HAYLOU SOLAR PLUS RT3 – The BEST AFFORDABLE SMARTWATCH ever!!!
Haylou is one of Xiaomi's satellite brands that stands out on the tech market due to its high quality/price ratio, offering in its catalog not only TWS earphones but also a series of smartwatches, including the Haylou Solar Plus RT3 which has proven to be a true companion in everyday life, offering the possibility of making and receiving calls from the wrist, providing health data and other functions that I will tell you about in this complete review, so make yourself comfortable and let's go.
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HAYLOU Solar Plus RT3 Smart Watch 1.43" AMOLED Display Bluetooth Phone Call Smartwatch Health Monitor IP68 Waterproof Sports Watch
37,71€ available
UNBOXING AND AUTONOMY
I would ignore the unboxing paragraph, considering that inside the sales package we only find the smartwatch, an instruction manual which also includes a QR code for the smartphone application and the cable with magnetic attachment for charging the device. Haylou Solar Plus RT3 is an economical smartwatch but this does not mean that it sacrifices functions and construction. I'll reveal to you right now the autonomy of the wearable, counting on a 280 mAh battery which can guarantee at least 7 days of standard use by taking advantage of all the functions available, including the Bluetooth 5.3 connection for calls, while we go down to about 4 days if we enable AOD active for at least 16 hours.
DISPLAY
Starting from the latter, the 45,6 mm case with a thickness of 10,1 mm is made of anodized aluminum for greater resistance over time to wear and small scratches that could be generated. Basically we have an attractive and minimalist design, with a 1,43-inch circular AMOLED display with 466 x 466 pixel resolution protected by a tempered glass with 2.5D processing, bright and with good definition, as well as being resistant to scratches, in fact after almost a month of use the screen still looks like new.
In fact, under direct sunlight the contents on the screen are read without any effort. However, the Always On Display function is present, also with good visibility under intense sunlight. There is also the presence of a speaker and microphone to manage calls, a function generally present on expensive models, and it was therefore a pleasure to find it on the Solar Plus. Many dials are available, particularly beautiful those on a black background, where the AMOLED gives its best, but in any case from the companion app it is possible to download many digital, analogue or mixed solutions: among the many available there are some equipped with interactive elements which, if touched, open the relevant sections of the menu.
CONSTRUCTION
The total weight of the watch is 49,5 grams which makes it comfortable to wear throughout the day, even while we sleep, considering that we could monitor the progress of our sleep, highlighting the phases of both deep and deep sleep , light that REM as well as identifying if we wake up during the night. The strap, made of skin-friendly silicone, also contributes to general comfort even during intense sweating phases, while still allowing the skin to breathe without creating annoying irritation.
In any case, there is a quick release and the pitch is 22mm, so you can find spare parts on the main online stores, in order to obtain a personalized outfit based on your tastes, while in terms of basic colors, 3 different styles are available for the case: black, silver and gold. The closure of the strap is also excellent, with a metal buckle and a hole to insert the excess strap edge, Apple Watch style, so that it does not stick to clothing.
AVAILABLE FUNCTIONS
I used the Haylou Solar Plus RT3 for over a month, I couldn't put it down anymore due to the ease of use and functions offered. The only flaw are the notifications, which like most smart watches on the market, can only be viewed (no emoji, no photos, no audio) without the possibility of responding, but we can receive them from all the apps installed on the smartphone (7 lines are displayed of 19 characters, for a maximum of 133 characters). The large display offers immediate reading of notifications but certainly a killer feature is the possibility of managing calls from the wrist, both incoming and outgoing, counting on a good volume without distortions regarding the speaker and crystal clear audio captured by the microphone, something not so obvious, superior to many more expensive models that I have tried over time.
