iWOWN i7

IWOWN i7 overview

iWOWN i7 is a Chinese fitness wristband and a smart watch with a lightweight case completely made of metal and with a claimed killer-feature — a constant pulse monitoring. It looks good, but here its pros come to an end. There are four applications, and all of them work with flaws. It is almost impossible to find the perfectly working correlation between "the version of the smartphone firmware — the version of the wristband firmware — the application version". You can order it only on AliExpress or from retailers. The average gadget cost is 50 USD.

iWOWN i7 design and construction

It becomes clear at first glance what the target audience of the iWOWN designers is. The watch has a square screen. It is also similar to Apple Watch in its size, except that it is by 3 mm thinner. The case is made of stainless steel. On the back panel on the arm side there is a small protrusion, this is a laser pulse sensor. There is a connector for magnetic charging under it.
The screen is the energy-saving Memory LCD, which is similar to Pebble. It is monochrome, but bright. The backlight works without flaws, it is soft at night and it is powerful in the daytime bright sun. There are three dials available for your choice: a digital or an analog one only with a watch or a digital modular dial also supplied with a date.

The strap included in the kit is a black silicone one. It has a standard size of 2 cm, so you can choose a more interesting alternative. It is removed easily, but it is almost impossible to wrest it from the clamps by accident. The clasp consists of two buttons, the number of holes is enough for different wrists’ sizes.

iWOWN i7 is comfortable to wear. The watch looks very stylish both on the female and male arms. It can look too miniature on too large wrists, but the set of functions does not depend on it. The special advantage is its weight of only 30 grams.

IWOWN i7 versions

Since the first release in August 2015, the gadget has changed several generations, and the official website does not indicate their history or differences. Sellers from China and some other retailers can sell any version including the very first one, so always check the labels on the box. According to reviews, the most current version now is iWOWN i7 3.0. 2.3 version is also common.
The main differences are the following:

1. iWOWN i7 2.3. Its screen has 5 sensory zones: a top, bottom, left, right, center. For swipe it is necessary to hold a finger at least at 3 of them. For example, to scroll from the left to the right, you need to touch through the left, center and right; from the top to the bottom — through the top, center and bottom. You get used to it after some time, but at first the sensor seems slow and unresponsive. Vibration is weaker than one in the next versions;
2. iWOWN i7 3.0. The screen is completely touch, so the swipes are much easier and more familiar. Vibration is also stronger than before.

Earlier versions have too many bugs, so it is not recommended to buy them even at a discount. Almost certainly they will not work with the current firmware of applications.

IWOWN i7 functions

The functions declared by the manufacturer work, but not always accurately:

• Continuous pulse monitoring. The sensor on the back panel tests the skin and analyzes the blood flow, on the basis of which it shows the pulse. It can work during the whole day and night. It is also possible to disable it, on-demand measurement is available. The heart rate monitor accuracy seems to depend on the assembly, device version and application firmware — some users have an error of 5–10 strokes, others have 50–60. The sensor is clearly less accurate than one in Apple Watch because the laser here is weaker;
• Sleep observation. Sleep monitoring is automatic — the watch understands by itself when you fall asleep and wake up. It understands this information poorly. Any inactivity can be regarded as sleeping time, and any accidental movements at night can completely reset the tracking. iWOWN i7 users note cases when instead of 12 hours of real sleep the wristband registered only one hour. The app shows duration, phase and quality — just like any other fitness tracker;
• 24 training modes. You can choose a mode manually from the standard ones — running, bicycle, football — and more unusual sports — skiing, ping-pong, badminton. The wristband measures the total time, calories burned, distance covered and pulse. The main problem is that even after a manual switch-on it may not record the workload at all. There is a pedometer, and it is surprisingly accurate;
• Notifications displaying. It is synchronized with Android and iOS, receives notifications from the smartphone. It even shows text in the messages, not just the addressee and the name of application. It is not very convenient to read long messages on the screen. There is a Call ID — you can see who is calling, you can reject the call. But you cannot answer it — the watch is equipped with neither a headset nor a microphone;
• Player and the camera control. In the latest firmware versions, this feature also appeared. It works with both operating systems. Its sets of functions are similar to Apple Watch.

The declared water protection according to the IP67 standard and the battery capacity for 7 days are not confirmed by the tests.

