The Mustard Rock comes with all standard fitness tracking features like heart monitoring, sleep tracking, etc. (Image credit: Anurag Chawake/Indian Express/WideCare)

The Mustard Rock is a feature-packed budget smartwatch trying to compete with existing brands like Noise, Fireboltt, Amazfit, Boat, Mi and others. Packing a huge 1.81-inch HD display, the smartwatch comes with a matte finish and comfortable fit. While the smartwatch looks and feels good, is it enough to make a dent in the already overcrowded under Rs 3,000 segment? Here’s what we think.

Mustard Rock: What’s good?

The Mustard Rock has a rectangular dial and a smooth matte finish with a crown on the side. The build quality is solid, and the watch itself is pretty lightweight. It has a 1.81-inch HD LCD display, which is visible even if you are standing under the sun. The Mustard Rock comes with a soft silicon interchangeable strap that neatly integrates with the design.

Even after wearing the watch all day long, I did not feel any discomfort. Another good thing is that the watch did not leave any marks on my wrist, unlike the Galaxy Watch 4, which I have to take off every couple of hours to give my skin room to breathe.

And thanks to the large screen, swiping and navigating the menu is really easy. Swiping down from the home screen presents a menu that gives you quick access to settings like sleep mode, locking the watch, flashlight, device settings, voice assistant and more.

If you want to check notifications, simply swipe up from the home screen. Swiping left and right gives you access to all apps and tiles that give you information like weather, steps taken, sleep tracking and more. The user interface is really smooth, and I did not encounter any lag or freezes while using the watch.

The Mustard Rock connects to the phone via the Coolwear app. (Image credit: Anurag Chawake/Indian Express/WideCare)

The Mustard Rock excels in heart rate tracking and blood oxygen monitoring. I tried testing my heart rate and blood oxygen levels after exercising, sitting for a while and walking, and the results were pretty much in line with some premium smartwatches.

Mustard Rock: What’s not good?

While the Mustard Rock sports a 1.81-inch screen, the text and icons are not as crisp and look pixelated. While I could receive calls and reject them from the smartwatch, the calling functionality did not work at all. I tried disconnecting and reconnecting the watch and reinstalling the app, but nothing worked.

I tried walking and running for some time, and the step count was off compared to other smartwatches in the same price segment. The sleep tracking is not impressive either. Most of the time, the watch suggested I was sleeping even after I woke up and laid down on my bed.

The biggest problem I encountered while using the watch was the companion app. The Mustard Rock connects to the phone via the ‘Coolwear’ app. It is a basic application that lets you view your step count, heart rate, distance covered, calories burned, sleep and blood oxygen levels in a single window.

It has a large 1.81-inch HD display. (Image credit: Anurag Chawake/Indian Express/WideCare)

On the bottom bar of the Coolwear app, you will find the ‘Workout’ and ‘Device’ tab as well, which let you start a workout and modify different smartwatch settings. Even though the app does its work, one thing to note here is that the Coolwear app does not offer detailed statistics about your workout, which is disappointing, as other smartwatch companies have a better app, with some even actively encouraging users to improve their lifestyle and health.

Fortunately, the app lets you sync all your health data to Google Fit, which is a better solution if you want to stay fit. Also, I noticed that the Coolwear app has confusing options names like ‘Palming bright screen’, which is the equivalent of the raise to wake function. All in all, I would suggest you link Coolwear with Google Fit and avoid using the companion app if you want to stay fit.

Mustard claims the store has 150+ watch faces, but most of them have the same clock style on different backgrounds. The battery should last up to five days, but I found myself charging the watch every three days or so, even with continuous heart rate monitoring turned off.

It has a crown on the side that can be used to access the app drawer. (Image credit: Anurag Chawake/Indian Express/WideCare)

Mustard Rock: Verdict

The Mustard Rock has a big display and lag-free user interface but lacks features like detailed fitness stats and somewhat pixelated text. Also, the companion app is just bare bones compared to other smartwatches in the price segment. If you want a smartwatch with a large display and lag-free user interface, the Mustard Rock is a good choice.

However, those looking for a smartwatch with good fitness tracking features can consider alternatives like the FireBoltt Atom, Noise Colorfit Ultra 2, Dizo Watch D and others. With a price tag of Rs 2,599, the Mustard Rock struggles to stand out from the rest of the competition.

News Article Source:- Indian Express