In the process of looking for a smartwatch to integrate with my Android phone, I came across the Fossil Q Wander. I thought the design of this watch looked absolutely stunning that I had to buy it! The one I purchased features a stainless-steel Fossil watch band, with the potential to change watch bands easily. I purchased the watch from Harvey Norman online. It took about 5 days to arrive, but it was well worth the wait and here’s why…
The smartwatch came with a magnetic charging cable, which latches onto the back of the watch face easily for charging and an instruction manual. In order to setup the watch, I had to charge it until it reached at least 20%, install the “Android Wear” app on my phone from the Android app store and switch on Bluetooth (on my phone). The app took me through connecting the watch to the phone, so it would receive all my notifications.
For those looking to purchase one of the Fossil Q Wander, it’s worth noting that a firmware update will be required before setup (this can be accessed through Settings > System > About > System Updates on the new firmware and from memory, this was in the same location before the update, but I could be slightly wrong here). I made the mistake of setting the watch up first before upgrading the firmware and trying to work out why all my notifications weren’t being received. After upgrading the firmware, the watch started receiving notifications, however, I had to learn how the new firmware worked as it was different.
Once the notifications started displaying on the watch, I started going through the different watch faces the watch came with, which were branded “Fossil” and able to be customised. I then had a look through the Android App store and found two apps that really appealed to me.
The first app that appealed to me was “1000+ Watch Faces”. This app has 1000 different faces to choose from, as well as an analogue or digital face view with different fonts. The next app that interested me was called “Swift”, as it showed more data such as phone battery and watch battery, time/ date, and had the option of adding missed call, message information, colour alterations and much more. While you can change which watch face you use, it’s worth noting that once these apps are installed on the watch, they also need to be installed on the phone as well, due to the fact that customization for the watch faces needs to be applied on the phone.
In terms of data or WiFi, the watch can be connected to WiFi itself, but won’t receive notifications unless it’s connected by Bluetooth to your phone. While the watch itself is connected to Bluetooth on your phone, it will use whatever data the phone is using for notifications your phone receives, or any apps you wish to install on the watch. Every notification your phone receives will pop up on your watch. If you swipe up from the bottom of the watch face, you will see all your notifications present on your phone. If you wish to swipe a notification right to remove it (like you would on your Android phone), the notification will disappear on your phone as well (vice versa).
When receiving messages (by SMS, Google Hangouts, WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, etc), you have the option of replying to the message by typing on the watch face using a keyboard, replying with an emoji or by voice. If you choose to reply by voice, after speaking, the watch will display what you said – this seems accurate so far for the few times I have used it.
As for the battery, it lasts quite a while. Probably beyond the 24 hour mark, but I do charge the watch every night. By the end of a working day (about 8.5 hours) the watch usually finishes between 75-80% full.
If you’re looking to get a screen protector for the watch, they are sold on eBay quite cheaply, but I wouldn’t recommend a glass screen protector, as the slightest knock to the watch (that you barely notice) will crack the protector. For this reason, I would recommend the standard plastic protectors, which stop the face from scratching. The watch does come with one on it, but you can purchase more on eBay.
All in all, I would definitely recommend this watch for it’s smooth design and features. I haven’t tested it with iOS, but there are reviews on this out there.
