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Entering the realm of smartwatches in the year 2024, a plethora of options awaits just around the corner. Our curated selection offers a diverse array of styles and sizes, ranging from sophisticated high-end models to cost-effective alternatives, all designed to cater to your personal needs. When deciding to buy a smartwatch, it is very important to ponder factors such as key functionalities, battery longevity, and seamless integration with one's lifestyle.
Samsung's been upping its smartwatch game, giving Apple a run for its money. But hold on, there's more to the story – Huawei, Xiaomi, Fitbit, Garmin, Fossil, and even OnePlus are all in the game, vying to deliver the slickest smartwatch experience for Android users. Google also updated its Pixel Watch lineup with its third iteration and it now has two models, and Samsung just launched a Galaxy Watch Ultra, if you can believe it!
This device scores 100% worse than the average for this price class, which includes devices like the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE, Motorola Edge (2024) and Motorola razr (2024)
The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra is no doubt a controversial device. Some people say it's a blatant copy of the Apple Watch Ultra, others that it's plain ugly. We won't engage in such subjective discussions but what we can say is that the Galaxy Watch Ultra is the best rugged Wear OS smartwatch you can get at the moment.
It features a new titanium design with 47mm size and a circular display capable of going up to 3,000 nits in brightness. Inside the Galaxy Watch Ultra you will find a brand-new Exynos W1000 SiP built on 3nm technology, and a hefty 590mAh battery to power it.
There's also a customizable button and a whole slew of adventure-tailored features to make your time outside worthwhile and exciting. The sheer amount of sensors inside this thing is amazing, and it's military-grade certified for impact and also water resistant up to 100 meters or 10ATM. The only downside is the price, but there are some definitive Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra deals to help you soften that blow.
Samsung has unveiled its latest and most impressive wearable lineup, the Galaxy Watch 6 series, bringing back the beloved physical rotating bezel. The Classic model is making a grand comeback, boasting a larger design compared to its predecessors, with the larger version measuring 47mm and the smaller one at 43mm. The rotating bezel has also been refined to a slimmer profile than seen in previous generations.
Get your Galaxy Watch 6 and Watch 6 Classic Here:
Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 (40mm)
GPS, Bluetooth, Wear OS, Aluminum Case, Sapphire Crystal Display, IP68 Water and Dust Resistance, Always-on Heart Rate Monitoring, ECG, Fall Detection, Infrared Temperature Sensor, Body Composition, Cycle Tracking, Irregular Heart Rate Notification, Advanced Sleep Coaching, Two Colors, Free Fabric Band and $50 Amazon Gift Card Included
GPS, Bluetooth, 4G LTE, Wear OS, Aluminum Case, Sapphire Crystal Display, IP68 Water and Dust Resistance, Always-on Heart Rate Monitoring, ECG, Fall Detection, Infrared Temperature Sensor, Body Composition, Cycle Tracking, Irregular Heart Rate Notification, Advanced Sleep Coaching, Two Colors, Free Fabric Band and $50 Amazon Gift Card Included
GPS, Bluetooth, Wear OS, Stainless Steel Case, Rotating Bezel, Sapphire Crystal Display, IP68 Water and Dust Resistance, Always-on Heart Rate Monitoring, ECG, Fall Detection, Infrared Temperature Sensor, Body Composition, Cycle Tracking, Irregular Heart Rate Notification, Advanced Sleep Coaching, Two Colors, Free Fabric Band and $50 Amazon Gift Card Included
The Galaxy Watch 6 Classic packs significant upgrades, including an improved chipset, a brighter screen, and a larger battery. While maintaining many familiar features, it now runs on the latest version of OneUI Watch over Wear OS. The BioActive sensor array has undergone an upgrade, enabling comprehensive measurements of various body vitals, such as ECG, blood pressure, and body composition. Fitness enthusiasts will appreciate the onboard fitness and sleep tracking, offering more than 100 existing workout options.
For those already in the Galaxy ecosystem, the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic is undoubtedly the ultimate smartwatch choice. However, even if you're not a part of the Galaxy family, this smartwatch stands as a solid option for every Android user out there. Its versatility and advanced features make it an excellent companion for anyone seeking a top-notch smartwatch experience.
The last year's Galaxy Unpacked event went away with a bang, and brought us a brand-new wearable - the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. The "Pro" part is rather new and signifies the use of some pro-grade materials - such as titanium and sapphire.
This watch comes in one size (45mm), and although it looks quite big, due to its titanium DNA it's not all that heavy (46.5g). Samsung didn't come up with something super revolutionary but rather decided to play it safe and incremental. There are upgrades, of course, and they're all around, just nothing major.
Under the sapphire glass there's a gorgeous 1.4-inch Super AMOLED display with high pixel count (450x450), and on the right side of the titanium frame there are two physical buttons. The watch can take a lot of body vitals with the help of its BioActive sensor, and everything happens rather snappy, courtesy of the dual-core Exynos W920 processor, coupled with 1.5GB of RAM.
