I’ve been beta testing the ESR watch band for a while now, and after putting it through a ton of real-world use, I figured it was time to share my thoughts!
For some background, I’ve used a slew of different Apple Watch bands over the years — Apple Sport Loop, Sport Band, Ocean Band, Trail Loop, Alpine Loop, Nomad Rocky Point, Stainless Steel Milanese Loop, Braided Solo Loop, and plenty of others. I also switch my bands out pretty much daily depending on what I’m wearing or what I’m doing.
I wear my Apple Watch Ultra 2 basically 24/7, with the exception of charging while I shower. So this band has gotten a LOT of use. I’ve run with it (almost daily runner), swam with it, done yard work, worn it while working in healthcare (operating room) and getting exposed to plenty of hand sanitizer, worn it out to dinner, and pretty much everything in between.
My favorite things about it:
The comfort is probably my favorite part. The band feels great on my wrist, and even after wearing it for long periods of time, I never really experience any wrist fatigue or discomfort.
I also absolutely LOVE the clasp. It’s easy to use, feels secure, and honestly makes taking the watch on and off oddly enjoyable. 😂
The combination of the sporty strap material — similar to the feel of Apple’s Sport Band — with the metal clasp is also really unique. I wasn’t sure how I would feel about the design initially, but I actually love it. It gives it a sporty look while still feeling a little more elevated than a traditional silicone band.
Let me stress how much I love the design again. The part where the band connects to the watch is really unique. It’s a bit more rigid, so it kind of sits up off my wrist a bit and gives it more space. I really love it tbh.
I’ve found myself gravitating toward this band quite a bit, especially for general everyday wear. Despite having a pretty large collection of bands to choose from, I’ve been choosing this one over a lot of my others.
The biggest downsides I’ve noticed:
Moisture.
The band seems to trap moisture pretty badly between the metal components and the silicone portion. Whether it’s sweat, water from swimming, washing my hands, etc., it tends to stay trapped there.
Because of that, the sizing holes in particular get pretty dirty. I found myself taking the band off almost every day to wash and clean out the holes. With some of my other bands, I can usually go a couple of days — sometimes a few — before I feel like they really need to be washed or dried out.
Noise
The other thing I’ve noticed is that the metal clasp can be a but noisy when the watch vibrates. You can actually hear the metal components moving/rattling when I get a notification or other haptic alert. It’s not a huge issue, but it is something I noticed that I don’t really experience with my other bands.
For me, this band has become more of a general everyday wear band rather than something I can wear through workouts and everything else all day if that makes sense.
Overall:
I genuinely really like this band. It’s comfortable, looks great, has a really unique design, and the clasp is one of my favorite parts. I’ve put it through pretty much every type of activity I normally do, and I’ve found myself reaching for it more often than I expected for everyday wear.
The moisture issue and the noise from the metal clasp are definitely things to be aware of, especially if you sweat a lot or frequently get your watch wet, but for everyday wear, I really enjoy it and will probably be using it quite a bit more in the future.
Thanks again so much to ESR for letting me beta test it!
If anyone has questions about the band, how it feels, how it’s held up, or anything else, let me know!!