Pros of iWOWN i7

Convenient design. A case completely made of steel and a soft strap;
A bright display. Pictograms can be seen even in the bright sun;
Different training options. 24 kinds of sport are available;
Notifications support. The smartphone sends messages and calls;
Camera and player control. It appeared in the latest firmware versions;

Cons iWOWN i7

Old firmwares do not work. There are a lot of bugs, functions are just turned off;
Tracking is wrong. There are more problems with pulse and sleep monitoring;
Inconvenient control. There is no quick access to screens and overall notifications delete;
It loses connection to the smartphone. It happens even in new versions — a maximum distance is 8 meters;
The battery discharges in 2-4 days. The manufacturer said that it would work up to 7 days, but in practice it works less;
Water floods the case. According to the description, it has the protection according to the IP67 standard, but according to reviews, it is a fraud.

Problems with iWOWN i7

The feature of Chinese gadgets and software — they work without any problems only in China with native applications. International versions suffer from bugs. To the credit of the iWOWN i7 developers, it's necessary to say that they regularly update both the wristband itself and the applications for it. Two years ago the device rarely worked in accordance with the declared functions. Now the situation is much better.

In different combinations of firmware, the following problems are often found:

• The watch loses its connection to the smartphone or cannot be connected to it at all;
• Device data does not reach the application or does it only partially;
• The text of the message is not shown — only the sender and / or the application are shown;
• Activity during training is not recorded;
• It shows pulse with an error or does not show it at all;
• Sleep is recorded simply during inactivity and vice versa — it is not recorded at night;
• The camera and player control does not work on Android;
• Reminders and alarms cannot be disabled even after a reboot.

Problems are solved by the smartphone, wristband and application updating up to the latest versions. It cannot be said with certainty that everything will work, but there will be much less bugs. To find the perfect combination of firmwares for a particular smartphone is possible only by chance. As an example — a combination for Xiaomi Redmi 4 Pro:

1. Phone firmware is 8.5.3.0;
2. The version of Zeroner Health Pro is 5.0.2.7;
3. The wristband firmware is 1.0.5.5.

Tips for iWOWN i7

The watch kit includes an instruction — many pictures, basic information, it is enough for getting familiar with it and for its usage. But there is no detailed guide from the developers. Here some tips from users, finds, recommendations and solutions to errors are collected.

• Many problems can be solved by resetting the device to the factory settings. To do this, turn off the watch, turn off Bluetooth on the smartphone, turn the watch on and immediately, while the Welcome-screen is shown, hold the screen until three vibrations. Turn on Bluetooth. This will help with the constant interruption of connection and errors in the data transferring to the application;
• When connecting to other devices, look for Bracel in the list of available Bluetooth devices. Many people try to find Watch, but the gadget is called Bracel. This is very likely to help to solve the problem with non-connectivity — sometimes you just do not notice the available device;
• To enable the camera and player control functions, you need to connect directly via Bluetooth, and not through the application. Just go to the communication settings and select the gadget. Then the camera and music icons will appear on it;
• Do not discharge iWOWN i7 to zero. It concerns all Chinese electronics, but it is especially important about the watch. Here some problems with the charger sensor may appear. If the watch turns off and does not come to life even from the grid charging — wait, it cannot be turned on immediately just because of the strong discharge.

IWOWN i7 reviews

The mood of reviews depends on the wristband and applications firmware. The most recent versions please people much more — all functions work there and almost without errors. Owners of old wristbands with 5 sensor points are less satisfied. Too clumsy display and numerous bugs up to a full turning off make the ratings less.
The design suits everyone — a stylish metal case, light and thin, suitable for any item of clothes and situation. There are more complaints about the software and interface. But the Chinese gadget justifies its price — for 50 USD it is difficult to demand more.

Apps for iWOWN i7

The wristband can work with any of four applications available for Android and iOS:

1. iWOWNfit. The latest update is on July 29, 2017, the current version is 1.3.5.2;
2. zeroner. The latest update is on February 6, 2018, the current version is 2.2.4;
3. Zeroner Health. The latest update is on June 6, 2017, the current version is 3.3.5.2;
4. Zeroner Health Pro. The latest update is on April 10, 2018, the current version is 5.0.8.0.

The developer is the same in all cases — com.kunekt. At different periods of time iWOWN supported various official applications, now it is better to use Zeroner Health Pro, this program is updated more regularly than the rest ones. The classic version of zeroner works from the very moment of iWOWN i7 release, but there are more bugs in it. iWOWNfit was regarded as a branded application for this brand's wristbands, but the latest update was a long time ago, so there are even more problems here.

The set of functions of all programs is the same. In Zeroner Health Pro, the wristband opportunities are most conveniently divided into different screens: activity, pulse, sleep, training. Application compatibility: Android 4.3 and higher or iOS 7.0 or higher. But the gadget itself is more demanding: Android 4.4 and higher or iOS 8.0 and higher. Thanks to pictures everything becomes much clearer.

iWOWN i7 - Comparison

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