IKWEAR IK8 MTK6577 Smart Phone Watch 1.54 Inch Android 4.0

Thanks for the small review! Runkeeper or other runner's app work on it?

dcrisis said:

This IK8 Watch Phone looks a lot like a ZGPAX or EC-309, but the camera points across the band instead of from the front and I think it has a faster processor.

​

I haven't seen any other mention of it here on XDA.

Does anyone know if it is a rebrand of something else that I'm missing here?

It's fast. I've been able to use Google Hangouts on it, even with video. Zello works with no problems and even sounds good. I'm going to get a SIM for it and see how well the phone works.

Biggest drawbacks are lack of support for Google Voice and Voice Search. I've been able to workaround most of the other issues. This appears to be a common issue for this type of phone, and it's a big disappointment here. I'd love to find a way to get those messages. Has anyone solved this?

I got mine at http://www.geekbuying.com/item/IK8-...4-0-512MB-RAM-4G-ROM-5MP-GPS-WIFI-325392.html but you'll likely find a place that ships more quickly than Geekbuying.

Thanks!

DC

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

I own a ZGPAX s5 and I see this watch on ebay as well.
For the processor they are the same :MTK6577 1GHz Dual Core
Both IK8 and s5 actually run the same system as well (android 4.0.4)
They look different just because of different default launchers.
I just root mine and use Launcher 8 instead.
The real difference should be the position of the camera.
Both camera are 2MP and 5MP interpolated.
s5 is better for selfies and Skype while IK8 is better for taking photo shots.
Both are 2G as well.
They even share the same battery!!! ZGPAX s5 got 500mAH and 700mAH and IK8 should be 700mAH
You can take a look of this
http://www.ikwear.com/wangzhanjianshe/1.html

It should be a rebrand product.
The best solution is to mix the two products' camera into one LOL
Then I can selfie and take normal shot!!! :laugh:

Cheers!

---------- Post added at 09:36 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:30 AM ----------

dcrisis said:

This IK8 Watch Phone looks a lot like a ZGPAX or EC-309, but the camera points across the band instead of from the front and I think it has a faster processor.

​

I haven't seen any other mention of it here on XDA.

Does anyone know if it is a rebrand of something else that I'm missing here?

It's fast. I've been able to use Google Hangouts on it, even with video. Zello works with no problems and even sounds good. I'm going to get a SIM for it and see how well the phone works.

Biggest drawbacks are lack of support for Google Voice and Voice Search. I've been able to workaround most of the other issues. This appears to be a common issue for this type of phone, and it's a big disappointment here. I'd love to find a way to get those messages. Has anyone solved this?

I got mine at http://www.geekbuying.com/item/IK8-...4-0-512MB-RAM-4G-ROM-5MP-GPS-WIFI-325392.html but you'll likely find a place that ships more quickly than Geekbuying.

Thanks!

DC

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

For the Google Now, Just refer to the last two pages in [GUIDE] ZGPAX SmartWatch::1/22::Embedded more Videos/ OP
http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=51806814&postcount=764

dcrisis said:

This IK8 Watch Phone looks a lot like a ZGPAX or EC-309, but the camera points across the band instead of from the front and I think it has a faster processor.

​

I haven't seen any other mention of it here on XDA.

Does anyone know if it is a rebrand of something else that I'm missing here?

It's fast. I've been able to use Google Hangouts on it, even with video. Zello works with no problems and even sounds good. I'm going to get a SIM for it and see how well the phone works.

Biggest drawbacks are lack of support for Google Voice and Voice Search. I've been able to workaround most of the other issues. This appears to be a common issue for this type of phone, and it's a big disappointment here. I'd love to find a way to get those messages. Has anyone solved this?

I got mine at http://www.geekbuying.com/item/IK8-...4-0-512MB-RAM-4G-ROM-5MP-GPS-WIFI-325392.html but you'll likely find a place that ships more quickly than Geekbuying.

Thanks!

DC

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

Got a couple of quick questions if you don't mind. I find some interest in this smartwatch

1 How do you like this smartwatch now?

2 I noticed on a youtube video that this smartwatch seems to have a sort of hidden menu button and back button located at the bottom of display. Am I correct?

Any thing else you would like to comment on would be appreciated.

Thanks

sny11 said:

Got a couple of quick questions if you don't mind. I find some interest in this smartwatch

1 How do you like this smartwatch now?

2 I noticed on a youtube video that this smartwatch seems to have a sort of hidden menu button and back button located at the bottom of display. Am I correct?

Any thing else you would like to comment on would be appreciated.

