The Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 5 has finally hit the market.
As a key WearOS player, Ticwatch has for long asserted itself as the preeminent Android smartwatch on the market. It offered superior connectivity and impressive battery performance to back up its claim.
But guess what? The competition has intensified. Google has finally released a watch of its own, the Google Pixel Watch. Samsung has Galaxy Watch 5 and 5 Pro. However, this time there is also a new unsuspecting rival in the town.
Known for its sports-centric watches, Garmin has successfully ventured into the lifestyle watch segment. Its front-runner? The Venu 2 Plus. Equipped with an AMOLED display, Bluetooth calling, NFC payments, and a myriad of health features, it’s a force to be reckoned with.
So, the TicWatch Pro 5 doesn’t just grapple with the typical WearOS competitors anymore. There’s a new contender in the arena.
The question is, can it maintain its stronghold amidst this new challenge? That’s what we’re here to figure out.
Let’s dive in, and see if TicWatch Pro 5 can still assert itself as the preeminent Android smartwatch on the market.
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Garmin Venu 2 Plus vs. Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 5: Making the Right Choice
Pricing:
Both of these watches are available in one size and lack LTE support. So the pricing is pretty straightforward.
The Garmin Venu 2 Plus, globally released on January 4, 2022, had a price tag of around $450. However, you can now snag it with about a $50 discount on major e-commerce stores.
On the other hand, the TicWatch Pro 5 comes in at a lower price point, around $350. There is no discount available, as it is a brand-new watch.
Clearly, the TicWatch Pro 5 is the more affordable option, tipping the price comparison scale in its favor.
Winner: Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 5
Here are the latest Deals on Garmin Venu 2 Plus & Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 5:
| Preview | Products | Latest Deals |
 | Garmin Venu 2 Plus | Check Amazon Price |
 | Ticwatch Pro 5 | Check Amazon Price |
Design & Display:
| Garmin Venu 2 Plus | Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Design | ||
| Case size | 43.6 mm | 50.1mm |
| Case Material | Stainless Steel Bezel, fiber-reinforced polymer Case, stainless-steel rear cover | Metal, 7000-series aluminum and high-strength nylon with fiberglass |
| Color(s) | Silver/Gray, Slate/Black, Cream Gold/Ivory | Obsidian |
| Water resistance | 5ATM | 5ATM |
| Military Standard | – | MIL-STD-810H |
| Weight | 51.0 g | 44.3g |
| Thickness | 12.6mm | 12.2mm |
| Straps | Interchangeable Silicone (20mm) | Interchangeable solid silicone straps (24mm) |
| Display | ||
| Display size | 1.3-inch | 1.43 inches |
| Display type | AMOLED Display | Dual Display (Full Color Always On Display AMOLED + Ultra-low-power Display) |
| Display resolution | 416 x 416 Pixels | 466 x 466 pixels |
| Display density | – | 326ppi |
| Display protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 | Corning Gorilla Anti-fingerprint Cover Glass |
As you can see in the table above Ticwatch Pro 5 is lighter, but it has a larger case size than the Garmin Venu 2 Plus. The watch is undoubtedly unsuitable for slender wrists.
Next, we don’t see any choice in colors. With the Ticwatch, you have one universal option: the Obsidian color. Garmin offers more options for users to match the color to their style. Speaking of which, we were pretty unimpressed with the 24mm thick strap of the Ticwatch. Plus, the look overall fails to make an impression on this watch.
In terms of durability, we can say they are more or less evenly matched. Ticwatch Pro 5 claims military grade certification to boast its claim, but even without this claim, we know that Garmin can take daily wear and tear.
Now, let’s compare the display. Both watches have an OLED screen, but Ticwatch has another trick up its sleeve. The ultra-low powered FTSN secondary display, that you can switch to any time you want.
However, that dulls the appeal of the watch, as you would end up with an OLED panel that feels somewhat recessed, with potentially compromised sharpness, brightness, and overall viewing experience.
Winner: Garmin Venu 2 Plus
Smartwatch Features:
| Garmin Venu 2 Plus | Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Processor | – | Snapdragon W5+ Gen 1 Wearable Platform |
| RAM | – | 2GB |
| Storage | 8GB | 32GB |
| Operating System | GarminOS | Wear OS 3 |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, ANT+ | Bluetooth 5.2, Wi-Fi |
| NFC Chip | Yes (Garmin Pay) | Yes (Google Pay) |
| Notifications | Calls, texts, emails, social media, calendar events | Calls, texts, emails, social media, calendar events |
| Music Controls | Play, pause, skip tracks, adjust the volume | Play, pause, skip tracks, adjust the volume |
| Music Storage | Yes | Yes |
| Music Streaming | Spotify, Amazon Music, Deezer, iHeartRadio | Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Music, YouTube Music, & more |
| Voice Assistant | Bixby + Google Assistant + Siri (Depending on connected phone) | Google Assistant |
| Navigation | – | Google Maps |
| LTE (optional) | No | No |
Beginning with hardware, the Ticwatch Pro 5 pulls ahead with its snappy performance and massive storage. For all practical purposes, the difference in performance can be easily overlooked.
