Asus vivowatch bp review in Spanish (full analysis)

In this latest Computex 2018, ASUS first showed us the ASUS VivoWatch BP, a smartwatch that accurately measures blood pressure, heart rate and in turn shows us an electrocardiogram in real time, collects our daily physical activity, our way of sleep and even provide assistance if necessary. All this seasoned with great autonomy and an own app to manage everything.

With the large number of smartwatch models out there today, and as is the case with the smartphone market, the best way to stand out is to offer some innovative feature. On this occasion, the ASUS VivoWatch BP's mission is to be our daily health assistant by integrating a medical assistant and the PPG and ECG sensors, a very interesting function for both elderly people and athletes who need to know their heart rate or pressure at all times blood. You have to consider a remarkable innovation in terms of portability and speed of use, but like everything else in this life, you have to test it first.

Technical characteristics

Unboxing

The ASUS VivoWatch BP comes packaged in a light blue and white box, in clear reference to health and wellness. On this front, a photograph of the smartwatch stands out and breaks down some of its most important functions. When we open the top cover, we find three compartments. In the center is the ASUS VivoWatch BP and on the sides the different accessories. The set corresponds to:

ASUS VivoWatch BP. Charging cable. Charging station. User manual.

Design

The first thing that catches your eye is the design of the ASUS VivoWatch BP is its rectangular shape with curved edges instead of the typical circular shape. This design is given by the inclusion of the ECG electrode that performs the cardiogram and the PPG sensor to perform a photoplethysmography, both located on the left front.

The main material is plastic, except for the sensors. On the front is also its high-contrast color LCD touch screen. On the left edge is the HOME button to return to the main screen or unlock the ASUS VivoWatch BP. On the opposite edge are the charging pins that make contact with the charging station. On the back, metal plates are the necessary electrodes for the electrocardiogram, while the central area is occupied by the blood pressure and heart rate sensor.

Finally, the removable bracelet is made of hypoallergenic medical grade silicone, which makes it biocompatible on contact with the skin.

Once the smartwatch is placed, the feeling seems to be good and the strap has a good grip, however, the greater horizontal wingspan of the device may not be as comfortable for some people as the typical dial of conventional watches, and for which also Most smartwatches have advocated.

The ASUS VivoWatch BP also has IP67 protection against dust and water, in the case of the latter not more than a meter deep or half an hour.

performance

Before using the smartwatch, it is necessary to download and install the Asus HealthConnect app from Google Play or the App Store. Once this is done, it will be necessary to follow the steps of the wizard to pair our device via Bluetooth, something that can take some time or a headache, due to how difficult it can be to pair. If we have managed to pair both devices, we must calibrate the ASUS VivoWatch BP with the help of a blood pressure measuring device.

With the ASUS VivoWatch BP correctly configured, we enter the KoodOS operating system. The system is really simple and intuitive, without unnecessary or overloaded menus. We will be able to move sideways to show other characteristics such as heart rate monitoring, steps, the exercise performed or the quality of sleep. If we slide up or down, we can see more information about that feature.

One of the most important and noteworthy is the measurement screen, which we can access by sliding to the right from the main screen. In it we will be asked to place the index finger on the front electrode. Thanks to this electrode and the PPG sensor , blood pressure will be measured in a certain time between 15 and 30 seconds. This reading may sometimes not start, either due to a factor such as the condition of the skin or the correct position of the sensors. If not on the first try, it usually works on the second or third. After completing the correct measurement, we will be presented with several values: heart rate, systolic pressure, diastolic pressure and stress level. On many occasions, we have been able to assume that the values were correct, in some other, after doing sports, the reading showed an unusually low value of the heart rate with respect to what it should show after performing physical activity. It is really advisable to calibrate the ASUS VivoWatch BP from time to time to achieve a higher percentage of accurate and reliable readings.

Aside from performing this more comprehensive measurement manually, the ASUS VivoWatch BP regularly and automatically measures heart rate.

If we are going to exercise outdoors, we have a GPS that measures the distance, the speed and the plotted path.

All the values collected during the day regarding exercise, steps, sleep, pressure and rhythm are stored in the memory of the watch and are subsequently synchronized with the HealthConnect app when required. This synchronization sometimes takes a few seconds. This allows us to monitor our organism and to know both the current values and those stored from the previous days. To do this, on the main screen of the app, we can click on each value to access more detailed information. The best thing, without a doubt, is to be able to see all that data in diagrams or graphs that inform in a very visual way.

There are other features that this ASUS VivoWatch BP has. One of the main functions is to be a medical assistant, who based on the data collected by the watch along with some physical data that we will be required to insert such as weight or height, allows us to be alerted or recommend advice.

It is possible, in turn, to add a medication reminder or other information. Other functions such as alarms and notifications of our smartphone are the usual ones that can be found in any other model.

Battery

One of the greatest announced virtues of this ASUS VivoWatch BP was the long autonomy that it possessed: up to 28 days of duration with its only 369 mAh. During our testing, there are days that we have made several pressure measurements and others less, also, as is normal, there are days that we have exercised more than others. In total, the battery has lasted us a maximum of 16 days, much higher than usual in other smart watches but somewhat far from what was promised. However, the maximum autonomies of the companies are carried out under the most suitable conditions. In our case, if we had taken fewer measurements, always kept the brightness to a minimum or deactivated the GPS, surely we would have obtained better autonomy. It is always a subjective value depending on its use.

Charging the ASUS VivoWatch BP is easily done by snapping the watch's body into the charging station and making sure the pins face down and the screen faces out. The watch remains stable in that position and without risk of falls. The full charge can take around an hour or an hour and something.

conclusion

The ASUS VivoWatch BP is an innovative smartwatch in some aspects as we said at the beginning. It is a great idea the one raised by Asus, since it is a tool that can come to both athletes and older people, or people who want or need to know what their heart rate is, in addition to all the already known functions of the smartwatches. The problem that always arises in the first approach to an innovation is the lack of debugging. In this case, the sensors very sporadically and the design can be improved, it is somewhat cumbersome and can even be annoying.

The time of synchronization of data with the app or the difficulty of pairing are other attributable problems. On the other hand, the medical assistant or its great autonomy are two of the great assets of this ASUS VivoWatch BP.

Therefore we start from a great basic idea, with some software flaws that can be improved via update, although in terms of design, it will be pending for another model. Its estimated market price is around € 150.

ADVANTAGE	DISADVANTAGES
+ Great autonomy.	- Size too big.
+ Good integration of the medical assistant.	- Sometimes the reading is not so accurate.
+ The app is very complete.	- The pairing with the mobile is sometimes complicated.