Review: Tips and tips for 100% outdoor use of the Casio PRO TREK Smart WSD-F20, you won't let go, even if you notice it.

Key points for battery energy saving settings

When it comes to battery life, I felt like it would lose its speed at first, but to be honest, I think it's not that bad, and I'm doing it well. Of course, when I was using the functions unplannedly, the battery would almost run out in about half a day, but that's basically not much different for devices from any manufacturer at this time. By the way, as far as I use it everyday, I have had it for 1-2 days, so I'm sure it's not something I'd be concerned about in terms of everyday use.

I tried launching the app under various conditions over the past month (about 30 patterns) and verifying what settings actually were effective in saving energy. There were settings that showed clear effects, to those that didn't have very clear results, so I've put together some tips and key points to consider when setting energy-saving settings.

GPS tracking settings are set from "precision priority" to "battery priority" → Is the effect limited?

This setting allows you to adjust the tracking interval in the Activity App or Location Memory. If you prioritize battery, tracking accuracy will be slightly reduced, but if you are climbing at a speed, you won't be too concerned about it. Furthermore, according to the manual, the tracking interval is smaller , so the best way to reduce battery consumption is to "prioritize the battery and simply check the map using location memory each time." However, in reality, as far as I have tried out various apps and setting patterns this time, I have not seen any clear effect.

Set the screen brightness to "1 (lowest)" → Reliably effective

As expected, the effect of the screen display settings on battery consumption was quite impressive. Don't hesitate to set it to the lowest "1" to save money.

Set "Always on screen" to disable → It's definitely effective

This setting allows you to immediately turn off the color LCD display if the operation does not last for a certain period of time. If you tested this with "enabled", all of the power efficiency was poor, so you can assume that this is also effective.

Switch the type of watch face on this unit to "2 layers" → Probably has an effect

This information can be found Casio's support page "Charging and Power Supply" Q4 . It is true that this simple watch face has not yet become extremely poor in consumption efficiency, but the effects were not clearly visible each time, so it was not certain.

Disable "Tilt and turn on screen" in the OS settings → Probably has an effect

This information is also available Casio's support page "Charging and Power Supply" Q4 . With this, it's convenient because you can just shake your wrist and get the LCD screen displayed, but it seems that it's better to turn it off to save energy (though the effect was honestly a bit unclear).

Turn on airplane mode → It's definitely effective

By turning it into airplane mode, you can cut off Bluetooth and Wi-Fi communication, and save electricity by preventing your smartphone and watch from communicating in the background without your permission. Blocking communication is not realistic for everyday use, but it is almost no problem if it is outdoors where there is no connection in the first place. In tests, many of the patterns that were highly battery-efficient were in airplane mode, so it is likely to be effective.

Turn off "Save Daily Location Information" → Probably has an effect

Turning this setting off will likely limit the "GPS current location acquisition and recording" operation when nothing is done. However, this test did not show a high effect in all cases, so it's probably just "it's better to do it than not."

Register an app that doesn't notify Android Wear → Probably effective

This is not quantitative, but the setting is to reduce the number of notifications you set on your smartphone by limiting notifications from specific apps.

Uninstalling unnecessary apps → Probably effective

Although this cannot be confirmed as a quantitative effect, it is common knowledge on general Android devices, so it is not unlikely that this is ineffective either.

Other comfortable ways to use it - Cooperating with the EX-FR series makes outdoor shooting more fun -

What a messy story has continued, but the WSD-F20 also has fun features that will expand the new possibilities of watches for the outdoors. One of these is linking with Casio's EXILIM outdoor recorder EX-FR series.

This time we have set the FR-200 in the holder attached to the shoulder strap.

I turned off the shutter via Bluetooth from the EXILIM Controller installed on my WSD-F20 (I deliberately took a picture so that I could see it). You can take pinpoint photos of these all-out sky photos without the need for a controller while looking at the view projected on the watch at hand. Of course, you can also shoot videos, as well as self-timers and interval shooting that keeps the shutter running at regular intervals from the clock. However, the only types of photos are photos around the sky, so I wish I could have chosen other ultra-wide-angle sizes.

Summary and expectations for the future

First of all, there must be a variety of variables that we cannot understand regarding the ease of battery drainage this time, and in that respect, we have not yet made an accurate comparison test. For example, GPS information may be obtained from a smartphone or a watch may have its own, and it may not be possible to get a detailed understanding of which one is obtained, so this may be vague in this test. I'll try to add that as soon as I know.

In this review, we have explained that depending on the type of app and the settings, you can adjust the balance to a level that is somewhat satisfying for the user, from ease of use to battery life. The latest PRO TREK is extremely solid in its hardware, a mothership for a smartwatch, and is a great gear that balances stability and customizability, worth tinkering with this fine touch.

Furthermore, the design, which fully utilizes the unique benefits of Android devices, which allow software to be tuned freely and evolved, is highly anticipated for future evolution. Personally, I can put aside the priorities (even if not yet sufficient) about improving hardware performance, so I hope that the application and service will be enhanced that will make you want to continue using this device. As I pointed out in the previous model, in the tough competitive environment these days, where hardware performance is quickly caught up in, the key to choosing for users is what they can do using it (what they want to do). With such a leap forward, I think I'll try to find a way to use it in my liking.

Smart Outdoor Watch PRO TREK Smart WSD-F20

CASIO

55,080 yen

For more information on the lineup, main specifications, accessories, etc., here (official product page) , and for useful information and latest information from the manufacturer, we are currently posting it on PRO TREK's Facebook page