Huawei Honor Band 3

Review of Huawei Honor Band 3

Huawei Honor Band 3 is the third item in the range of fitness wristbands designed by Huawei. The device is regarded as a representative of economy class, a more advanced counterpart of Xiaomi Mi Band 2. You will have to pay for the additional features: in comparison with the competitor, the price is higher.
Huawei Honor Band 3 does not offer innovative technologies. It is a simple and reliable device with the basic functions of cheap wristbands. The model monitors and stores data on physical activity and exercises, continuously measures the pulse, monitors the quality of sleep and counts the steps taken. The wristband is synchronized with a smartphone easily to send data and receive notifications from applications.
Although you will not get pieces of professional advice on training from a cheap fitness wristband, it counts the calories burned successfully. Among the training modes there is even swimming. The device is completely protected from water — you can dive to a depth of 50 meters wearing this wristband.
According to the information from Chinese vendors, in 2018 Huawei Honor Band 3 outperformed even Xiaomi Mi Band 2 becoming the leader of the selling rating. It's no wonder — according to the price and quality correlation, this wristband is one of the best options right now.

Available versions of Huawei Honor Band 3

Before buying, always check the version of the wristband. Now international and Chinese versions are being sold. The latter is more expensive: there is a chip NFC for contactless payment, but it works only in China. So, it is not a bug! What’s more, in the Chinese version you cannot choose an arm to wear the wristband on, and when you wear it on the right arm the display will always be turned upside down. It is also not a bug, but a version peculiarity. Ask a seller about the version details in order not to overpay for useless chip.

Huawei Honor Band 3 design and construction

The design of Honor Band 3 is restrained and simple — a black plastic case and a black standard strap. It does not stand out, it matches any clothes. It fits your arm comfortably and tightly, you can even sleep wearing the wristband. There are a lot of holes in the strap, so it's easy to adjust it to any arm.
The silicone strap is available in three colors: black, orange and blue. The wristband is connected to the screen in the form of a capsule smoothly without any seams. The small size of the display can be regarded as a shortcoming of the device — but it looks stylish and simple on the arm.
The display is monochrome, letters are read clearly. Only in the bright sunlights the sun reflects on the screen and it makes the text almost impossible to read. The touch zone is only one — a small circle on the front part under the screen.
The pulse sensors are located on the inside of the wristband. They fit the skin tightly, but do not cause any discomfort.

Huawei Honor Band 3 functions

• Pedometer and calories counting. The tracker counts the distance covered and the number of calories burned — the steps are visible on the wristband, and detailed statistics can be seen on the smartphone;
• Monitoring sleep time and sleep phases. It is an automatic function. It means that the gadget determines itself when you go to bed and wake up. It counts time you spend sleeping with the differentiation between a slow and a fast phase, shows the number of awakenings, gives some advice;
• Regular pulse measurement. Like sleep control, it is an automatic function too. The sensors measure the pulse all the time, fit the arm perfectly. In training mode, the tracker warns of exceeding the heart rate threshold in different zones from warming-up to extremely hard exercises;
• Different training modes. There is running, walking, biking and swimming. Through the smartphone you can set the settings for each workout;
• Smart alarm clock. The wristband monitors the pulse and activity, so it awakens the person in the phase of fast sleep — perhaps a little bit earlier than the set time. It is definitely an advantage, waking up is much easier. Alarm signal is increasing or it is simply a vibration;
• Notifications from smartphone applications. After synchronization, you can choose which smartphone programs will duplicate the information on the wristband. There is a support for social networks and messages. You can even reject the call, but you will not be able to accept it;
• Notification of a lack of activity. If you sit for more than an hour without moving, the wristband vibrates, reminding you to walk a bit.

Pros of Huawei Honor Band 3

• Regular pulse monitoring. The wristband continuously monitors heartbeats and marks the pulse in five zones — from calm to critical one. The device will warn if the heart rate goes beyond the normal limits, it will help to avoid harmful to health exertions. Heart rate readings appear on the wristband display. To activate the screen and see the data, you should wave your wrist sharply;
• Relatively high tracking accuracy. The wristband counts steps, calories, pulse and the duration of sleep quite accurately — in comparison with its competitors of the same price category. The accuracy is not ideal, but without a very serious error;
• Convenient management. Among the controllers are a button, wrist movements and an application on the smartphone. Although you can find fault with the function management, Huawei Honor Band 3 stands out from its competitors. You can see the pulse, select the training mode and set alarm clock just by using a single control button. Sometimes you have to spend some time to page through and get to the right point, but in general, it's easy to understand the system. Advanced settings are available from the smartphone, and during the workout you can set the switch to another mode or watch the pulse with your wrist movement;
• Different training modes. From walking to swimming. The device takes into account the characteristics of various types of physical activity. There is no, for example, mode of swimming or cycling in other wristbands of the same price category. For each type of activity the number of calories burned is counted and the duration of training is stored. In the pool or at the gym it is not necessary to keep the phone nearby: the data will still be stored;
• The maximum lifetime of the battery is 30 days. It is longer than the lifetime of other cheap models. The wristband is equipped with a battery of 100 mAh, whereas its main competitors have a battery capacity of less than 70 mAh. Therefore, Huawei Honor Band 3 holds a charge for a long time, in the sleeping mode it can work up to 30 days. It takes an hour and a half to charge the device completely.