Other important functions are those related to health monitoring, such as automatic monitoring of heart rate, blood oxygen saturation, stress measurement, which is monitored throughout the day and calculated with special algorithms based on heart rate, values of SpO2 and the activity carried out and finally the quality of sleep which shows the duration of the last sleep and the subdivision by phase into fast and slow sleep. Furthermore, the watch records night awakenings. The data collected was precise, reliable and capable of providing a fairly complete "clinical" picture (data comparable to the higher-end Amazfit Stratos series). Then we have the sports part, with monitors for around 108 sports, although many of these do not offer dedicated metrics. Unfortunately, the watch doesn't have a GPS, so you'll have to take your phone with you when you go out exercising if you want to get a tracked route. Among the monitored sports, swimming is absent, although the watch has IP68 certification, therefore resistant to small dives, splashes of liquid and rain as well as sweat, so you can also use it in the shower without any fear. Last but not least we have the possibility of managing the alarms directly from the smartwatch without going through the application.
In the menu you move through touches and swipes, while the two physical buttons on the right side of the case are used to open the menu or return to the home page (upper button) or to directly recall the sports activities to be monitored (lower button). The excellent and somewhat rare thing for this type of smartwatch is that the upper button also functions as a digital crown, meaning that by rotating it you can scroll through the items in the various menus. The watch can be comfortably worn on the right or left wrist. The location of the buttons ensures that they are not accidentally pressed when the wrist is rotated. Another thing not to be underestimated about the Haylou Solar Plus RT3 is the presence of sensors dedicated to monitoring heart rate and blood oxygenation. We have 4 green light LEDs for heart rate measurement and 2 red light LEDs for SpO2.
The general picture of the Solar Plus is completed by typical functions such as music control on the smartphone (function also available when starting a sports program), calculator, respiratory relaxation, mood meter, timer and stopwatch, weather forecast but also the female cycle calendar where the cycles are noted and predicted, while for calls it is possible to use the register of the same and a directory in which it is possible to add up to 30 numbers among those used most frequently.
APP COMPANION
Naturally, there is also the proprietary application, Haylou Fun, available for both Android and iOS systems. The main screen is made up of tabs whose order and display can be set in any order. From the other tabs you can set the dial skins, all free, around 100 available and increasing with future app updates. It is possible to immediately see a preview of how the watchface will appear on the watch and then synchronize it via Bluetooth.
We can view daily activity with data relating to steps, calories burned and activities carried out but also view the history of past days. Among the data that can be consulted we also find sleep, heart rate, stress, SpO2 etc.. We can then start a workout directly from the smartphone and if the activity is outdoors, we could also obtain the route trace by carrying the phone with us. After your workout, you can view your distance traveled, pace, and other indicators, including heart rate data and the heart rate zones I was in during the workout. The data is presented in the form of a graph and allows you to make a summary assessment of your physical condition.
Among other functions we can deactivate or activate the automatic measurement of heart rate, stress and blood oxygen, thus deciding to deactivate some measurements if not necessary, effectively prolonging battery life. Then you can select the apps you want to receive notifications from. Finally, you can update the watch's firmware or restore factory settings but also create a phonebook with 30 numbers for Bluetooth calls from the wrist.
HAYLOU Solar Plus RT3 Smart Watch 1.43" AMOLED Display Bluetooth Phone Call Smartwatch Health Monitor IP68 Waterproof Sports Watch
37,71€ available
PROJECTED IMPACT
Haylou Solar Plus RT3 is a versatile smartwatch and is suitable for both men and women, with a sober and elegant design at the same time and small dimensions. The screen is positively impressive in terms of brightness, details and color rendering, making up for the absence of an automatic light sensor. Economical but without giving up noble construction materials, such as the aluminum frame and the tempered glass that protects the display.
Typical smartwatch for daily use, excellently completing the tasks expected of such a product, such as receiving notifications, health monitor but also the ability to manage calls directly from the wrist. It is not a sportwatch but classic activities such as jogging are well monitored and the data collected is truthful and reliable. At the price it is offered, i.e. 30 euros, I can't find any rivals and it would be stupid not to take advantage of the moment and get one.