Get your Galaxy Watch 5 and Watch 5 Pro here:
Galaxy Watch 5: Get up to $185 instant trade-in credit
Samsung has a similar great offer as the 5 Pro for the vanilla Galaxy Watch 5 as well. You can now get up to $185 with a trade-in.
Best Buy is giving you the option to get a discount with a trade-in for the Galaxy Watch 5. Of course, the amount of the trade-in discount depends on the device you're swapping in. Details on Best Buy's website.
The watch runs Wear OS 3.5 with Samsung's One UI Watch OS 4.5 on top, meaning you have tons of available apps, and many more yet to come (thanks Google). There's a new Trackback GPS function that allows you to trace your steps to your starting position - very useful in case you forget your exact parking spot or want to stop being lost in that stupid forest and get back to civilization.
One of the biggest upgrades is the battery - the cell is now 590mAh and supports 10W wireless charging. The watch comes in two connectivity versions - LTE and Bluetooth, and to top it all off, there's a 5ATM water resistance present. All these might seem like incremental upgrades but taken together, they promote the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro to the top spot of our list. This watch is perfect for Galaxy fans but will work with any android phone.
We all know and love Garmin for its sports smartwatches, but the Vivoactive line is something different, and in the case of the Vivoactive 5, something worth exploring. This smartwatch gives you the best of both worlds - the sports tracking, and the stylish and elegant look of a regular smartwatch.
Furthermore, you're getting a gorgeous 1.2-inch AMOLED touch screen with a resolution of 390 by 390 pixels, and a whopping four-day battery life with the Always-on feature turned on. There's a lot to like about this watch, especially at $299.
There are some drawbacks, such as the older heart-rate sensor that can't take down your ECG but you shouldn't rely on smartwatches for such important metric in the first place. All other bells and whistles are onboard, with sport profiles and auto-tracking, apps and watch faces, contactless payments, and more.
This device scores 100% worse than the average for this price class, which includes devices like the Nothing Phone (2a) Plus, Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G (2024) and Motorola Edge 50 Fusion
Made by Google 2024 is now over, and the event brought us the third iteration of the Google Pixel Watch. The first model was plagued by some early first-gen bugs, and the second model ironed out some of those, but Google has polished the experience with the Pixel Watch 3, and also brought up two sizes. It's the definitive Wear OS journey and a match made in heaven for any Android smartphone out there (but it's best with a Pixel phone, of course).
The Pixel Watch 3 comes with a slew of improvements. There's a new 45mm option with a bigger battery and screen, tailored toward people with larger wrists. Speaking of the screen, it's also new and capable of 1-nit minimum and 2,000-nit maximum brightness numbers.
The new dual-chip architecture also helps with battery life, using the faster silicon for critical features, and the slower one when the watch is idle and using only its sensors. There's better integration with Gemini and some clever features onboard - you can use your watch as a TV remote, see who's on your door, unlock your car, and many more like these are coming in the following months.
It seems that Google has finally mastered the smartwatch and offered a decent contender in its ecosystem.
The original Fitbit Versa had a brilliant idea: why not attempt a quality style and some cool features at an accessible price? The Fitbit Versa 2 improved on that, and the Versa family immediately became popular among casual fitness aficionados.
The Fitbit Versa 4 brought even more enhancements to the table and maintained the model's steady-pace progression. Two major criticisms have been addressed: users may quickly switch watch faces, and the health measurements in the Versa 4 are substantially better.
The Fitbit Versa 4 does many things well: it has a stylish and lightweight design, it can automatically track exercises, and it also has sleep tracking, heart-rate monitoring, SpO2 readings, GPS, NFC, and many more. The Versa 4 is water-resistant to 50 meters (5ATM) and has a battery life of one week.
Of course, certain corners have been cut in order for the Versa to reach its retail price. There is no LTE or wireless charging, and the app's selection is... restricted. The bezels around the display remain somewhat large, and the quick-release band method can be inconvenient. However, given the price of the product, they are minor limitations. The Fitbit Versa 4 is one of the finest fitness smartwatches for athletes, and it won't break the budget.
Get your Fitbit Versa 4 here:
Fitbit Versa 4
Health & Fitness Smartwatch, 40+ Exercise Modes, Built-in GPS, 24/7 Heart Rate Tracking, Google Maps, Google Wallet.
Huawei is having a hard time after the US ban, but the Chinese company has still been able to put out a couple of decent smartwatches. The Huawei Watch Ultimate is one of them and certainly deserves your attention.
The Watch Ultimate excels mainly in the build quality area with super-premium materials such as ceramic (slow-baked at thousands of degrees for days), sapphire glass and Zirconium-based alloy for the body (Liquid Metal). Huawei went out of its way to research and use this material mainly due to its corrosion resistance in the quest to make a real diver's smartwatch.
You get a great AMOLED display, long battery life, and the ever growing Harmony OS ecosystem. On the downside, the watch lacks cellular connectivity and most smart features are still in development.