Thanks

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

1. It is stand-alone watch phone, android v4.04 system, high definition touch screen, high resolution camera, you can use it smoothly and freely like a smartphone.

2. There is menu button and back button on the side of the watch, not at the bottom of display. And you can touch the screen to get what you want...

See more @ watchphonechina.com/watch-phone-china/

Zwatch said:

2. There is menu button and back button on the side of the watch, not at the bottom of display. And you can touch the screen to get what you want...

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

I've been using the IK8 for a few days now, and I discovered that there is definitely a menu- and back-button located directly underneath the display. In fact, they often get in the way while trying to touch lower areas of the screen .

Is this $120 the same one on AliExpress?

it gives notifications when connected to a phone?

It says 700mah battery. .. many days use do you get from it?

I got mine from Aliexpress It's super fast for me just two days to arrive to Hong Kong! I ordered another one earlier before from Chinavasion to Scotland and it takes me four days.


Sent from my PadFone using XDA Premium HD app

IK8

simple1i said:

Is this $120 the same one on aliexpress.com/item/IK8-Smart-Watch-Phone-154-Inch-Screen-MTK6577-Dual-Core-50MP-Front-Camera-OGS/1851182462.html ?

it gives notifications when connected to a phone?

It says 700mah battery. .. many days use do you get from it?

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

Looks like the same device to me. Just be cautious since this seller has only received feedback once. I'm not sure if this deal is legit, especially since the price is incredibly low. The IK8 usually sells for about $135 - $145.

Since it's a standalone Android device, you don't need any additional phone running a companion app in order to receive notifications. Just insert your SIM card (regular SIM) and you're ready to go. If you'd like to pair the IK8 to your smartphone and receive notifications over Bluetooth, maybe it is possible to install the Osmart app which is originally developed for the Omate Truesmart. I'm not sure if this will work, but it's worth giving it a try. XDA user 'KOAO' already had some success using this app with his ZGPAX S5, which is not that different from the IK8;

KOAO said:

I am successfully able to receive notifications from Emails, and texts. i haven't tried to reject a call yet. However, i used the Osmart Companion app from the omate truesmart. You download the companion app to you watch by loading the Ostore app on your watch(i might ....might link the APK file i extracted from the Truesmart OS)Then you go to the post at the bottom, join the group and then download the master app to your Andriod based smartphone. Then you pair them up and test. If successful, WIN if not then try again.

Osmart Master app:
plus.google.com/109641424466258907138/posts/8PrkrDdUsR4

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

The original battery supplied with the IK8 is 500mAh in contrary to what is promised on most websites/shops, it's exactly the same type of battery as used in the ZGPAX S5, but I'm not sure if they are interchangeable since the plastic 'mounting clips' look a bit different. With WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS turned off and the screen set at the lowest brightness I get about 7 - 8 hours of battery life. But I haven't been using the device a lot yet, so I think battery life will probably increase.

I ordered my IK8 from Aurabuy and received it within 1,5 week (to the Netherlands with SingPost).

Edit: I came across several 'relabeled' versions of this watch lately. They are all exactly the same, but simply indicate different brand-names. For as far as I know, the IK8 Smartwatch is originally known as the TCW-006 and is being manufactured by Tecomax Electronics. This also explains the build-number visible in Android; TECO_V2.0_20140420.

haven't posted in xda for a while..let alone in the smartwatch section...but here we go. was in hong kong for a conference and decided to drop by the it shop. came across a host of smartwatches and just for fun picked up the ik8 for $90. haggled it down to $80 and figured i'd ditch it sooner or later. didn't play around with it until like 5 days later after i got back to melbourne. lo and behold, was actually quite surprised and impressed with it. my 2 cents worth:

display/interface
- not bad, quite responsive though i replaced the screen protector with a matte (anti-glare) one
- the small keyboard takes some getting used to but once you've used it you'll get around the limitations. i still make the occassional mistake but that's only when i'm using playstore

hardware
- camera is quite good though i have no plans of using it as i have my note 2
- speaker is surprisingly loud for such a small device
- one con i have is the lack of a 3.5mm jack. the built-in micro usb (for data transfer and charging) is also the plug for the earphones which comes with the watch. thus you can't really plug your own set of earphones...unless of course you use bluetooth
- quite light, watch strap is quite sturdy
- took in my 32gb microsd with no problem. pretty easy and straightforward in mounting the card
- same with the sim, but no plans on using the phone function
- don't think its "water proof" as some smart watches that claim to be (e.g. omate). but i'm not complaining.

