I rarely do this, but I am reviewing the Bozlun B15P Band on a bit of a curve. If it were priced in line with comparably equipped fitness trackers, I would not be nearly as generous as I am going to be in this review, because the band is only $32.99 on Amazon.
So the flaws are outweighed by the features, with the price as the thumb on the scale.
In many ways, this is a weird reversal of “you get what you paid for” because what you get is a lot more than what you paid for…the Bozlun band tracks your steps, can notify you of messages, reads your heart rate, and even takes your blood pressure! The actual accuracy of some of these is a bit of a mixed bag, but the key features (heart rate and steps) seem to be quite accurate, and as long as that’s the case, it’s head and shoulders above most of the competition in the sub-$50 tracker market.
The best way to evaluate the Bozlun band is to divide into the primary and secondary features. In my view, step tracking, heart rate, and sleep tracking are paramount for a device like that, regardless of price point, with everything else being a nice benefit. In that respect, the Bozlun does quite well. The steps seem quite accurate, or at least in-line with results I’ve had in the past with other fitness trackers. I have noticed that sleep tracking gets a bit wonky sometimes, with sleep data not appearing for a few hours. However, it does accurately pick up when I’m sleeping well and when I am not, and I’ve used the sleep data to pinpoint when our 3.5-year-old has climbed into bed with us, based on when my sleep chart changes!
Likewise, the heart rate monitor works mostly well. It checks your heart rate every hour or so, and I’ve found there are odd variations in the hourly reads; it has told me my heart rate was above 90 during times I was sitting at my desk! I think some of this is due to movement messing with the sensor because if I check my heart rate while sitting still it looks more accurate (in the 50s) and my sleep numbers look pretty accurate with what I’ve gotten from chest monitors (49-60bpm). Most wrist-based sensors have some quirks, and since it is accurate when I measure on-demand, I think it works reasonably well.
One other area where the Bozlun succeeds is that it allows you to set up three vibrating alarms. I wasn’t able to figure out how to snooze them, but they were very strong vibrations, definitely enough to wake me out of a deep sleep. This is one of those features where I wouldn’t seek it out specifically, but if it is available on one device and not another, that can tip the scales. In my view, any fitness tracker with a vibration motor should offer this option!
Now, the Bozlun band also claims to check blood pressure. This has been a little bit more unstable, with readings coming in higher than usual at times and reasonably accurate at other times. According to the blood pressure machine at my local pharmacy, my blood pressure sits around 95/63, while the Bozlun typically picks my blood pressure up as anywhere from 115/70 to 122/81, so it’s significantly higher at times. The other big bug I noticed is that the band repeatedly disconnects from my phone, and when it has these issues it causes some excess battery drain for me. Once it reconnects, it is able to sync all the data, so nothing gets lost, but it is a bit of a pain.
The app itself is nice, and works much like any simple fitness tracking app. There are a few translation issues from Chinese to English, but the app is reasonably intuitive and works fine aside from flakey bluetooth. You can export some data, but oddly only as a picture, not as Excel or anything that can be imported by another program. On the other hand, it does give the option of sending the image to everywhere from WeChat to LinkedIn, so if I have any business contacts who need to know my heart rate and sleep patterns, I’m all set.
Overall, I think the Bozlun is a great package for the price. The band fits comfortably, the main screen gives you the time and date, and the heart rate monitor works well. Honestly, you would spend a lot more for a low profile digital watch and a heart rate monitor separately, so those features alone make it worth the price. If you’re looking for a complete package of ecosystem and device like Fitbit, you aren’t going to get it, but if you’re looking for a budget tracker, you could do a lot worse than the Bozlun [affiliate link].
Source: Manufacturer provided review sample
What I Like: Band is comfortable; heart rate, steps, and sleep are all accurate; lots of information available on the device’s display screen; silent vibrating alarm option; price
What Needs Improvement: Battery life isn’t great; not waterproof; flakey bluetooth connection; questionable blood pressure readings