Get your Huawei Watch Ultimate here:
Huawei Watch Ultimate
iOS & Android, Innovative Liquid Metal Material, 100m Dive Technology, 14-Day Battery Life, All-Day Health Management, Deep Sea Blue
Ah, Fossil! Even though keeping track of all the Fossil Group-made smartwatches released over the last few years is not an easy feat, the Wear OS-powered devices are actually not very hard to separate from the pack.
The Fossil Gen 5E is one of the best Wear OS smartwatches out there, and also one of the more affordable ones. Granted, it may lack a built-in GPS chip and LTE but it’s still a Google-enabled device.
Features you get if you decide to go the Gen 5E route are heart rate monitoring, a built-in microphone and speaker for making and receiving voice calls on your wrist (with a connected smartphone nearby), Google Pay support, 1GB RAM, 4GB storage, "multi-day" battery life (with certain capabilities switched off), and a high-res Always-On Display.
The Fossil Gen 5E might be a trimmed-down version of the original Gen 5 but it sure doesn’t look like one. The build quality is top-notch and the design is very stylish and sleek. The price will put a smile on your face.
Garmin's Forerunner 945 has a clear target in mind: serious athletes. The latest smartwatch from Garmin has an advanced GPS that's specifically built with runners and triathletes in mind. It offers detailed training data, on-device workouts, and other similar pro-level features. Seriously, the level of detail and the sheer amount of features that Garmin managed to bake in this watch are simply amazing. Here goes.
The Forerunner 945 comes in two variants - there's the vanilla version and an LTE model. Not that impressive, other watches have this features. What others don't have is the Garmin IERCC support feature. This watch can automatically send your name and location to the Garmin IERCC, a 24/7 staffed professional emergency response coordination center.
You also get daily suggested workouts, a dedicated coach, a sophisticated training app that can measure the effects of your workouts plus the recovery time needed. The VO2 Max reading will show your progress, and there are tons of metrics to lose yourself in and feed your healthy sports obsession. The only downside is the price. If you go for the LTE model, you should expect to cough up north of $600. Of course, you can always get the Forerunner 55 for less than a third of that, and it will give you all the basics. It all depends on how serious you are with your workouts!
Get your Garmin Forerunner 945 (or 55) here:
Garmin Forerunner 55
GPS Running Watch with Daily Suggested Workouts, Up to 2 Weeks of Battery Life, White
There's a fine line between budget and too expensive. The Huawei Watch Fit 3 occupies that tiny space between these two categories. It's price of 159 euros gets you one of the brightest smartwatch screens in the industry, great battery life, some comprehensive fitness and health tracking, and very attractive design.
Granted, the said design might be a little bit derivative but the experience isn't. The Watch Fit 3 is Huawei through and through, and it speaks equally well to Android and iOS phones. If you like the square formfactor but don't want to go Apple, the Watch Fit 3 is a great alternative. Especially if you rock an Android phone.
How we pick the best smartwatches for Android phones
We've always thought that when testing devices for our reviews we should dig deep, be fair and unbiased. We are testing the screen of the smartwatch in detail. We measure how bright it gets, is it easy to read in direct sunlight, is it color accurate, is its resolution enough. We test the performance of each smartwatch by comparing it to its rivals and taking into consideration how much time it takes to execute different tasks.
User interface is also very important, we always note when a device isn't as smooth as we would like it to be or has any other software hiccups. Battery life is a very important area when it comes to smartwatches, that's why we test it extensively too, most commonly by using the device for longer periods of time and compare our findings with the data we've previously gathered when reviewing its rivals.
Are there any Android smartwatches that are compatible with Apple phones?
Actually, yes. Most smartwatch brands are compatible with both Android and iOS phones, these include smartwatches from Garmin, Fitbit, Fossil, and many more. The only exceptions being late Galaxy Watch devices and the Google Pixel watch.
Technically speaking some of these watches could pair with an iPhone but they will have very limited functionality. It all depends on whether the developers have made a dedicated iOS version of the app, able to communicate with iOS (generally speaking - wear OS watches do tend to have troubles communicating with iOS).
Conclusion
That concludes our current compilation of the best smartwatches available in 2024. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 has already showed its hand, surpassing its predecessor and challenging the Apple Watch, especially with the Ultra model. However, the dynamic nature of the market means new models are emerging rapidly.
The Huawei Watch Ultimate, though on the pricier side, has secured its place on our list, featuring sci-fi-sounding Liquid Metal construction. Then we have the latest Google Pixel Watch 3, now matured to challenge all the big boys and offering some AI tricks onboard. So, the competition is as fierce as ever!
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Mariyan, a tech enthusiast with a background in Nuclear Physics and Journalism, brings a unique perspective to PhoneArena. His childhood curiosity for gadgets evolved into a professional passion for technology, leading him to the role of Editor-in-Chief at PCWorld Bulgaria before joining PhoneArena. Mariyan's interests range from mainstream Android and iPhone debates to fringe technologies like graphene batteries and nanotechnology. Off-duty, he enjoys playing his electric guitar, practicing Japanese, and revisiting his love for video games and Haruki Murakami's works.
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