Note: We may earn commissions (at no cost to you) if you buy through links on our site. Learn more.
NOTE: This model is discontinued and may no longer be available to purchase new. See the Huawei here.

Huawei Watch review

7.7/10 AVG.
RATING
Compare Compare  

Huawei Watch
Huawei Watch
Huawei Watch
Huawei Watch
...

With a bright, sharp display and smooth performance, the Huawei Watch is an elegant, albeit pricey, smartwatch.

- Cherlynn Low, Tom's Guide 

Specs / Features


Warranty (Months) 1 months
Release date 21-September-2015
Size
Weight N/A
Suggest a correction
Reviews summary section

What's good

  • Elegant, understate design
  • Sharp and vibrant display with excellent contrast
  • Durable sapphire glass coating and stainless steel body

What's bad

  • Expensive
  • Looks bulky on slimmer wrists
  • No light sensor
  • No wireless charging

Huawei might produce affordable smartphones, but when it comes to smartwatches they have gone the other direction for their first one – the Huawei Watch. Sporting a stainless steel body and round watch face, experts consider it to be the most attractive smartwatch on the market. The metal body gives it a bit of heft, weighing in at 61 grams with the lightest leather strap option. If upgraded to the stainless steel link straps, the weight more than doubles to 131 grams. While the weight did not bother critics, it was the 0.4 inch thickness that made it a bit unwieldy for those with slender wrists. The Verge states, "…it looks nothing so much as a stack of silver dollars strapped to my wrist." Others agree and note the side lugs make the watch sit higher on their wrists, giving it a thicker and bulkier appearance.

While Huawei likely took cues from the Moto 360 in terms of its round design, the similarity ends there. Unlike its competitor, the Huawei does not have the "flat tire" at the bottom of the screen. Instead, it sports a fully round 1.4-inch 400 x 400 AMOLED display. Huawei is able to accomplish a completely round screen with the inclusion of thin bezel and exclusion of ambient light sensor technology. For some reviewers this wasn't an issue, but others were annoyed they needed to manually set the brightness levels. Besides this, experts were generally impressed with the overall vibrancy and sharpness of the display. The use of AMOLED instead of LCD made it very easy for them to view both indoors and out and provided excellent contrast. In another departure from standard Android Wear watches, the Huawei Watch display is always on so they did not have to worry about waking it up and waiting a few seconds before checking the time. A coating of sapphire-glass protects the screen and it stood up to the everyday bumps and scrapes critics subjected it to.

Besides the design, the rest of the Huawei Watch is similar to other Android Wear watches. It comes equipped with a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 512MB of RAM and 4GB of internal storage for music and apps. Performance-wise, experts had no issues with lag when navigating through the home screen or even when launching apps. Unlike more sports-focused smartwatches, the Huawei watch does not come with GPS though it can track steps and even calories burned. It also comes with a 300mAh battery. Surprisingly, experts were able to get around a day and a half of battery life, which is more than its competitors. Their only gripe was the lack of Qi wireless charging. Instead, they needed to use the provided charging cradle and align the magnetic pins on the cradle to the sockets on the watch. As well, they mention the charging indicator itself isn't especially clear and they have often thought the watch was charging when it wasn't and woke up to a dead watch the next day.

While reviewers were wowed by the look of the Huawei Watch it's a hard recommendation for them based on the price, lack of GPS and standard spec sheet. Wareable states, "…while the Huawei Watch is still a great looking Android Wear option with a cracking display, it's no game changer." Android Central adds, "I would recommend the Huawei Watch to anyone who wants the nicest smartwatch that looks like a watch, but this is clearly not for everyone. This is all about form over function, as long as it fits your wrist."


Use this product?

Help inform others by sharing your experience with Huawei Watch

Rate It:

Resources


Review Sources and Citations Share / Embed

Maybe one of your friends will find this review helpful? Please help us spread the word.

Q&A Forum