On our website, you can already find many reviews of rugged smartwatches, which are resistant to shocks, scratches, and extreme temperatures, and today’s review is no exception. However, the star of our review has some interesting features, such as the ability to make and receive calls from your wrist and a built-in voice assistant. So, make yourself comfortable, today we’re talking about the CUBOT X1.
CUBOT was founded over 10 years ago in China. Initially, the brand focused on the Chinese market, but in recent years it has decided to expand internationally. This move has paid off, as CUBOT is rapidly carving out its own niche in the field of rugged devices, such as phones and smartwatches. The CUBOT X1 features a design reminiscent of transformer robots, which is immediately apparent. As mentioned earlier, these are rugged watches that can withstand high and low temperatures, although they do not have MIL-STD certification.
CUBOT X1 Specifications
- Display: 2.13″, AMOLED, touch 410×502, 261ppi
- Wireless module: Bluetooth 5.0
- Processor: Realtek RTL8763EWE-VP, 100 MHz
- Sensors: accelerometer, pedometer, WikiXin Micro VC30F heart rate monitor, pulse oximeter, tonometer, sleep monitor, stress monitor, MSP860 Minxin Micro barometer, AF8133J magnetometer
- Battery: Li-Po 850 mAh (up to 100 days without recharging)
- Protection: waterproof up to 20m, shockproof case, Panda Glass
- Case materials: metal, plastic
- Strap: removable silicone, width 22 mm
- Dimensions: 52,7×44,5×14,2 mm
- Weight: 86.2 g
- Extras: voice assistant, Bluetooth calls
Read also: Cubot Hafury V1 Review: Intriguing Budget Phone with Two Screens
Package and design
Что касается дизайна и упаковки, то эти смарт-часы достойны быть выбранными на подарок, коробка выглядит удивительно хорошо. Она черная, плотная и приятная на ощупь, при этом она открывается как книжка и удерживается магнитами. Внутри часы лежат во вспененном уплотнителе – корпус отдельно от ремешка. Стандартная комплектация включает руководство пользователя, гарантийный талон и кабель зарядки.
As for the watch itself, I’ll say right away that the case has an interesting waterproof feature: it uses a combination of vibration and high-frequency sound to make the speaker and microphone vibrate, removing excess water. The dimensions are 52.7×44.5×14.2 mm, and the weight is 86.2 g (including the strap), making them not particularly suitable for thin and/or women’s wrists, despite having features like menstrual cycle tracking. However, the watch does not create significant discomfort on the wrist and doesn’t feel overly heavy, although getting used to sleeping with it might take some time.
The weight is actually justified by the large 850 mAh battery, which can provide up to 100 days of use in standard mode and 30 days in intensive monitoring mode, which sounds more than appealing.
The case is metal, with an outer layer of paint secured at high temperatures with metal powders, followed by enamel. There are three buttons on the case, one of which is on the left side and is used to activate the sports monitor or, when held down, to activate the timer function.
On the top right is the button for turning the display on and off, which, when held down, brings up the power/restart menu. The lower button on the right side provides access to the system menu or, when held, activates the voice assistant, which is a very convenient feature.
On the back of the smartwatch, we find magnetic charging pins and sensors for measuring heart rate (green indicator) and SpO2 levels (red indicator).
The display is protected by Panda Glass and also offers the Always On Display feature, which doesn’t replicate the watch face but allows you to choose between analog and digital options.
Viewing information on the display under direct sunlight isn’t exceptional, but it works well in slightly shaded environments, with very bright colors and deep blacks. Scroll smoothness is pleasant, and the large available surface allows for easy reading of various information. Regarding notifications, they can be received from all apps installed on the smartphone, but you can only read them; viewing photos or listening to voice notes isn’t possible, although there is a speaker in the Cubot.
Read also: Cubot Hafury Meet Review: Stylish Smartphone
Features
When it comes to features, there’s plenty to discuss here too. As I mentioned earlier, the CUBOT X1 allows you to manage calls from your wrist and also issue commands to the voice assistant. Connection is via Bluetooth, so you need to have your smartphone connected. You can call a contact either from your phone or by manually dialing the number from the watch display. The call volume is acceptable; on a noisy street, I could hear the caller quite well through the watch, although the volume decreased slightly when I interacted with the voice assistant. As for the call quality itself, it was excellent, as even at high volume, the smartwatch returned sound without significant dampening or distortion.
