TicWatch Pro 5 ‘Enduro’ gets better band

About a year after launching the TicWatch Pro 5, Mobvoi is back with a new “Enduro” refresh that brings some hardware upgrades.

The new TicWatch Pro 5 Enduro is launching today as an upgraded version of the TicWatch Pro 5. Under the hood, it’s practically identical with a Snapdragon W5+ Gen 1 chipset, 2GB of RAM, 32GB of storage, and the same 628 mAh battery paired with a 1.43-inch dual-display for super-long battery life.

What’s new this time around?

That all comes in the hardware, and starts with the display. Mobvoi is upgrading from Gorilla Glass to sapphire crystal, in turn delivering a highly scratch-resistant surface that should hold up to basically anything you throw at it. The frame of the watch itself is still made from the same 7000-series aluminum and nylon with fiberglass.

TicWatch Pro 5 Enduro is a bit slimmer, though, at 11.95mm thick versus the Pro 5’s 12.2mm.

You’ll find that the design has been tweaked slightly, with “reinforced bezel carves” around the display and an updated rotating crown.

The band is also slightly upgraded. Where the Pro 5 included a silicone band, TicWatch Pro 5 Enduro uses a 24mm “Fluororubber” band which should feel closer to the sport bands for Pixel Watch and Apple Watch. And, in my own use of the watch, it feels quite good.

What’s great to see here is that the “Enduro” isn’t getting a price hike. It’ll cost the same $349 as the TicWatch Pro 5. For an objectively better smartwatch, that’s great news, and makes this a solid choice for a Wear OS watch.

Notably, the new model still ships with Wear OS 3, but when asked, Mobvoi told us that it is currently “recruiting” for a Wear OS 4 beta program. Hopefully, that will be faster than the last time around, especially given that Google is likely to launch Wear OS 5 in the coming weeks.