The Ticwatch S2 can compete well against other entry-level smartwatches. The Ticwatch Pro is a great flagship watch but is it worth upgrading?
The last review I wrote was the Ticwatch S2 and the Ticwatch E2 which basically are two watches with minor differences.
Luckily this time, I wouldn’t have to pull out the microscope to find the differences between the Ticwatch Pro and the Ticwatch S2. If the E2 and S2 are identical twins, the Pro and S2 are like siblings, with the Pro just having graduated university while the S2 is still in high school.
“Just graduated university?”
University should ideally equip you with all the skills you need to be employable.
The Ticwatch Pro has all the features needed to compete in the higher leagues of the smartwatch market. That’s great.
The Ticwatch S2 is an entry-level smartwatch which can hold its own on the appropriate tier of competition. It just isn’t a full-fledged watch with nice-to-haves like NFC that is available on the Ticwatch Pro.
The Ticwatch Pro also has a nice metal watch case and a leather-topped strap that makes it look much more respectable and professional. The Ticwatch S2 contrasts with a full-plastic watch case and a full-silicone strap.
The Ticwatch Pro definitely is a heavier watch and there’s an upside and downside to that. It definitely gives off the impression that it’s a more solid watch. At the same time, it also requires a tighter strap in order to stay in position, leaving unsightly marks after you take it off.
Winner: Tie
Hardware
The TIcwatch S2 is more affordable and has a great number of features, but not as many as the Ticwatch Pro. The Pro has all the features that equal the flagship models of the high-end watches.
But one great feature that only exists on the Ticwatch Pro is the dual-layer screen. No other manufacturer makes this. What we have here is the Ticwatch Pro having one power-saving LCD screen and another that is a full-colour, full-feature LED screen.
The advantage to this is that, first, the more you use the LCD, the longer your battery life will last. The second is that the LCD reflects light and therefore the brighter the ambient light, the clearer the LCD screen is.
The Ticwatch S2 has one button while the Ticwatch Pro has two buttons. The one-button operation is great because it’s very simple. The two-button operation is also great because you can customize the buttons’ functions.
Both watches have the same processor and RAM — the Snapdragon Wear 2100 processor and 512MB RAM. Performance is OK for the most part, except after the first boot-up where things grind to a halt, but thereafter, it’s mostly OK.
Oddly enough, for a flagship watch, the Ticwatch Pro does not have any waterproofing. This is a major downside if you intend to take it into the pool. The Ticwatch S2, on the other hand, shows young sportspeople doing a myriad of sports, including going surfing. Certainly, the S2 has a US-MIL-8100 military rating which they promise that “your watch can withstand extreme temperatures and conditions.”
Winner: Ticwatch Pro
Battery Life
So the battery life of the Ticwatch Pro should be better than the Ticwatch S2, right? I mean, it has that dual-layer screen.
Yes, indeed it does have the potential to have greater longevity if you use it conservatively. At the same time, if you use the colour LCD screen all the time, you won’t get further than the Ticwatch S2.
Both watches will last two days with moderate use (which means no use of internal GPS for example.
The Ticwatch Pro has the potential of lasting longer while the S2 will be exhausted by the time the two days are over.
The Ticwatch Pro has an “Essential Mode” that will disable many features and also the colour LED screen. That will really extend the battery life of your watch.
Winner: Ticwatch Pro
Wear OS
Both watches come with Google’s Wear OS operating system. It’s a really good operating system because of Google Assistant, great interfacing with Android phones and the breadth of apps.
Google Assistant
Google Assistant is one of the best voice assistants out there. Its only major competitor is Siri.
Why is Google Assistant so good? Because it can reduce the tedious tasks that you would otherwise have to do manually.
Being able to start a timer on the Ticwatch Pro or Ticwatch S2 is easy. Just long-press a button and Google Assistant will activate. You can also ask Google Assistant to find certain information for you just as you can ask it to find directions for you.
What sets Google Assistant apart is how it is able to transcribe your speech well. That reduces tedium and frustration.
Winner: Tie
Emails and text
On both an iPhone and Android, you will be able to receive notifications of your email and texts. However, only on an Android will you be able to respond to them.
The great thing about the Wear OS is that it has one of best reply functions out there. When you receive an email or a message, you could reply using the speech-to-text function, keyboard, handwriting function or by using a pre-composed reply.
Having a good speech-to-text transcription service really helps. It’s the most efficient way to get your message through and my preferred way to input text. It is my preferred way because the quality of the transcription is excellent on the Wear OS.
If you are in a quiet environment, you can also handwrite letters to form words or use the 26-alphabet keyboard.
Unfortunately, unlike the Apple Watch or Samsung smartwatches (paired with the smartphones of the same brand), you will not be able to access your email list or message log. In my experience, this is a nice feature to have, but one that I rarely use.
Winner: Tie
Calls
Since the Ticwatch S2 does not have a speaker, you will not be able to chat on phone calls on your smartwatch.
While it’s not an essential feature, I find that having the convenience of being able to answer calls on your smartphone to be very useful, especially when you need to answer a call quickly and don’t want to go searching for your smartphone.
Call quality is good on both ends on the Ticwatch Pro.
On the Ticwatch S2, you can accept or decline calls, but if you want to chat, you will need to speak on your smartphone.
Winner: Ticwatch Pro
Sports
Don’t take the Ticwatch Pro into water! But feel free to take the Ticwatch S2 into the swimming pool.
The Ticwatch S2 has a Pool Swim app that the Ticwatch Pro doesn’t.
Otherwise, both watches have an integrated GPS for when you want to exercise without bringing your smartphone for location data.
Software-wise, the Ticwatch S2 and the Ticwatch Pro have the same software. Both come with Mobvoi’s proprietary software — TicHealth/TicPulse/TicExercise. They also come with Google Fit.
Both systems overlap each other in their functionality, so it’s a real dilemma to decide which one to use. The advantages Google Fit has include having more exercises which it can track. The Mobvoi suite has an inactivity tracker that reminds you to take steps.
Winner: Tie
Verdict
Both watches have their place for different tiers of consumers. If you are looking for your first smartwatch, the Ticwatch S2 offers great functionality at a great price.
The Ticwatch Pro is like an upgraded Ticwatch S2 with more features like NFC and a speaker. In my experience, the Ticwatch Pro is a great watch and is definitely better than the Ticwatch S2 overall.
However, the Ticwatch Pro, competing with the highest tiers of smartwatches, has strong competition. While the Ticwatch S2 is one of the best entry-level smartwatches, the Ticwatch Pro has a harder time competing with other flagship watches.