Fossil has been making vintage-inspired watches for about 30 years. And while those definitely aren't going away, times are changing, and as such Fossil evolving its approach to timepieces. Fossil Q is the company's line of connected wearables which includes two distinctly-styled watches, as well as an activity tracker.
Display Smartwatches
If you're in the market for a good-looking and customizable smartwatch, the Fossil Q Display Smartwatches are the lineup you should be considering.
These look, feel, and function exactly the way you'd want a smartwatch to, but still have the cool style of a traditional Fossil watch. There are four models in the Display lineup which feature activity tracking and are powered by Android Wear to connect with popular apps on your phone. And as always, you can manage notifications from your phone on your watch's touch display with a few taps and swipes.
The Display Smartwatches track activities like daily steps, distance, and calories burned and connects via Bluetooth with the Q App (for Android and iPhone) to monitor your progress over time and make suggestions to boost your activity level throughout the day. Best of all you can swap between metal and leather interchangeable bands and coordinate your watch strap to match one of the many selectable watchfaces.
Non-Display Smartwatches
For the purist, Fossil has created a smartwatch that doesn't look like a smartwatch.
The Fossil Q Non-Display Smartwatches ditch the flash touch display for a traditional watch face, but still connect the timepiece to your smartphone over Bluetooth. Instead of messages popping up on a display, this line of Q watches is a little more subtle with its notifications.
Using the Q App on your phone, you can program notifications to alert you with any combination of vibrations or colors. For example an Instagram alert will trigger an LED light on the underside of the watch to flash orange, or a text message will cause a vibration and a blue light. You'll get the same activity tracking features (step, calorie, and distance) as you would with the Display version of the watch, but it will all be monitored with the companion app.
Currently there are six watches available with different face styles and leather or steel bands. Straps can be swapped out for other ones of the same size allowing you to customize the look of your timepiece. The Fossil Q Non-Display Smartwatches also have about a week-long battery life, which is significantly longer than their touchscreen counterparts.
Fossil Q Activity Trackers
While not a full-fledged smartwatch, it's worth noting that Fossil has created a stylish activity tracker in the Q family.
For those who want to wear a traditional watch on one arm and a sleek fitness tracker on the other, or like the idea of a fitness tracker but don't like the looks of the sporty, rubberized offerings from other manufacturers Fossil introduces its Q Activity Trackers. These wearables were designed first as fashionable bracelets for men and women, but discreetly connect with your phone for advanced tracking and notification capabilities.
The Fossil Q Activity Trackers connect with the Q App via Bluetooth to track daily activities like steps taken, calories burned, and distance traveled. You can monitor your progress over time with the app, or check the three LED lights on the side of the design plate which light up to show how close you are to achieving your daily goals. Discreet vibrations alert you as you receive notifications from chosen apps.
There are seven styles of leather and steel bracelets to choose from, and additional straps can be purchased to mix up the style of your Q Activity Tracker.
Cue the credits!
Fossil has done a great job of covering all bases for people who love the look and feel of traditional watches, but want the function of a smart wearable. With their customizable bands and wide selection of watchfaces — both digital and analogue — you should be able to find a look that matches your personal style. Depending on how visible you want your smart device to be, Fossil's Q lineup gives you different degrees of style and function.
