I joined in the Try-The-Tech (TTT) programme for the 1st time on the latest round of loaned devices. I've been thinking about the possibility of using a smart-watch so opted to try the Microsoft Band.
I'm really glad I've given one a test run, as it's made up my mind not to buy one 😳
So here goes, my first attempt at a review for TTT.
Upon arrival the Microsoft Band comes in a neat box, with the band and it's usb charging cable (no plug). The only instructions are a little sticker saying to plug it in to turn it on. Once plugged in a message pops up telling u to download the the Microsoft health app. From there you sync the device to your phone, which in my case is an iPhone 6s.
After I'm all setup, I immediately started to look at how to send a text... That's a no go as you can't send a text, you can read incoming texts by pressing the action button, and they're displayed one word at a time until the entire text has scrolled passed. It's quite disconcerting and for me was not much use.
Next I tried the calling feature, which doesn't allow you to initiate a call, or in fact receive one. All it does is vibrate to let u know your phone is ringing, so once again no real use to me! It does however notify you of missed calls by displaying a number next to the phone icon, still not of any much use imo.
As I'm not a person that does any running or dedicated exercise routines, I didn't get the chance to track any physical activity so can't really comment on that side of the band's performance. It's probably in hindsight what the band is made for, rather than the calls and texts function I was hoping to see.
What i did however discover was the band's sleep tracking function, which was a bit of a eye opener. I'm an insomniac so I know that my typical nights sleep attempts are massively interrupted, but I didn't realise I was waking upwards of 15 times per night and sometimes a lot more. It said that on average I had about 15 minutes of restful sleep and about 3hrs of light sleep. It's something that I'll now look into further, and hopefully train my body to rest more effectively in future.
So that's it, that's my round-up of the Microsoft Band 1.
Thanks @Toby, for the opportunity of trying the tech and I'll keep an eye out for other opportunities.
Charlie.
