Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH Review: Big Display, Big Disappointments?
The Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH might look like a traditional watch, but it’s more of a smart band with a big display. It promises features like SpO2 tracking, Bluetooth calling, and even a replaceable strap, making it an appealing option for those who want a smartwatch with a classic aesthetic. But after spending weeks with this device, I found that its features, while numerous, don’t always deliver on their promises. At a price of Rs. 3,999, does the ZEB-FIT4220CH offer enough to justify its cost? Let’s dive in and find out.
Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH Price in India
The Zebronics FIT4220CH is priced at Rs 3,999 in India, a competitive price point in the smartwatch market. It is available in three colors – black, grey, and silver. The black and grey options come with matching straps, while the silver option has a metallic silver case and an off-white strap.
Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH Design
A quick glance at the ZEB-FIT4220CH might not immediately reveal its "smartwatch" identity. It looks like a classic chronograph watch with two buttons on the right side. Minutes are marked on the display glass, which sits neatly within a circular bezel. The 47mm metal case gives it a substantial feel, appealing to those who prefer chunkier watches. However, this also makes it a bit heavy at 60g. The back is made of plastic and features two flat contact points for the bundled magnetic charging cable, alongside the standard array of sensors.
The watch boasts a round LCD display measuring 1.3 inches across. It’s protected by a slightly raised metal bezel, providing a good level of screen protection. The ZEB-FIT4220CH is IP67 rated, offering adequate protection against dust and water immersion up to 30 minutes at a depth of 1m.
The ZEB-FIT4220CH uses a standard 22mm watch strap, which can be replaced with any third-party strap of your choice
The ZEB-FIT4220CH uses a standard 22mm silicon strap with a quick-release mechanism. While the smartwatch comes with only one strap in the box, its standard size allows easy replacement with any third-party strap, offering a good degree of customization.
The silicon strap is comfortable to wear throughout the day and even during sleep. The standard pin buckle makes it easy to put on and take off, and it remained secure throughout testing.
Importantly, the Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH, unlike its competitor the Redmi Watch, offers the useful feature of SpO2 tracking, crucial in the current pandemic situation. The smartwatch packs a 220mAh battery, which Zebronics claims can offer up to 10 days of standby time.
Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH Software
While the ZEB-FIT4220CH’s build quality is impressive considering its price point, the software falls short. Its competitor, the Redmi Watch, offers a superior interface with greater customization options.
The ZEB-FIT4220CH can store up to five days’ worth of fitness data but operates best when paired with an iOS or Android device running the Zeb-Fit 20 Series app. The app provides access to all fitness data, updates the smartwatch firmware, shows battery status, and allows customization of notifications, time formats, DND mode, weather information, device location, menstrual cycle tracking, and more. The app also displays your fitness data in a visually appealing and informative format, with helpful notes to enhance understanding.
A cloud data backup solution for health data would have been a welcome addition. While initially, I was disappointed by the lack of data backup on my iPhone 11, I later discovered, deep within the settings, that the app can connect to the iOS Health App, synchronizing data that can then be stored in iCloud.
The Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH offers SpO2 tracking
Returning to the smartwatch itself, the custom OS features a Theatre mode that dims the display and disables vibrations, proving useful for bedtime. The watch can store five watch faces, with more available for download through the app. One face (Dial 4) allows customization with a photo from your smartphone’s gallery. You can personalize the text color and placement, and add up to two customizable complications from a preselected list of apps.
While the watch faces display a lot of data, they’re strictly visual. You can’t tap on complications to open the respective apps for more detailed information. The simple UI requires extensive swiping. It takes six swipes to access the SpO2 app from the main watch face. Alternatively, you can right swipe to display a vertical list of apps, where you’ll need to scroll down to find the SpO2 app, tap to open it, and then tap again to take a reading. This multi-step process can be frustrating.
Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH Performance and Battery Life
The ZEB-FIT4220CH’s software boasts smooth transitions and animations, free of stuttering or lag. The watch allows you to check notifications from all smartphone apps, but replying to them is not supported.
Setting the display brightness to the third of five levels provided sufficient visibility indoors. However, under bright sunlight, you’ll need to max it out for comfortable viewing. The LCD offers decent viewing angles but requires manual brightness adjustment from the pull-down control panel. This panel also holds toggles and indicators for vibration, weather, Bluetooth status, and battery level. The 1.3-inch display has a low resolution, resulting in visible jagged edges on text and icons throughout the UI.
