Ever wanted to make your old and trusty wrist watch smarter? Well Acer’s new smart accessory aims to do just that but we beg you to avoid it. As is far to common at shows like MWC, we don’t have pricing or release date information for the Acer smart accessory. This will be announced at a later date but Wareable touts a whopping price of $225. See also: 20 best smartwatches 2016.
Acer Inox Cybertool review: Design and build
First we should probably explain exactly what this gadget is, since it’s not particularly obvious. Acer has teamed up with Victorinox which makes Army Knives and Swiss watches to create a ‘smart accessory’ which turns a regular wrist watch into something a bit more techy. To achieve this, the Inox Cybertool is a rather bizarre item which goes over the top of a watch. The donut shape with a hole in the middle means you can still see the face of the watch inside but you now have a digital screen and buttons with which to operate it. Made from plastic, the accessory swallows up the Inox watch in a sort of PacMan style. It covers what is a really nice looking watch almost entirely, which is a shame, leaving an ugly and extremely bulky result which doesn’t give access to the crown of the watch underneath.
We’re baffled by the design of the Acer smart accessory which doesn’t match up with the smart and stylish watch for which it is made. The Acer representative told us that is should fit over many other watches too but we can’t imagine many people wanting to cover up their potentially expensive watch with this plastic contraption. The device only weighs 24g so it’s quite light but we can’t stress enough how bulky it is (see below). The front is covered in Gorilla Glass and it has an IPX7 rating to protect against splashes.
Acer Inox Cybertool review: Hardware, specs and features
Although the accessory has a circular design, the screen doesn’t go all the way around like we expected. Instead, there is just a small LCD section at the top to display information. It’s not exactly high resolution either, as you can see. In case you can’t be bothered to look at the watch the smart accessory is covering up, Acer’s device will display the time if you push a button, keep pushing and you’ll cycle through the different modes which include a timer, stopwatch, health tracking and a phone finder.
Compatibility comes in the form of iOS and Android apps where you can manage things like alarms and which contacts you get notifications from. The Acer representative told us you can choose up to 10 which is odd as we though you would be able to get any notifications. Pushing both buttons will send a pre-defined emergency text message, which includes your location, to a selected contact in case you’re in trouble. Inside is a small 60mAh battery but there’s no juice hungry components so we’re told the device will last up to a week on a single charge. Tech Advisor’s Reviews Editor, Chris has been reviewing all kinds of tech for over 10 years and specialises in audio. He also covers a range of topics including home entertainment, phones, laptops, tablets and more.