The cons of Huawei Honor Band 3

• Errors in measurements. The main complaints refer to the sensors of steps and pulse. The wristband will not suit professional athletes who need accurate pulse tracking. Users note significant deviations in the pedometer — Huawei Honor Band 3 regularly exaggerates the figures;
• There is no GPS. Navigation works only through smartphone GPS. If you turn on the navigator through your smartphone, you'll have to wait a little longer than after turning on the built-in module of its competitors. Accuracy also suffers. Therefore, the tracker is not very suitable for professional running exercises and cycling;
• Unreliable assembly. It depends on the specific model, but this point is noted by many users. The main problem here is the strap. It is fixed on small bolts, but often detaches from the case and screen. At the same time, the branded silicone strap fits your arm comfortably and can be adjusted for any wrists;
• Small real battery life. The wristband lives 2 weeks when it is used actively. In the case of the Huawei Honor Band 3 battery, expectations can give rise to disappointment. The month of operation without recharging declared by the manufacturer is more a theory than a practice. The wristband battery will last this amount of time if its capabilities are used minimum: to watch the time and occasionally count the steps taken. If you activate all functions, for example, constant pulse monitoring, then the maximum time without recharging is 10-14 days.

Huawei Honor Band 3 errors and bugs

• Crash when setting up workouts on iOS. The training program is a handy feature of the wristband, but iOS owners will be in for an unpleasant surprise. Often when you try to set this function, the application stops working at all;
• Conflict between the alarm clock and updates. It is not a mistake, just an uncomfortable point you have to remember about. The alarm clock does not work if at this moment the tracker will install the firmware update.

In older versions of the firmware you can also come across some problems with connecting Huawei Health — the application simply does not see the wristband. Moreover, depending on the firmware and version there are glitches with localization: a mixture of English, Chinese and Russian text.

Recommendations for Huawei Honor Band 3 owners

There are several tricks that will help to make the work with Huawei Honor Band 3 easier:

• Wrist control. The backlight lights up if you raise your hand upwards, and this movement makes page through the menu items. Another classic example — the screen turns on with a sharp turn of the wrist to yourself;
• Touch zone. To activate a workout or open a submenu, press and hold the button at the bottom of the screen;
• The central part of the display. To enter the settings, tap the display (but not the touch button!) twice quickly. Wait 1-2 seconds and tap twice once again. In the opened menu you can see the MAC address, firmware version, reset the wristband or reset the data;
• Smart Lock. A smartphone may not be locked if a wristband is connected to it. But the setting here is not the easiest one. Firstly, disconnect Huawei Wear on your smartphone, turn off and then turn on Bluetooth and start the device search. When you find the wristband, turn on Smart Lock in the smartphone security settings and return the application Huawei Wear;
• Battery saving. Another hint — after turning on the Smart Lock, disconnect the wristband in the Bluetooth settings. It is important! You should disconnect it, but not remove it completely. This will save the charge and will not affect the functionality of the gadgets in any way.

Huawei Honor Band 3 reviews

Users leave thousands of contradicting reviews, but all of them have one feature in common: the wristband comes up to their expectations of price and quality correlation. It performs basic functions and helps to monitor health in everyday life, but it is not suitable for professional sports or serious monitoring.

People complain about inaccurate measurements — someone talks about minor errors, others note completely wrong readings. A lot of criticism is caused by the construction quality. The display glass cracks, the wristband is disconnected from the screen, and it is difficult to find a suitable replacement.

Several training modes can be regarded as a benefit — not only running and walking, but also biking and swimming are available here. It is noted, however, that the mode of swimming is of little use — the wristband counts only the calories burned, and the data is not always correct. Another feature which the buyers note with pleasure — the tracker of inactivity. If you sit without moving for an hour, the wristband vibrates.

Basic applications of Huawei Honor Band 3

For convenient work with the tracker, two programs are enough: Huawei Wear and Huawei Health.

1. Huawei Wear. Applications for the initial setting. The smartphone synchronizes with the wristband via Bluetooth in a few minutes. During the first contact you need to fill in the information about yourself: gender, age, height, weight. Next, you need to set the tracker. In Huawei Wear, you can choose a hand to wear a gadget on, turn on and off all basic functions, including a permanent heart rate monitor, a smart alarm clock, notifications from different applications. There is data on the percentage of charge, steps and calories. Study all the settings — this will help to reveal the potential of the wristband.
2. Huawei Health. Although Huawei Wear also has basic indicators, for advanced fitness it is better to use Huawei Health. The application shows the statistics of steps, pulse, sleep, workouts by days, weeks and months. Everything is beautiful: graphs, diagrams, detailed data on request. With different training modes, the tracker will take the readings differently. There is no swimming mode in the application, although it can be included in the wristband itself.

The device works with both Android and iOS. The benefit of applications and connectivity — even if the connection is lost, the data will be stored in the memory of the wristband and sent to the smartphone during the next contact. It is convenient in training mode: the wristband stays on the arm, the smartphone is in the locker room, but information about the activity is still taken into account and stored in the device memory.

Huawei Honor Band 3 - Comparison

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