handful of critical apps. However, while the app has access to my contacts, will never display the contact name. Rather, the number. Truly an oversight for a design focused firm.
The face selection. Echoing the sentiment of multiple time zones above, none of the in-house faces offer this feature. For a professional [Pro is in the product name], this is not workable and is a common feature on analog or 'dumb' digitals. Again, a genuinely confusing oversight. They do look nice, mostly. There is the option to customize your watch face, but the options are stark and begs the question if it should even be a feature.
I'm sure that with time and some hardware iterations, future CMF Watch Pro versions will join the sea of capable wrist companions. But as a first effort, this is a less than optimal entrant.
I'll continue to support CMF/Nothing though, because I believe in their brand(s) and their leadership. It's refreshing. But if future products launch with this much turbulence, there is a plethora of competitive options to choose from both now and in the future to serve as viable safety nets.
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