Getting a new gadget — of any kind — is always exciting, especially if you love tech like I do. But there’s always a bit of a mystery to the process. No matter how many reviews you read while scouring the web, how many unboxing videos you watch, or how many product descriptions and spec sheets you scrutinize, you never quite know what you’re getting until that sealed box is in your hands.
This is particularly true of budget or low-cost fitness and wearable devices, of which there are many. Amazon’s wearable storefront alone, is filled to the brim with generic and no-name devices, many of which are a gamble.
iWOWNfit is one such company, best likened to Chinese tech providers like Xiaomi, Huawei, and Huami. I can honestly say, after this review, they should probably be on your radar too, at least if you’re considering a wearable or smartwatch for your own wrist.
iWOWNfit i6HRC Fitness Tracker Review
I had the chance to review the iWOWNfit i6HRC fitness tracker, which is remarkably similar to some of the other devices we’ve looked at here, including the Striiv and Elephone devices. So far, the i6HRC is one of my favorites, and I came away quite impressed.
Let’s dive into the review and explore a little more about the device.
Overview
| iWOWNfit i6HRC Review | |
| Overall: (4/5) |  |
| Build: (4/5) | |
| Design: (4/5) | |
| Fitness Tracking: (5/5) |  |
| Functionality: (3/5) |  |
| Compatibility: (4/5) | |
By now, I’ve had my hands on quite a few of these cheap, Chinese wearables. Many of them are par for the course, offering the same features, design and value if we’re being honest. It’s rare that I come across one that really stands out. But I feel that the iWOWNfit i6HRC does, less in regards to design and more in the way of simplistic, yet capable features.
If you asked me to write a checklist of all the things I’d want in a fitness band, this one meets them all. It has the SMS and message notifications so I don’t have to continuously refer to my phone, unless I’m going to reply. There are a ton of fitness tracking options, along with an active heart-rate monitor. It even has automatic sleep tracking, which I hardly ever use outside of reviewing these devices, but it is nice to know the functionality exists.
As for the mobile app, while it definitely seems generic at first I found myself quite enjoying my time with it. The stats are presented in an attractive yet practical way, and you can see a clear representation of your fitness and data history. It’s refreshing to see considering most apps for these kinds of devices are either poorly designed or frustrating to use.
All in all, I would happily purchase another device from iWOWNfit and I’m satisfied with what this band offers in terms of functionality and reliability. My guess is that most anyone looking for a simple, reliable tracker would feel the same.
If you want to know a little more detail about the i6HRC, keep reading.
Overall: 4/5 – The iWOWNfit i6HRC looks good, offers reliable activity tracking and includes an impressive array of sport tracking modes too, considering the price.
Build
The build quality, the overall structure, and the changeable bands remind me bigtime of the Striiv Fusion. The bands themselves are suitably durable and showed no signs of wear or damage throughout the time I used them.
It’s worth noting that I wore the band 24/7 during the review period including during strenuous activity. In my case, this is a big deal because I sweat profusely so I’ve had a lot of trouble with wearables and their bands in the past because of this. The sweat ends up soaking the device and either causing trouble with the electronic functions or just destroys the band. I’m happy to report this didn’t happen with the i6HRC. In fact, I felt completely confident keeping this thing on while I was exercising or outside mowing the lawn — and I live in Florida where it’s ridiculously hot and humid.
My two year old daughter is also quite rough and likes to throw things, so the fitness tracker had its fair share of bumps and attacks. It’s still running just fine.
As is the case with most electronics, I don’t see the i6 standing up to brutal abuse at the hands of someone with a hammer or blunt object, but it’s definitely strong enough to last through normal wear and tear. The bands are thick and reliable, as well, which is something you don’t generally see with budget devices.
Build: 4/5 – The iWOWNfit is durable, water-resistant to a good degree, and so are the stock bands. What more could you ask for?
Design
Like the Striiv, the i6HRC is not a single, seamless device. In other words, the fitness tracking portion is a small module that can be removed entirely from the band; this also makes it easy to swap bands if you wish. Of course, that is also necessary because of how you charge the device. This does not come with a charging cable or adapter. Instead, you detach the module from the band, and plug it into an integrated USB port — you will need a USB charger available which you probably already own thanks to your smartphone.
You can see in the photos of the device where the USB port is on the side of the module. It slides back into a slot in the band, which keeps it protected from damage.
The standard band is light blue on one side and black on the other, giving it almost a two-toned feel. I quite like the design, and I especially love the minimal style of the tracker itself. The digital screen is small, much smaller than the space of the module so there is a bezel-like surface around the edges but you can hardly tell when looking down at it. If you must know, the display is 0.96 inches.
On the back of the tracker is a heart-rate monitor which can be turned on and off from an on-device UI. It can also be activated from the companion app on your mobile device.