Additionally, there’s the option to use the watch’s speaker to transmit all sound coming from the connected smartphone, for instance, to listen to music while running, allowing you to conveniently keep your phone in your pocket and have the sound closer to your ear.
However, it’s worth noting for iPhone users that the watch’s ringtone is the default iPhone ringtone, so you may not immediately discern whether the call is for you or someone else. Fortunately, the smartwatch offers customizable vibration—either light or strong. Even at its strongest, though, the vibration remains somewhat weak; coming from the Mi Band 8 Pro, I found its intensity slightly lacking, but it’s also a matter of getting used to it.
The smartwatches offer proprietary software for download. Upon device activation, a QR code appears on the display for downloading the app, where you can choose from numerous custom watch faces to suit your taste and customize desired functions. In this app, you can also create a watch face with your own photo, but this won’t affect the Always on Display feature; it will only display the date and time.
The menu is available in several languages, and all the classic functions are present, such as weather display, stopwatch, timer, calendar, remote music control, and remote photography. However, unfortunately, you can’t set an alarm from the smartwatch, although reminders for sedentary lifestyle and hydration are available.
As for sports, the CUBOT smartwatch effectively tracks the activity you engage in. Health measurements available include cardio, SpO1, blood pressure, sleep, menstrual cycle, stress, and respiratory relaxation. The reliability of data regarding heart rate and SpO1 proved to be very good, as well as for sleep; it accurately detects the beginning and end of sleep, recognizes the phases of REM and light sleep, and understands if we get up during the night. However, it doesn’t allow for tracking daily sleep over the course of a week, for example.
After pressing the Sport button, a list of various workouts opens up. There are many options, and the list can be edited in the app. Clicking on a specific workout opens up activity monitoring mode based on specific algorithms related to the chosen exercise. I was also pleased with the automatic detection of exercises; when you’re actively moving, the watch “understands” that you’re doing calisthenics or swimming.
You can also synchronize data with Google Fit and Health connect. In the app, you can choose which apps will send messages, set goals, select necessary system reminders, activate continuous monitoring of pulse rate and blood oxygen levels. Swiping right on the main screen brings up a small side menu with weather, commonly used commands, and the call panel. All letters and buttons are large and convenient, and personally, I didn’t experience any accidental or false triggers.
The smartwatches also feature the ability to display a QR code on the screen for receiving payments from other individuals via WeChat, Alipay, PayPal, and QQ. This is very convenient—if you need to receive funds from someone, you simply display the QR code on the watch.
There are also various business card options available on the smartwatches, from different app profiles. So, if you want to add someone as a friend on social media, you don’t necessarily have to take out your smartphone and go into each app; you can simply choose one of the business cards on the watch.
And I’ll separately mention the drawbacks that personally didn’t appeal to me. Firstly, of course, the weak vibration. However, the metal casing isn’t easy to vibrate well, so it’s not really a downside, especially if you prioritize long battery life over constant buzzing on your wrist. I’ll also note the absence of a flashlight, which, in my opinion, is essential for watches in this category, although manufacturers may disagree.
Another thing is that notifications appear as pop-up messages at the top of the display in a single line. In reality, this is a very small area for text, so you can almost never read the entire message. Only a few words are visible at first, meaning you’ll need to click on the pop-up notification or access it from the notification list if you want to read it immediately, regardless of whether your hands are dirty or busy, for example. This is quite odd for a display of this size.
Read also: DOOGEE V30 Pro review: rugged smartphone with 200 megapixel camera
Conclusions
The CUBOT X1 turned out to be wonderful smartwatches— aesthetically pleasing, durable, and equipped with features that are rarely found in budget devices. Perhaps personally, there was something lacking for me, but the provided functions work very well.
Calls are heard clearly, there’s good health data monitoring, and almost endless autonomy. You can now purchase it on AliExpress at the official CUBOT X1 store with a 45% discount for approximately €35/$38.
Where to buy
Read also:
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