myFirst Fone R1s Review: Minor Upgrade from Fone R1

Last year, I reviewed the myFirst Fone R1, a 4G LTE watch phone designed with a limited set of communication features that are ideal for children and even adults who may not be suited to carry a smartphone. An upgraded version, Fone R1s, is just launched and retails at S$269 with 6-months free data access SIM (by PCCW Global). You can also sign up for a 1-year S$28 SIM contract and get the R1s watch phone for S$40.

myFirst is a Singapore kids tech company owned by Oaxis Asia founded in 2010. They launched their first kids smartwatch phone in 2016 and has produced over a dozen products ever since, like kids cameras, drawing pads, drones, and audio headphones.

Fone R1 vs. Fone R1s

Here are the differences between the R1 and R1s

Visually, both models are identical, so you can share all the accessories. They are distinguished by the colour schemes and the sensor at the back of the watch, as the new R1s supports heart rate tracking.

The user interface on the R1s is also updated with coloured icons and larger menu selection area. I like that the user can scroll all the watch faces across all the different themes. There are also more animated watch faces that will delight the kids. Best of all, there is an option to use your own image as the watch face (read in the next section on how to upload). To change the watch face, press-hold the wallpaper for a few seconds and you will be able to see navigate the various images. Swipe left to access the normal watch faces, swipe up to access animated watch faces, swipe down to add own watch face.

To set up the watch phone, the myFirst Fone smartphone app must be installed and then initiate binding with the watch. Once done, all the functions can be set up from the smartphone and synced to the watch.

Location Tracker

Let’s talk about the most important feature that every parent needs on the child watch. The Fone R1s uses both 4G LTE GPS and Wi-Fi to track the child’s location. On the smartphone app, you can customise the following to make sure you track your child with ease:

• Set Safe Zones. You can define multiple geo-fencing zones and the period that they should be in and the radius of the zones from 200 – 2000 metres. Once they are outside, the smartphone will receive a notification alert. The setting is immediately updated to the watch, so you could even set ad-hoc geo-fences, say, when you are out with them at a shopping mall.
• Set Tracking Interval. You can define how often to retrieve the location, from 1 min to 1 hour. Note that if you set the interval too long, the watch will not be able to alert you on time if the child leaves the safe zone. Depending on how close you want to track your child, I would say a 10-minute interval is sufficient.

Class Mode Locks the Watch

Don’t worry about your child playing with the watch during school lessons. You can lock the watch during specific times. This means the child will not be able to receive messages, voice/video calls, nor can he/she play with the watch functions, except triggering SOS.

S.O.S.

The child can trigger SOS by long-press the large right button on the watch. It will send the child’s location immediately to your smartphone app and automatically record a 30-second audio clip which will be sent to you after recording is done. The smartphone will be alerted with a very loud emergency tone that can be startling in a quiet place, but it certainly serves its purpose so that you will not miss such crucial notifications, which might concern life and death.

Restricted Contact List

By default, the R1s watch phone cannot receive calls from any caller unless the number is in the contact list which is managed through the smartphone. From the smartphone app, user can make video calls via data, voice calls via data, and chat messages. The child can add friends who use myFirst Fone R1 and R1s, by turning on Bluetooth and go to “Messages” and click “add” to allow the watch to scan for nearby devices. Once the friend is added, the smartphone app will be notified and the friend contact information will appear.

Tilt to Wake

One of the suggestions I shared in the Fone R1 review was to support wake-up gesture. I am pleased that the R1s support this feature which can be enabled from the smartphone app. As I raise the wrist, the display will turn on automatically for the user to read the time.

Upload Your Own Watchface Wallpaper Image

The R1s UI design allows you to select an image taken from the R1s camera library. In order to use your own image, follow these steps:

1. Connect the watch via the USB cable to the computer.
2. Open the file manager on the computer and click the device “myFirstFone R1s”.
3. Browse to the folder directory: Phone Storage > Gallery.
4. Copy your JPG file to this folder.
5. Rename the JPG file to start with “IMG_“. For instance, “IMG_photo1.jpg”.

Once this is done, you should be able to see your uploaded images when trying to select your own watch face wallpaper.

Pair with myFirst Headphone BC Wireless Bone Conduction Headset

The built-in speaker on the watch is not loud enough to be audible at noisy environment. It is recommended to buy a Bluetooth wireless headset like the BC Wireless or the new BC Wireless Lite. These bone conduction headsets are safer to use for children than in-ears, and they offer better privacy during conversations. Once paired, the headset connects very fast whenever it is switched on. (separate review of the new BC Wireless Lite will be published soon).

User Experience

Like the R1, the R1s is comfortable to wear that I forgot I am wearing it. The touch sensitivity is good but sometimes the touch does not get registered because the UI detects a scroll instead of a tap. When I passed the watch to a child to try out, there was no major concerns.

As I browse through the R1s watch, I find several limitations and restrictions, but I have to remind myself that the product is designed to be simple and will be counter-intuitive if too many options are available. For instance, there is no option to choose ring tone or disable vibration. Similarly, sending message from the R1s watch is limited to emoji, photos, and voice, without the ability to enter text.

The smartphone app UI remains largely unchanged. There are only differences in the display of icons and function list between the R1 and R1s. The app could do with a revamp to improve the user experience.

Verdict

The myFirst Fone R1s retails in Singapore at S$269, which is about the price of a Wi-Fi smartwatch and cheaper than a mid-tier smartphone. The predecessor, R1, is also available at S$229. For S$40 more, you get double the storage capacity and RAM, IPX8 water protection, heart-rate sensor, improved UI, more watch face options, and other feature improvements. As always, a newer model comes with design improvements, bug fixes, and continuous software updates.

Summary

Reviewer

Chester Tan

Review Date

2022-02-04

Reviewed Item

myFirst Fone R1s

Author Rating

4

Product Name

myFirst Fone R1s

Price

SGD 269