Huawei Watch 3 initial review: A perfect Harmony?
Huawei has made some great strides in the wearable market, becoming one of the top sellers. The key has been to offer watches that are capable fitness trackers, but also keep the price lower than the competition.
In the Huawei Watch 3 the company has taken what it learned from the Watch GT series and evolved it. The promise, eventually, is having a 'proper' smartwatch that also has good battery life and fitness data, without losing the interactivity some customers expect from a smartwatch.
Design
- Leather, metal link, silicone and nylon straps available
- 46mm stainless steel case (48mm for Pro model)
- 22mm quick-release strap
True to form, Huawei's latest watch is completely round. No temptation to go square here, and that's something the company has stuck to since its Wear OS days (or Android Wear as it was called back then).
There is a notable change here compared to the GT 2 Pro and GT 2e though: the angled bevel has been replaced with a hardened glass lens that rounds at the edges. That gives the illusion that the watch is much rounder than before, allthough the stainless steel casing still retains its straight edge. Saying that, the polished finish is definitely a change from the brushed look on offer in previous years. The model we're looking at pairs that pure polished silver look with a brown leather strap in a timeless combination.
One of the two buttons on the right side has been replaced by a rotating crown and - yes - it looks very much like the Apple Watch's Digital Crown. It acts like one too. Rotating it will scroll up and down lists on the screen or zoom in and out of the new grid-style app view in the interface. You even get subtle haptic feedback when you interact with it. The bottom button, meanwhile, launches workout mode from the home screen so that you can quickly launch into a run, walk, HIIT session, or whatever else you fancy tracking.
Gracefully, Huawei avoided using its pretty (yet impractical) seamless lug design in the Watch 3. That means you'll be able to switch out that strap for any universal watch straps. The one that ships in the box features a quick-release catch, so it's super simple to remove it and replace for something that's more your style. Huawei will be offering models with metal link bracelets, nylon weave bands, and a more sporty and basic silicone strap.
The underside of the Watch 3 bears a striking resemblance to the Watch GT 2 Pro, which is no surprise. It's dark and glossy with a domed centre featuring a neat collection of sensors and LEDs. It's a seamless finish that has no external contact points which, in turn, means wireless charging is possible. The charging cradle is a rather simple plastic disc that snaps on easily and securely. The magnets feel strong enough on first impressions, like it'll actually stay connected even if you knock against the watch while it's charging.
Display, software and hardware
- 1.43-inch AMOLED display, 60Hz refresh, 326ppi
- 3 days battery life claimed
- Wireless charging
The AMOLED display on the Watch 3 measures 1.43-inches diagonally on the classic model and features a pixel density of 326ppi. It's bright, vivid and sharp enough for something that's constantly arm's length away from you.
Unlike its predecessors, the display can reach the dizzying heights of 60Hz refresh rates, which means animations on screen are much smoother than they were on the previous Watch GT. In our little time with it so far it definitely feels more responsive to gestures and touches. Even simple things like raise-to-wake are a lot quicker.
That, plus the sharpness and great colour, mean it's capable of higher quality graphics in the interface (UI). It's fitting then that this new UI comes with new software: HarmonyOS.
If you've used the Huawei Watch GT, it will feel immediately familiar. Parts of the interface are virtually the same. It's more the cross-device capabilities that have the potential to make it a new experience. For instance, the eSIM support will mean that you can receive notifications and calls while you're not connected to your phone. Similarly, Huawei Music subscribers can stream music on the fly.
What's more, the watch has AppGallery now pre-installed and Huawei hopes to entice third-party developers to join its platform. Some already have, but the big-hitters like Spotify and Strava haven't yet - and those could both be deal-breakers for some.
So with a fancy new display and more power-consuming capabilities, it's no surprise that the watch's battery life is shorter than the GT 2 Pro that came before it. In regular smartwatch mode it can last up to three days according to Huawei. That's without the always-on display activated.
However, if you were happy with the experience and lesser interactivity of the Watch GT watches you can actually enable something called 'Ultra-long battery life'. This deactivates the cellular and Wi-Fi connections, limits some app access, and reduces screen refresh rate, but keeps the Bluetooth connection active and still lets you track workouts using GPS. In essence, it turns the Watch 3 into a Watch GT-a-like, but gives you up to two weeks battery in exchange.
Fitness and health
- Heart-rate, SpO2 blood oxygen, Stress, Temperature, Sleep
- 17 'pro' tracking modes
When it comes to fitness and health tracking, the Huawei Watch 3 is loaded with pretty much every sensor you'd likely need. That means a heart rate sensor, GPS, and motion sensors for tracking your performance during exercise activities.
But there's more too. It wouldn't be a modern fitness tracker without SpO2 (blood oxygen saturation) sensing, so it has that, can also track your sleep quality automatically every night, and measures your stress levels throughout the day.
There's also a temperature sensor that helps detect signs of illness/infection. How accurate this is versus using an oral thermometer or any other kind of established temperature measuring device is yet to be seen. Still, it's not really designed to read an accurate temp for medical purposes, but more as a general indicator of your body's temperature. If yours spikes or dips beyond normal levels, it'll be able to detect that.
A big part of Huawei's health and fitness is the Huawei Health app that you download to your phone. It's available for iPhone and Android and is pre-installed on new Huawei phones and tablets (the EMUI ones without Google Services).
We've used the app with previous watches and found it to be thorough and useful, particularly for running. It can even offer dedicated running courses if you'd like to train towards a certain distance or time, regardless of your running level.
Running is just one of the 17 'Professional' tracking modes installed on the watch. These modes are the ones with advanced data and tracking capabilities. For running that means things like VO2 Max (maximal oxygen consumption), fatigue levels, rest duration guidance, as well as the usual pace, cadence and heart rate.
In addition to that there will be 85 custom workout modes and that list contains activities from dancing through to skateboarding and all manner of other physical exercise. You just don't get quite the same level of insight into them. Not that you particularly need it.
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