The HONOR Band 6 is the latest gadget to rival even some of the best smartwatches in terms of fitness tracking. Formerly owned by Huawei Technologies, HONOR is now an independently owned company, its offering of laptops, smartphones and wearables is growing every year. With a larger display than its predecessors, increased battery life, plus advanced health management features, the HONOR Band 6 promises "a big difference" in its usability and wearability. But can it deliver? What's The Best's Jade Moscrop puts it to the test.
The Review
Having previously used the HONOR Watch ES with mixed feelings, I was excited to see if the HONOR Band 6 could bridge the gap between a fitness watch and a smartwatch successfully, improving on some of the niggles I found with the HONOR Watch ES.
The watch itself is wonderfully lightweight (18g without the silicone strap), and you soon forget you're wearing it. It's comparable to a Fitbit Inspire HR in terms of how it feels on the wrist, with a slimmer screen and a more comfortable strap than the HONOR Watch ES.
Available in Meteorite Black, Sandstone Grey, and Coral Pink, it's stylish and unobtrusive, so will suit fitness fanatics and fashionistas alike.
The 1.47-inch AMOLED display is crystal clear, offering a 148 per cent increase in display area when compared to the HONOR Band 5. Encased in a 2.5D curved glass screen with anti-fingerprint coating, the button is situated on the right-hand side, and there's a library of watch faces so you can personalise it to your liking.
You can select a brightness level from 1-5, so it's easy to see when you're out in the sunshine on full brightness, although it doesn't automatically adjust in the evenings. I found that a brightness level of 3 was optimum for all situations. The extra sensitivity of the HONOR Watch ES is resolved - I previously found that showering was frustratingly enough to trigger the touch screen, but not with the Band 6.
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The 'Do not disturb' feature is useful to turn off notifications overnight, as well as avoiding being woken up by bright light if you're particularly active when sleeping. Overall usage is smooth - it isn't glitchy, is simple to control and many users will pick it up quickly.
When it comes to battery life, I'm seriously impressed. After almost a month of testing, I've only needed to charge it twice - once just after it arrived on 70 per cent battery, which doesn't really count if I'm honest. It promises a 14-day battery life after a 65-minute charge, and it delivers easily with normal usage. I tracked a workout each day, set a daily alarm and had all of my notifications coming through, which it handles with ease. You can also get three days usage from a 10-minute quick charge.
For all your fitness needs, there are 10 workout modes, a step counter, exercise auto-detect (which takes around five minutes to kick in), stress level monitoring, SpO2 monitoring and heart-rate tracking, plus it's water-resistant up to 50m for up to ten minutes. In terms of accuracy, the HONOR Band 6 seems to be realistic with step tracking and heart rate, something the HONOR Watch ES struggled with.
As far as lifestyle features go, the HONOR Band 6 offers the usual, but for a much more affordable price than some of its competitors. For under £50, you'll be treated to sleep tracking, weather, an alarm, a torch, a find my phone feature, plus message, app and call notifications. If you have an Android phone, you'll be able to control your music and HONOR users can even snap a photo using the remote shutter - although this isn't an option for iOS users.
Sleep tracking is brilliant, using Huawei's TruSleep technology. It accurately records my sleep and wake-up times, provides in-depth data and a sleep score, plus offers tips on how to improve your sleep.
The app for HONOR Band 6 is the Huawei Health app, which previously featured long sync times and could be glitchy. Recent updates have resolved these issues, although I don't find myself using the app as much as I do with the Fitbit app, as much of the information you need is displayed on the watch itself. It's simple to connect, with the app auto-detecting the device to sync up.
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For the price, it's an excellent fitness watch, but the smartwatch capabilities certainly offer more than your average device. Its simplicity is what makes it enjoyable to use - some of the features of the HONOR Watch ES went unused, such as the virtual coach, and its usability is more refined and thought out.
If you're searching for a budget fitness tracker, the HONOR Band 6 is a great choice. It won't wow athletes and it can't deliver the way the Apple Watch can in terms of capabilities, but if you're an average Joe who wants to track their fitness and stay up to date with their notifications, it certainly bridges the gap well.
Pros: Affordable, lots of fitness and lifestyle features, comfortable to wear, long battery life, accurate, lightweight. Cons: No call answering, no music playback for iOS devices.
Specs:
Display: 1.47″ AMOLED / 194 x 368 pixels
Weight: 18g (without strap)
Dimensions: 43 × 25.4 ×10.99mm (tracker only)
App: Huawei Health
Water resistance: 5ATM (50m for ten minutes)
Battery life: 14 days on a 65-minute charge
Sport modes: 10
Sleep tracking: Yes
Heart rate tracking: Yes
Step counter: Yes
SpO2 monitoring: Yes
Stress level monitoring: Yes
Notifications: Yes
Call answering: No
Music controls: Only on Android/HONOR devices
What to read next:
Jade Moscrop is the Deputy Editor for WhatsTheBest, specialising in lifestyle topics. She also writes for Closer, Heat, and Mother&Baby.
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