internals
- i installed adw launcher which spiced up the homescreen (better than the default launcher). no hangs or whatever
- installed a bunch of widgets, just have to be careful as some are obviously built for larger screens. example, clokr (time widget) tends to not fit due to the length
- installed button savior to avoid using the hardware buttons. no need for root as i only need home, back and power off
- mx player works well, can actually watch a movie on it. no plans though as i have my note 2
- not planning on using this for music but poweramp works well on it. though there is sometimes a tendency for some icon labels to overlap given the small screen

gps
- i had to put a separate review on gps as i'm quite impressed with it
- installed navigon, apk had no problems loading. through wifi, the additional data and maps were installed
- also installed gps tester as well as other apps for cycling
verdict: gps signal takes around 1-2 minutes to get a good fix. the watch is able to lock on 4 satellites. accuracy is quite good but tends to be a little off when it's cloudy. the gps is not as spiffy as the one in my note but i'm not complaining. for a device this small, i was quite impressed how good the gps works
- strapped on the watch on my bike, used bikemate app. speed was quite accurate as well as keeping it locked on the satellites. didn't lose a signal as i cycled away
- had no issues with navigon. plotted home and the watch took me back to my house with no problems

haven't really tried out the full extent of the battery but without using wifi and gps, i was able to use it for 3 days before having the charge. with gps, battery went down to like 50% after riding for an hour or so. not bad in my opinion. overall, quite happy with it and i've now removed the speedo on my bike. no more wires and no more replacing batteries. this watch has now taken over the speed indicator duties for my cycling.

cheers

I got me one of these too, ordered from a Dutch guy who'd better pay back the import taxes caused by him drop-shipping it while pretending he had it in stock, or he'll be getting some negative publicity. Having to wait 3 weeks was bad enough.

I already had a ZGPAX S5 which I damaged, which is why I got this as a replacement. This is almost exactly the same hardware, as evidenced by the ability to restore a complete TWRP backup from the IK8 on my S5 with everything functional except the cell phone system. The IK8 is definitely the better of these two watch phones though: better build quality, no buzzing during calls, better cell signal reception, better clock & launcher system, no dead zone on the touchscreen. Definitely not waterproof with the gaping hole of the microUSB port, but it looks not as vulnerable to a few raindrops as the S5, whose screen doesn't even seem to be glued tight.

For the rest I concur with Robson, very good loudspeaker, the GPS is indeed impressively good and seems better than on the S5, at the condition that one does the usual dance of enabling EPO etc.

Can't login to Google PlayStore

The problem is that the teeny tiny keyboard is just too hard to navigate and when I try to switch the keyboard from alpha to numeric I get an "Android Framework has stopped" error message and the Google setup/sign-in app crashes and reloads.. Arrrggghh..

I tried installing two different Bluetooth keyboards to get around this problem but when you link the keyboards and go into the settings it will say "Use as input device" great, but when you go into "Languages and Input" to set the default to the Bluetooth keyboard the Bluetooth keyboard is NOT shown as an option just the default AOSP keyboard.. Can one of you guys help?? You know what a PIA it is to return anything to China so I just may be stuck with this which sucks because I can't use any of my Google apps (e.g. Gmail) which is why I bought this thing in the first place!

Any and all replies are appreciated!

Chris R.

crodgers79 said:

The problem is that the teeny tiny keyboard is just too hard to navigate and when I try to switch the keyboard from alpha to numeric I get an "Android Framework has stopped" error message and the Google setup/sign-in app crashes and reloads.. Arrrggghh..

I tried installing two different Bluetooth keyboards to get around this problem but when you link the keyboards and go into the settings it will say "Use as input device" great, but when you go into "Languages and Input" to set the default to the Bluetooth keyboard the Bluetooth keyboard is NOT shown as an option just the default AOSP keyboard.. Can one of you guys help?? You know what a PIA it is to return anything to China so I just may be stuck with this which sucks because I can't use any of my Google apps (e.g. Gmail) which is why I bought this thing in the first place!

Any and all replies are appreciated!

Chris R.

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

I have tried to get Bluetooth keyboards and mice to work with two different phones that use this same chipset and Android version. My conclusion is that it is impossible. The devices pair, but the phone does not react to them. It looks like a fundamental bug in this Android release. If anyone has more success, I would certainly want to hear about it.

Your best option would be to install a half-size keyboard like Slidy Press, that has much bigger keys. Of course, installing the official version would require logging into the Play store first Your only option is to download the APK and install it from the file manager. I have made a customized version of Slidy Press available for download. I would post the link here, but for some reason the forum forbids this, so you will have to Google for this exact phrase between quotes: "I recommend installing Slidy Press" and you'll find the download link.