Design: 4/5 – The iWOWNfit reminds me of the Striiv Fusion, which is a good thing. I like the minimal feel, and I like having the option to swap out bands at will.
iWOWNfit i6HRC Fitness Tracker Gallery
Fitness Tracking
I had some trouble at first getting this thing paired up with my phone, but it was my fault. There are multiple apps available in the Google Play store and I ended up downloading and trying to set up the wrong one. I originally downloaded and installed the “iWOWNfit” app, when instead I should have been using “iWOWNfit Pro.” You can obviously see why I made this mistake, but it is still something that was most certainly my fault, it says right in the user guide which app version to use.
Once I had the right app, the device synced up easily and quickly and I was on my way. It’s also important to note that you should not sync the device up with Bluetooth through the BT settings on your phone. Only using the app works. I’m not sure why, but it is what it is.
For basic fitness tracking this thing is awesome. It will count calories, steps taken, heart-rate, and distance traveled. There’s also a sedentary tracker that will let you know when you’ve been still or sitting for too long, as well as a sleep tracker. The latter kicks in automatically after you’ve been laying down for some time. I found that it’s pretty accurate, though there are times when it doesn’t give a complete measure of your total sleep time — moving can sometimes trigger the other sensors.
I’m not a super active person, but for anyone who’s athletic there are also a great deal of secondary modes you can use. For example, you can track stats while running, biking, and playing various sports such as soccer or tennis. The on-device UI has a little sub-menu for selecting which activity you want to track.
It’s all fairly accurate, about as accurate as you’re going to get for something like this. Not to say that’s a bad thing. I’ve spent more money on expensive wearables that worked just as good, if not worse.
All in all, I’m satisfied with the fitness tracking support including the accuracy and the modes available.
Tracking: 5/5 – The iWOWNfit i6HRC includes everything you’d ever need from a fitness tracker; there’s a heart-rate monitor, sleep tracking and a variety of sports modes for things like Soccer, Tennis and more. The app is designed well too.
Functionality
Aside from the fitness tracking, most wearables these days offer additional functionality and the iWOWNfit i6HRC band is no different. It works swimmingly with text and message notifications, which come in through a single feed and menu section. Unfortunately, there are no advanced notifications through alternate apps or social media, but I’ve always found those annoying anyway. You may not, so it’s important to note they don’t exist here. The message notifications are suitable and allow you to clearly read what’s coming in — you’ll need to grab your phone to respond, obviously.
Other than SMS support, there’s also caller ID support which will display the info for an incoming call, provided your phone has it available. If the contact is unknown, obviously, you’ll only see the caller’s number.
Everything works as intended and again, is plenty satisfying. Battery life is incredibly long. iWOWNfit estimates about ten days, but mine lasted for about 2 and a half weeks on a single charge. Granted, once a device is on my wrist I rarely mess with it so the display tends to stay off. More active use of this thing would likely see shorter life-cycles.
It’s also IP67 water-resistant so you can wear it while washing dishes, in the rain or — if you’re like me — while sweating profusely. The only time I took it off was when I climbed in the shower. It might be fine, but I didn’t want to risk it personally.
Functionality: 3/5 – The iWOWNfit i6HRC doesn’t have much else besides the message notifications and caller ID support, but that’s okay. The battery life is absolutely spectacular.
Compatibility
Naturally, I don’t have an iPhone handy to test this thing out with so I can’t speak about the support there. According to iWOWNfit this bad boy will work with iOS 9.0 and above, and there’s a companion app available on iTunes.
It’s also compatible with Android 4.4 and above, and you’ll find the iWOWNfit Pro app on Google Play — remember the “Pro” in that name is crucial. With the right up it syncs up fairly quickly and works just as advertised.
If you have anything other than an Android or iPhone you’re out of luck.
Compatibility: 4/5 – The iWOWNfit i6HRC is compatible with most newer smartphones running iOS and Android. If you have anything else, however, you’re out of luck.
iWOWNfit i6HRC Review: Conclusion
All in all, I’m quite happy with the device and thoroughly impressed. It would be nice to see a little more support — through devices like Windows Phone or the like — but the two largest platforms are supported. As for features, everything you’d ever need in a fitness tracker is here. The only downside is that there’s no GPS so you’ll need to keep your phone close by if you intend to track your location. That said, even some of the most expensive fitness bands out there don’t include GPS so it’s not a deal-breaker.
We hope you enjoyed our iWOWNfit i6HRC review and that it helped you decide whether it was the wearable for you or not. Stay tuned for more coverage!
Where Can I Get the iWOWNfit i6HRC Fitness Tracker?
You can buy the iWOWNfit i6HRC from Amazon for less than $40.