Smart Bracelet (H8) with Step Tracker, Distance Calculator & Calorie Count from Qoo10 - Time to Start Walking More!

Some of you would have heard of the National Steps Challenge by the nation's Health Promotion Board (HPB) which dispensed free step trackers and enticed wearers with supermarket vouchers and even lucky draw chances for a trip to New Zealand.

For someone who didn't have the habit to wear a watch on his wrist, i diligently kept it on (those carrots work) until the tracker finally died on me; literally broken into a few parts. My wrist felt empty without the tracker and i decided to look around for a better quality tracker as a replacement. 

However, the cheapo in me couldn't bear to spend so much on a fit-bit and when i saw my friend shared a really affordable tracker on Facebook, i grabbed the time-limited opportunity to purchase a lowest-end model. And i finally received the package after ten days of wait! 

This is it; the smart bracelet and i think the brand is "Band" and it's 100% Hong Kong design; latter of which didn't quite matter to me. I just need a hardy tracker.

Would you want to guess how much i paid for it? S$19.90 after a S$30.00 discount and shipping was free! There's only one colour and i am so happy it's my favourite black. 

In addition to showing the time and counting your steps (like the basic tracker given by HPB), this would also calculate the distance and work out the calorie you would have burnt! 

All the information on the smart bracelet would be useless if you don't download an app to track all your effort! Sadly, this isn't compatible with HPB's Healthy 365 app and you would have to download a specialised app known as GoBand. 

Connecting the bracelet via bluetooth wasn't too difficult even though i struggled a bit after accidentally disconnecting it from the app and couldn't get it to connect; turned out i needed to disconnect it via the phone's bluetooth too before i can re-connect! 

Syncing my steps; a rather disappointing result from a target of 10,000 steps....

You can track your "performance" on a daily, monthly or event yearly basis! There's even a sleep tracking function where you would know if you are in deep, light or extremely light sleep. I shall wear my bracelet to sleep tonight! 

Other functions include messaging notification, shoot a photograph using your phone's camera and play the music on the phone. Nice add-ons that would require Bluetooth connectivity! Given the need to conserve battery, i doubt i would be using those add-ons as Bluetooth is such a battery drainer. 

Do i like the bracelet? I definitely do; slim, classic and seemed to be of really good make. I love the fact that compared to the HPB free tracker, you needn't remove it from the strap to recharge the battery! Only god knows how many times i dropped the now-spoilt tracker on the floor whenever i detached it! 

I am praying hard that it can last me for quite some time! 

=====

Where I Bought It

Qoo10 @ SG

Price

Smart Bracelet (H8) - S$19.90

KSL Hotel & Resort - Connected to the KSL Mall @ Johor Bahru [Malaysia]

I planned to bring my mother for a pre-Mother's Day staycation at Holiday Villa after my comfortable experience with the new hotel on my birthday but i missed out on the last room on hotels.com!

However, i did manage to secure a room at the nearby KSL resort hotel although i did have some reservations as i had received pretty negative feedback from family and friends! Whatever the case, i guess i should just try for the sake of reviewing it and it's also beneficial to have the popular KSL mall directly connected to the hotel.

After an excruciating two-hour wait at the Malaysia checkpoint, we finally checked in to the hotel at about 5.30 pm! I was thoroughly shagged and it didn't help that i had stomach upset since morning that day. 

There are two towers; so please ensure you are taking the lifts at the correct tower. Just to note that there's also an apartment wing which doesn't have in-room WiFi and in my sister's opinion, not really well maintained. 

Don't ask me why but i was upgraded to a superior triple room on the 22nd floor. My original purchase was a superior room (2 twin beds) that can sleep three persons. It's also the first room nearest to the lift lobby; can strike out one of the 10 taboos for staying in a hotel. 

Room 

Superior Triple Room - the layout of hotel rooms (for superior class) is usually quite standard i feel. From the picture on hotels.com, the twin-bedded is the same as the superior triple room on KSL website! 

Parallel to Tower 1 is Tower 2 right opposite! I can literally see the people staying in the hotel right opposite and needless to say, i kept the curtains drawn most of the time and would very much prefer the room view at Holiday Villa hotel.

View of the swimming pools on level 7.

To the right is Holiday Villa hotel; the black platform that formed the horizontal line of the letter L is actually the infinity pool on level 25 of Holiday Villa. 

On the left would be the city view in between Tower 2 and the apartment block. 

There's something unique about the room at KSL and i bet some of you would have noticed. The hotel provides bolsters on the beds which is a rarity! Hugging a bolster is very much an Asian thing and i would unwillingly replace it with a pillow whenever i travel overseas.