Unfortunately Google Framework Services has stopped

DrLex said:

I have tried to get Bluetooth keyboards and mice to work with two different phones that use this same chipset and Android version. My conclusion is that it is impossible. The devices pair, but the phone does not react to them. It looks like a fundamental bug in this Android release. If anyone has more success, I would certainly want to hear about it.

Your best option would be to install a half-size keyboard like Slidy Press, that has much bigger keys. Of course, installing the official version would require logging into the Play store first Your only option is to download the APK and install it from the file manager. I have made a customized version of Slidy Press available for download. I would post the link here, but for some reason the forum forbids this, so you will have to Google for this exact phrase between quotes: "I recommend installing Slidy Press" and you'll find the download link.

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

Thanks!!! I installed Slidy but I'm now finding that if I touch any key that appears in the lower left corner I get a "Unfortunately Google Framework Services has stopped" error and the app crashes. Any ideas???

Thanks again!!!

Chris R.

crodgers79 said:

Thanks!!! I installed Slidy but I'm now finding that if I touch any key that appears in the lower left corner I get a "Unfortunately Google Framework Services has stopped" error and the app crashes. Any ideas???

Thanks again!!!

Chris R.

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

So, regardless of the keyboard you're using, it always crashes when you touch the lower left key? That is extremely weird. Do you also get strange things when you touch that location without keyboard? Maybe your screen is defective and you'll have to send it back anyhow…

i concur with lex, i've never had this problem despite installing multiple apps on the watch. in your posts you mentioned that the error message first came up when you tried switching from alpha to numeric. and again the message comes up when you touched a key in the lower left. coincidentally, both areas you touched are on the lower left portion of the screen. there might be something wrong with your device/screen. unless of course another app is somehow causing this issue? though somewhat related, i once installed usb toggle in my note 2. though rooted, it seems that my note didn't like the app and frequently crashed. i had to fix it up it to the point of going to the bootloader to wipe out the cache. in any case, uninstalled it and now my note functions well. the same could be for your watch. again, unless of course there's something wrong with your screen/device...in which case you should have the watch replaced.

at first in setting up my wifi connection, playstore id/password, etc..it was quite a burden. though the keyboard is small, you'll eventually get the hang of it. i still get the occassional mistake of pressing the wrong letter. but i rarely do this anymore since the watch has been set up to what i need it to do (which is mostly for gps).

the one thing i'm looking around for is trying to either deactivate or change the watch face. i noticed that this can be done for the sony smartwatch...i'm still trying to find a way for the ik8. no luck at the moment though...

Returning

Guys,

Thanks.. I've done a Factory Reset and the problem persists. I think the digitizer is faulty in that one spot so I'm sending mine back for another.. Will let you know if the next one acts up! Thanks for all of the replies!

Chris R.

IK8 Review

I wrote a review about the IK8 (I think I should be allowed to post links by now). Because I already had a ZGPAX S5 and the IK8 is very similar, the review mostly focuses on the differences between the two. The general conclusion however is that the IK8 is noticeably better in most aspects.
The review also contains a list of tweaks and hacks, and custom versions of the clock screensaver and launcher. Enjoy!

DrLex said:

I wrote a review about the IK8 (I think I should be allowed to post links by now). Because I already had a ZGPAX S5 and the IK8 is very similar, the review mostly focuses on the differences between the two. The general conclusion however is that the IK8 is noticeably better in most aspects.
The review also contains a list of tweaks and hacks, and custom versions of the clock screensaver and launcher. Enjoy!

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

hey lex

thanks for sending that link to your review. I rooted the phone to change the watch face lock screen. I think somewhere along the line I sort of did something wrong because now the lock screen watch won't come up....which is a good thing! what I did was installed ADW Launcher and used a live wallpaper for a nice watch face. I kept the home screen free of any widgets. Swiping to the right then brings up a whole bunch of short cuts and widgets which I use.

cheers

crodgers79 said:

Guys,

Thanks.. I've done a Factory Reset and the problem persists. I think the digitizer is faulty in that one spot so I'm sending mine back for another.. Will let you know if the next one acts up! Thanks for all of the replies!

Chris R.

Click to expand...

Click to collapse

have you tried change the launcher and see if that spot keep faulty, my motoactv had a faulty spot on screen related to massive battery discharge, factory reset didnt work, but the problem was zeam i changed to adw, smooth as silk, i think it woth a shot