The real game-changer is the operating system. Ticwatch Pro 5 boasts Google’s continually evolving Wear OS 3, offering
- streamlined navigation
- modern aesthetics
- customization options
- and access to 1000+ third-party apps, including Google Suite.
Garmin’s OS, despite having received a significant upgrade in the Venu 2 Plus, would leave you wanting a lot of capabilities discussed above. The worst part is the customization with third-party apps on the ConnectIQ store, which are limited to health and sports-centric apps.
In terms of connectivity, both watches offer Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. However, Garmin Venu 2 Plus adds ANT+ to its arsenal. This will allow you to connect a wide range of external sensors to the watch.
Both watches include NFC chips for contactless payments but Google Pay on the Ticwatch has a more widespread coverage around the world. ‘Garmin Pay’ works well in North America, and the company is pushing hard for worldwide adaptability.
For notifications, both smartwatches relay calls, texts, emails, and social media updates effectively. Yet, Ticwatch Pro 5 stands out with its on-wrist call and customizable text capabilities. The Garmin Venu 2 Plus can make calls too but restricts texting to pre-canned replies. Keep in mind that you need your smartphones tethered to the watch, to make calls and texts on each of these devices.
Related Post: Can Garmin Watch Text?
When it comes to music, both watches not only control but also store music. Plus, they offer support for popular streaming services. Ticwatch Pro 5 supports a more extensive range of platforms like Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Music, YouTube Music, and more. On the contrary, the Garmin Venu 2 Plus sticks to Spotify, Amazon Music, Deezer, and iHeartRadio.
Winner: Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 5
Fitness & Sports Tracking:
| Garmin Venu 2 Plus | Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Companion App | Garmin Connect | Mobvoi Health |
| Sensors | Garmin Elevate heart rate sensor, GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Barometric altimeter, Compass | |
| Gyroscope, Accelerometer, Thermometer, Pulse ox blood oxygen saturation monitor | Accelerometer, Barometer, Gyroscope, PPG Heart Rate Sensor, SpO2 Sensor, Skin Temperature Sensor, GPS, GLONASS | |
| Health Tracking | Steps, Heart Rate, Sleep, Stress, SpO2, ECG | Heart Rate, Sleep, Stress, SpO2, aFib Alerts |
If you want to measure blood oxygen saturation, 24/7 heart rate, sleep, and stress, both watches can do just fine. But only the Venu 2 Plus can do ECG monitoring.
Next, let’s discuss sports tracking.
Neither of these watches can claim to be a full-fledged sports watch, and yet we get plenty of options on both of them.
Ticwatch Pro 5 has 100+ modes, whereas Garmin has 25 sports modes preloaded on the devices and 1600 workouts for various exercises. The real value is not in the quantity but in the quality and depth of data.
In this regard, Garmin reigns supreme. Not only that it offers more accurate data (thanks to its latest hardware and Firstbeat algorithms) but also the tracking for core sports profiles (running, swimming, cycling) is more advanced than Mobvoi.
Apart from that, the company has sophisticated metrics like body battery, recovery time, and Sleep Score that help you turn the raw data from the watch to your advantage.
In comparison, the Ticwatch Pro 5, while impressive, seems to be playing catch-up. Some of its features seem inspired by those pioneered by Garmin.
For instance, take the recently introduced ‘One-tap measurement’ on the Ticwatch. This feature will allow you to measure five key metrics simultaneously (stress, heart rate, respiratory rate, blood oxygen, and overall heart health score). By all means, it is reminiscent of the health Snapshot feature that the Garmin Venu 2 Plus has offered for years.
Winner: Garmin Venu 2 Plus
Battery Performance:
| Garmin Venu 2 Plus | Mobvoi Ticwatch Pro 5 | |
|---|---|---|
| Battery Size | – | 628 mAh (51 mm) |
| Fast Charging | No | Yes |
| Wireless Charging | No | No |
| Expected Battery Life | Almost 8 days (normal use) | 5-7 days (normal use) |
Both brands enjoy a good reputation for their battery life stats.
With standard usage, both watches can deliver approximately a week’s performance. However, the Ticwatch Pro 5 pulls ahead with its secondary, low-power display. When used optimally, it can potentially extend battery life to nearly three weeks.
Keep in mind that the secondary display on the Ticwatch can now share more than just time and date. It allows you to view notifications, heart rate, blood oxygen level, calories burned, and even a compass, without significantly draining the battery.
Moreover, the Ticwatch Pro 5 supports fast charging, a feature that proves useful when time is of the essence.
However, both watches have a common shortcoming: a pin-style charging port. We can only hope to see a more convenient dock-style charger in future iterations.
We would have loved to tie the competition in this department, but Ticwatch deserves the credit here.
Winner: Ticwatch Pro 5
Here are the latest Deals on Garmin Venu 2 Plus & Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 5:
| Preview | Products | Latest Deals |
| Garmin Venu 2 Plus | Check Amazon Price |
| Ticwatch Pro 5 | Check Amazon Price |
I created this blog to help people find the right smartwatch for their taste, to keep tabs on the latest news and leaks, and to share my experience with different smartwatches.