This smartwatch supports Bluetooth calling. However, it requires a separate pairing with your smartphone over Bluetooth, distinct from the connection used for data syncing. Once paired, the smartwatch allows checking recent calls, using a dial pad, and calling your favorite contacts.
Bluetooth calling works, but is mostly a gimmick due to the low speaker volume
While Bluetooth calling functionality is present, the speaker output is muffled, making it difficult to understand the caller. Similarly, the watch mic struggles to pick up voices clearly. This necessitates holding the watch close to your face, making Bluetooth calling a more gimmicky feature despite its functionality.
An unusual consequence of the Bluetooth calling implementation is that all phone audio often gets routed to the watch’s speaker. Disconnecting the watch’s Bluetooth calling link after a call is necessary to prevent this.
The ZEB-FIT4220CH’s heart rate and SpO2 readings were accurate when compared to a standard pulse oximeter. However, blood pressure readings were less consistent, varying significantly between tests conducted just minutes apart. These readings also differed considerably from those obtained using a doctor’s blood pressure gauge. Sleep tracking was accurate in terms of patterns but frequently misidentified the actual time I fell asleep, often by a large margin of 2-3 hours. This inaccuracy renders the sleep tracking data unreliable.
The watch provides basic fitness tracking with seven sports modes: walking, running, skipping, football, cycling, badminton, and basketball. More specific or nuanced selections for variations or specific exercises are not available. For instance, you can’t choose between indoor cycling on an exercise bike and outdoor cycling, or running outdoors and on a treadmill. The walking mode was tested by manually counting 1,000 steps, with the watch registering 981. This level of accuracy is acceptable considering the uneven path.
With a 220mAh battery, the Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH easily lasts for about 6-7 days on a single charge, experiencing a daily drop of around 10-15 percent on average. This duration is achieved with the display brightness set to level 3 most of the time and level 5 outdoors. All notifications were enabled, health tracking features such as heart rate and sleep monitoring were switched on, and I tracked a few exercise activities on alternate days. Using Bluetooth calling frequently drains the battery considerably, reducing the expected standby time to around 3-4 days.
The magnetic charging connector disconnects a bit too easily
While the battery life meets expectations, the charging process is problematic. The ZEB-FIT4220CH takes around 2 hours and 20 minutes to charge fully, comparable to other smartwatches in this price segment. The bundled cable features a Type-A USB plug at one end and a magnetic connector at the other. Positioning the magnetic connector precisely on the charging contacts is essential, as there’s no inset or cutout to aid alignment. This resulted in frequent disconnections when the device was placed on its back with the charging cable underneath. The safest charging method involved placing the smartwatch with the display facing down.
While charging, the watch becomes inaccessible unless the cable is disconnected. Pressing the pusher to wake up the display only displays a "charging" message, devoid of battery status details. The mobile app also simply shows a charging icon over the battery indicator, lacking any information about the remaining charging time.
Verdict
After using the Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH for two weeks, it’s clear that it’s more of a smart band with a big display than a full-fledged smartwatch. This is mainly due to its basic UI, limited fitness tracking capabilities, low-resolution display, and lack of fundamental features like an ambient light sensor.
The ZEB-FIT4220CH boasts numerous features but not all of them work as intended. It offers SpO2 tracking, Bluetooth calling, a premium metal body with interchangeable straps, and a classic watch aesthetic. However, the sleep and blood pressure monitoring are unreliable, requiring careful consideration before relying on their data.
At a slightly higher price (Rs. 3,999), Xiaomi’s Redmi Watch offers a better overall experience, albeit lacking the traditional watch aesthetic. Its custom OS excels, boasting a wide range of watch faces, exercise modes, and water resistance up to 5 ATM. It also weighs in lighter at 30g. The Redmi Watch further benefits from a superior charging cradle, GPS tracking, and an app that backs up your data to the cloud.
While the Zebronics ZEB-FIT4220CH attempts to cater to those seeking a traditional-looking smart device with a large display, it ultimately falls short due to its inconsistent features and shortcomings. Ultimately, the Redmi Watch provides a more well-rounded experience within a similar price range, making it a more compelling option despite its less traditional watch appearance.
