CMF Watch Pro 2 Review: Second Time’s the Charm?

The CMF Phone 1 is here and the company also brings the CMF Watch Pro 2 with it as well. It has launched as a successor to last year’s Watch Pro. I’ve been using the Watch Pro 2 for around a week, putting it through its paces. So, is CMF’s second attempt worth paying your hard-earned money for, or should you skip it? This detailed CMF Watch Pro 2 review should answer all your questions and more.

CMF Watch Pro 2 Specs at a Glance

Design and Build

I have with me the Dark Grey colorway of the CMF Watch Pro 2, and I liked the overall finish of it. Right out of the box, alongside the unit itself, you get a dark grey silicone strap, a pogo pin charger, and some paperwork.

Like its predecessor, the Watch Pro 2’s casing is made out of aluminum alloy. So, it certainly does look and feel premium.

Now, while in terms of thickness, there’s not much of a difference, the circular form factor does a solid job of distributing the weight. So, it’s a lot more versatile and can cater to the needs of those with smaller hands too, which its predecessor had a clear problem with. But, there’s only one size (roughly 33.5mm) available in CMF Watch Pro 2.

The default strap is made out of liquid silicone and is of very good quality. It posed no trouble when wearing the watch for extended periods of time.

This default circular dial that CMF is calling a bezel is also raised and protects the screen from bumps at the edges. Also, it’s metal too. The bezel is replaceable as well and comes off easily. So, in case it wears out over time, you can simply change it. In addition, there’s some subtle branding at the bottom left of this dial.

CMF Watch Pro 2 comes in a Dark Grey color liquid silicone strap and replaceable bezel by default. However, you can buy a strap + bezel combo for Rs 749. CMF offers three color options in straps:

• Orange and Blue leather straps
• Light Grey strap in liquid silicone

This adds to the versatility, as it brings a certain level of personalization and customization. For example, the orange strap set’s bezel is not raised and flat instead.

While customization options are available, I would like to complain that the quality of the leather strap is not up to the mark. In my usage of around a week, cracks have started appearing on the leather strap already.

Changing the bezel is quite easy. Simply place the bezel on the top of the watch and align it with the hooks. Next, rotate the bezel a little so that it settles in its position.

Additionally, this time around, you also get to see a Functional Crown with a CMF-themed orange accent, which is a nice touch. It’s not just for show though and you do get some utility out of it, which we’ll talk about later.

It also retains the IP68 rating of its predecessor, adding to the durability of it all. The overall design of the smartwatch is pretty minimalistic and I’m all for it. Even the speaker grille has been smartly shifted to the bottom, thereby giving the top portion a cleaner look.

Display

While I like the circular design better, the display has shrunk as a result. In comparison to the Watch Pro’s 1.96-inch display, you get a 1.32-inch panel on the Watch Pro 2. While the viewing room is still not claustrophobic per se, it will take you a bit of time to get used to it, especially when coming from bigger smartwatches.

But, this is an AMOLED panel and the 620 nits peak brightness is slightly more than the Watch Pro’s 600 nits. Not to mention that you get the auto-brightness functionality on the Watch Pro 2, which its predecessor lacked. This is a bright display that served its purpose well both indoors and outdoors.

There’s an Always-On Display too, in case you are wondering. You also get a proper 60Hz panel on the Watch Pro 2, while the predecessor was limited to 58Hz. The display quality is certainly a bit of an upgrade here.

Health Features

The CMF Watch Pro 2 comes with 120 Sports Modes, and while the couch potato in me can’t even think about putting those to the test, outdoor and indoor walks showed up good results. I did a quick 15-minute treadmill test in the Indoor Walking Workout Mode and compared it with the Apple Watch Series 9 to see how accurate it is.

The Watch Pro 2 calculated an extra 140m in distance in comparison to the Series 9. While that is off by a bit, the health stats were accurate enough. Moreover, while the Series 9’s indoor walking mode didn’t show the total steps for some reason, the Watch Pro 2 did, alongside the average stride and step rate.

Then comes the sleep tracking which was good enough as well. I really liked the kind of detail the companion app gets into with the sleep data. From your Sleep Duration to detailed Sleep Graphs showcasing proper sleep distribution, you get to see it all in the app itself.

The sleep breakdown and tracking are better on the Watch Pro 2 in comparison to the Watch Pro. Previously, several users complained that Watch Pro’s sleep tracking was severely inaccurate. That has improved this time. Also, the watch detects naps automatically and shows data for it without you having to turn on any mode.

In addition, the CMF Watch Pro 2 comes with the usual health-focused features like blood oxygen monitoring, 24×7 heart rate monitoring, and stress reminders. For women, there’s also menstrual cycle tracking, which is always a great feature to have.

There’s also Active Score and Training Load on the Watch Pro 2. The former scores you out of 100 on the basis of your fitness records for a week. Meanwhile, the latter analyzes how heavy and extensive your workout regimen is.

