One thing that will quickly turn me off to a device is the inclusion of proprietary elements that should in fact be open. What do I mean by this exactly? The Qualcomm Toq and Samsung Galaxy Gear smartwatches both use a proprietary wristband design, which means you cannot swap out the band for a custom one. Worse yet, you cannot even swap out the band at all thanks to unique tech used within them, like an integrated camera sensor.
The biggest reason this is a turn-off is because I like to personalize what I own. I’m sure many of you reserve the same desires for your own gadgets. Nevertheless, proprietary can be a real bother because often the manufacturer charges premium pricing for replacements – or they just flat out remove the option to use them. This can cut down on the ultimate sustainability of a device. In the case of the Samsung Galaxy Gear or Qualcomm Toq, if you ruin the band somehow you’re out of luck unless you run out and purchase a replacement model. In hindsight, it seems a bit silly to have to replace a $300 smartwatch because of a flimsy rubber, or plastic wristband.
In light of that, we’re going to outline the top five smartwatches with replaceable wristbands. Not only does this allow you to customize your device by introducing your own style, it also allows you to continue using it if you accidentally break the stock band.
Pebble or Pebble Steel
We’re not going to spend a lot of time covering the features and functionality of each watch on this list. – if you’d like to know what this one can do, you can always check out our Pebble Steel review. Instead, we’re going to highlight things like whether or not the bands can be changed, and how many options you really have when choosing your own style.
As for the Pebble and the Pebble Steel, they are two of the best options on this list. You can replace the stock bands (the Steel comes with a couple options by default), with any that are of the proper size – which is 22mm. The band on the Steel is a bit more difficult to replace, however it is still possible.
If you want to use a metal link band you can do it. If you’d much rather wear a leather band, you can do that too. If you prefer standard cloth, well that’s fine and dandy just like the others. There are some more watches on the market that have the same versatility as the Pebble models, but we’ll get to that later.
The Pebble is one of the best smartwatches currently on the market, and it has tons of third party developer support. You can’t go wrong with any of the Pebble models.
Samsung Gear 2
Samsung’s Gear 2 is remarkably popular in the consumer market, at least that’s what Sammy would have us believe. The original Galaxy Gear used a proprietary wristband because it included the camera sensor and device speakers built right into it. Sammy learned their lesson and did away with this in the latest model.
You can now swap out the stock band with that of any 22mm sized band. This is great because Samsung doesn’t really offer a whole lot of options when it comes to the stock band colors and styles. Just keep in mind the color you choose when purchasing the watch will also determine the majority of the body finish you get.
The biggest drawback of the Gear 2 is that it’s only compatible with a handful of Samsung branded handsets. That being said, Samsung holds most of the market share in the mobile market. In other words, because there are a lot of Samsung device users out there – the Gear 2 might be right up your alley.
COOKOO
The COOKOO smartwatch by ConnecteDevice uses a much more traditional design. The watchface includes an analog style clock with background notification support for a connected handset. Unlike most of the smartwatches on this list, the COOKOO does not include a touchscreen. In fact, it’s really just a standard analog watch with some unique extension features – provided it’s connected to an Android or iOS device to receive alerts.
The COOKOO is compatible with any 22mm sized watch band. Long story short, you can swap out the custom band for one of your own choosing. The color of the model you choose when ordering the device determines the finish of the body. There are three body colors including black, silver and white. There are many more stock band colors, but that really doesn’t matter considering you can change them out for one of your own.
If you’re the more traditional type and would prefer an analog style watch with simple notification support, check out the COOKOO.
Sony Smartwatch 2
If you don’t like the stock band on the Sony Smartwatch 2 you can swap it for any 24mm sized band. Like pretty much everything else on this list, that means you can customize the appearance of the device.
There’s not much else to say on the matter, except that the Smartwatch 2 is a great device, albeit older than a lot of other models on the market. That being said, it is one of the cheapest options on this list because of that reason. Don’t let that deter you from buying it, the Smartwatch 2 is more than capable.
LG G Watch
The G Watch won’t hit the market until later this year, but it will be one of the first devices powered by Google’s Android Wear OS – right alongside the Moto 360. The biggest surprise is that it uses standard 22mm size wristbands, which means the stock band can be swapped out. This is very good news indeed, because the watch design will compliment many different band styles including leather, metal and more.
Hail Personalization and Replaceable Bands
Those are the top five smartwatches with replaceable wristbands. Of course, the smartwatch market is expanding and will continue to do so – hopefully that means we will see a lot more models which include custom band support. There’s nothing worse than purchasing a $200+ device only to find the stock band is uncomfortable and flimsy. Besides, not everyone likes a silicone, leather or metal band.
Smartwatch-makers pay close attention! Add custom band support to all of your future products.