Another view of the room - it wasn't big although sufficient for just a night stay for three of us. As i wasn't feeling well, i went to bed before 6.00 pm and slept till the next morning! 

What else to expect in the room? A dressing table, flat screen television with safe and mini fridge underneath it, complimentary bottled water and coffee / tea maker. To use the room WiFi, please log in with the provided username and password on the key card holder given by the receptionist. 

Aside from the bolsters which caught me by surprise, i was also taken apart to find pool slippers, an iron and an ironing board in the closet! Seeing the iron reminded me of the incident at Bandung's Best Western Premier La Grande Hotel.

Fine (Recovery fee) for those who smoke in non-smoking room! 

Now the washroom with the usual shower gel, shampoo, body lotion and numerous kits that i don't use except. As i am with two ladies, the situation is different as most of the kits were no longer there the next day! As expected, mum loves the existence of the hair dryer! 

Heng ah; no see through glass in between the shower and the bedroom. There's rainfall shower and the toilet bowl came with a bidet! Trust me, it's good to have it when you have diarrhea as i did on my day of stay. 

Amenities

Pool on the seventh level - in a condominium setting, it's common to have the pool in the centre of all the residential blocks although for KSL, it also faces the ballrooms and function rooms. 

Feel free to flaunt your assets! Please keep in mind that you can redeem towel by using a card (not the room access card) that's given by the receptionist. 

The two hotel towers; first time i am attempting this shoot as it's usually from left to right and i didn't know i can stitch the photos on Photoshop from bottom to top! 

Dinosaur water theme park - entry for hotel residents would be free and viewing from the outside (as the park was still closed when i checked out the place), the rides were nothing to scream about but would likely be enjoyed by kids. Non-hotel residents would need to fork out RM 50 an adult and RM 30 a child to access the theme park. 

Arcade games on the same level - chargeable! 

Accessing the games room behind the arcade machines which came with table tennis table, a pool table and even a golf simulator (charges apply) known as The Mission Golf. If Alex was with me, he would likely challenge me to either table tennis or pool.  

Gymnasium was within the games room, albeit further in and it's actually very big; taking up three rooms with running machines in one and weights in another. 

=====

Overall, it was a satisfying stay and i didn't encounter anything unpleasant. I didn't opt for the breakfast package since there's ample food surrounding KSL in the morning (one of which is the pork porridge at one of the kopitiams). As mentioned above, the hotel is very near to Holiday Villa hotel; do try the KFry at Holiday Villa.

Location

33 Jalan Seladang, Taman Abad, 

Johor Bahru 80250, Johore,

Malaysia

Website

https://www.kslresorts.com.my

Pricing from Hotels.com

Superior (2 Twin Beds) - S$84.18 

Aoy’s Thai Noodle Bar @ Changi International Airport Terminal 3 [Singapore]

I was in a rush to grab dinner before the Li Ronghao concert at Singapore Expo's Max Pavilion and although i did some research beforehand for dining options at Changi Airport, undecided me just couldn't make a decision! 

Therefore, when i alighted from the bus drop off at terminal three and turned right after entering the air-conditioned terminal, right ahead of me was Aoy's Thai Noodle Bar; i figured that's fate and i might as well give it a try.  

Decisions to be made again on what i should order! The signature dish was the beef boat noodle but i had been drinking soupy stuff for the past few days due to an upset tummy and felt that the wanton noodle was more appealing for my palate! 

Thai Chicken Chop Wanton Noodles - Pity the noodle was too dry and the wantons (dumplings) were as unpalatable as the ones sold in many wanton noodle stalls at the hawker centres in Singapore. 

Chicken balls were juicy although not memorable enough to warrant a return visit. The same goes for the Thai chicken chop which tasted a bit like braised chicken; i did enjoy the chicken skin though. In conclusion, i think i should have gone for the boat noodle instead.

Sticky Rice with Mango, Coconut Cream and Mango Puree - ps. it's a photo angle illusion as the serving was in reality quite small. It tasted not too bad even though i found the combination weird as the coconut cream was cold whereas the rice was hot and the puree was too sweet while the mango was too sour. Sigh, I miss my sticky mango rice from Terminal 21! :(

=====

Location

Basement 2, Terminal 3, Changi Airport, 

65 Airport Boulevard, Singapore 819663

Menu

As above.

Pricing

Thai Chicken Chop Wanton Noodles - S$6.50

Sticky Rice with Mango, Coconut Cream and Mango Puree - S$4.80

(Inclusive of GST)