You can also turn on Workout detection to remove the hassle of having to constantly manually set the workout mode. You also get Fitness Data Integration with the Watch Pro 2, allowing you to sync it with Apple Health, Google Health Connect, and Strava for more comprehensive tracking.

Companion App and UI

Before we get into the details, let me tell you that the CMF Watch Pro 2 was tested on Build Number 1.0.0.39 and App Version 3.1.4. Also, the CMF Watch Pro 2 doesn’t run on rtOS or Wear OS and the company hasn’t mentioned the operating system either.

Right off the bat, I was very happy to see that the CMF Watch Pro 2’s companion app (Android, iOS) is compatible with both Android and iOS. The app itself is very intuitive and offers detailed statistics on everything that it tracks, from sleep tracking to step tracking.

The app in itself is very easy to use and navigate through. Not for once did I feel lost. The app also lets you customize the widget pages on the Watch Pro 2 easily. There are countless widgets to explore and use. GPS works very well too and actively tracks your movements.

Most importantly, with the new version of the app, you get dark mode. It also includes a very basic yet key feature that was missing previously – steps history.

Moving on to the Watch Pro 2’s UI, it’s easily one of the cleanest smartwatch skins out there. The customizable widget pages are also fun to swipe through. This time, you also get to see a dedicated music player widget, which is great.

Then comes the rotating crown, which is backed by very satisfying haptic feedback integration in the UI. From adjusting volume in calls to browsing through setting menus and even interacting with certain watch faces, it’s a pleasure to use the crown.

Talking about haptic integration, while the rotating crown is well optimized with it, the general haptics of the watch aren’t good. They’re a tad too strong and buzzy, which is annoying during incoming calls and messages, even with the Haptic set to Standard. The Watch Pro doesn’t have that problem, which suggests an optimization issue on this front.

As for Watch Faces, you can keep a maximum of five loaded on the watch itself. You can view the full list of Faces on the companion app. Now, while the brand claims over 100 Watch Faces are available for the watch, I spotted only 19 for now. There is also an option for a custom watch face in the app, but that’s about it. I’m guessing a big update is on the way.

Daily Usage and Performance

One of the best things about the CMF Watch Pro 2 is that it barely has any bugs. The Watch Pro still has a critical bug that disconnects it from your phone every now and then. This makes you miss out on calls and notifications. The Watch Pro 2 didn’t have that issue and the connection was solid throughout.

I also took quite a few calls from the smartwatch and the microphone quality is insanely good. The AI Noise Cancellation also works really well in canceling out ambient noises. At one instance, I took a call through it in heavy traffic and the person I was on a call with didn’t complain about those noises. Not to mention that I also used the speaker to take the call, and it’s impressively loud.

Custom gestures make it easier to execute these actions, and they work very well. Overall, day-to-day usage was a charm on the Watch, and it didn’t stutter or lag once. From the proximity sensor to the ambient light sensor, they worked very well.

You also get quality-of-life features like Water Reminders and stand-up warnings in the smartwatch.

I could keep active tabs on my calls and notifications and, as I said earlier, the UI is super fluid too. There are certain software issues, but they didn’t come in the way majorly. All things considered, there’s barely any room for complaints on this front.

Battery

I have used the watch extensively for around 5 days with AOD on, brightness set to auto, and all the 24×7 health tracking features enabled. By the end of the 5th day, the 305mAh battery unit on the watch still left me with 18% of the battery.

So, with heavy usage, the Watch Pro 2 should last you around 6 days. That’s less than the CMF’s 9-day claim, but good enough nevertheless. You can squeeze some more juice out of it by turning off the Always-On Display.

There’s also a power-saving mode for those emergency situations, which restricts your smartwatch to just a digital watch. For charging, the in-box pogo pin charging puck takes around 2 hours to fully charge the watch.

Should You Buy CMF Watch Pro 2?

The realm of smartwatches is very saturated right now, and the CMF Watch Pro 2 gets a lot of things right to stand out from the crowd. From a premium, durable, and customizable design to a fluid UI and an extensive array of health-centric features, the smartwatch features the best of both worlds.

While smartwatches are technically glorified fitness trackers, it’s good to see the Watch Pro 2 take tracking seriously and deliver some impressive results. Besides, the companion CMF Watch app’s intuitiveness and detailed stats make it more viable.

Add a great display and impressive battery backup to the mix, and the Watch Pro 2 is definitely a near-perfect smartwatch in the under Rs 5,000 smartwatch segment. For fitness tracking solely, you do have the Samsung Galaxy Fit 3 priced similarly at Rs 4,999. However, it doesn’t come with GPS or iOS support, both of which the CMF Watch Pro 2 flaunts.

Neither does the Rs 4,499 Noise ColorFit Pro 5 Max have GPS, which is essential for your workout regimen. While the similarly priced Fastrack Reflex Play+ does have GPS, it doesn’t have nearly as many sports modes as the Watch Pro 2.

Taking all these things into consideration, if you want your money’s worth, the CMF Watch Pro 2 is certainly the way to go, justifying its price tag well.