Smartwatches have essentially taken over the watch market already. From the moment the idea of a smartwatch was floated, conventional types of watches were already on a countdown. Some people still value mechanical watches, but the features packed inside a smartwatch are making a stronger case for the latter. Unlike mechanical ones that require many components at a costly watch parts price, smartwatches rely on tech rather than parts. The following are the top smartwatches that have been released this year.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3
An improvement of the previous version, the Galaxy Watch, that was released in 2018, The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is, without doubt, the best smartwatch you can get in the market right now. Although it has limited apps compared to its closest rival, Apple’s WatchOS, this watch parks quite the functionalities you would ever need in a smartwatch. It has a great premium design that is pleasing to touch and to the eyes with a very beautiful rotating bezel. The only shortcomings are its high price ($400) and a battery that could have been much better.
Apple Watch 5
Apple is among the companies that have been at the top of the food chain as far as the smart gadget industry is concerned. The Apple Watch 5 has an impressive 32GB on-board storage capacity, an OLED display, and a water-resistant case. Apple products have always been associated with quality, and this watch is no exception. The only shortcoming is its high price, which is about $420, as well as its battery.
FitBit Versa 2
FitBit has been on a crusade to upstage Samsung and Apple from their perches for long now, and though that may be impossible right now, the brand has managed to gain attention. The FitBit Versa 2 is a masterpiece of a smartwatch for half the price of the higher-end products. It has a 2.5GB storage and an AMOLED display. It also has a very good battery life that can last for up to 5 days. The only shortcomings of this gadget is the lack of a GPS and its inability to work with third-party health apps.
Fossil Sport
Fossil Sport is another wearable that is trying to make inroads into the highly saturated smartwatch market. With an AMOLED display, a 4GB onboard storage, and an IOS/Android compatibility, this is the smartwatch that everyone looking for a classy gadget at a lower price should go for. It costs about $140. It is lightweight and has a decent battery that can last up to 3 days. The only shortcomings are that it has a very slow GPS and lacks much of the high-end features.
TicWatch E2
TicWatch E2 is an IOS and Android compatible smartwatch that packs an OLED display, 4GB of internal storage, and a Snapdragon Wear 2100 processor. Costing about $150, this smart gadget is waterproof and is compatible with most health apps. It can keep track of the physiological functions of the body, like heart rates and sleep. The only drawback to TicWatch E2 is its very bland design; it lacks that smooth aesthetic appeal that most smartwatches possess.
Honor Magic Watch 2
Another recent entrant into the cut-throat smartwatch world, this device has an AMOLED screen, a 4GB onboard storage, and a very impressive battery that can last for up to 14 days. It runs on Lite OS that is compatible with both Android and IOS. The smartwatch retails at about $170, which is a good price considering the features it packs. The one big shortcoming is that it does not support a lot of fitness and health apps. It has also been found to have a very high affinity for dust.
Amazfit Bip S
The Amazfit Bip S is a $70 smartwatch that is compatible with both IOS and Android and comes laden with features like a display that is always on, a built-in GPS, a decent battery with a long battery life span, as well as a host of tracking features. The battery can last for over two weeks with a single charge if you cut down on using GPS. The shortcomings of this device are its bland design that does not inspire a lot of confidence. It is also limited when it comes to the number of apps it can support with its inability to run third-party apps.
Motorola Moto 360
After falling off the smartphone radar after years of being the dominant force, Motorola is trying to make a concerted comeback effort with smartwatches. The Motorola Moto 360 costs about $360 and boasts of a very sleek design that has a clear display, water resistance, lots of customizable options, and support of a host of fitness and health apps. The only shortcomings to this device are its underwhelming battery that does not last for too long. It also lacks a sleep tracking app that has recently become a deal-breaker for smartwatch buyers.
Garmin Vivoactive 4
Retailing at about $300, the Garmin Vivoactive 4 smartwatch has been making headlines in the smart device world for a while now thanks to their cheap but very reliable smartwatches. With a battery that can last for over eight days, this device also comes packed with a very useful OS that is compatible with both IOS and Android with support for most fitness and health apps. It can be considered to be among the best fitness apps around.
Conclusion
As the demand for smartwatches increases, newer brands keep popping up, each time with better specs and functionalities than the previous models. There is even a growing market for smartwatches created for kids. A time is coming in the future where smartwatches will be inseparable from the daily human activities. Considering they can now track even sleep, only the sky can be the limit for what smartwatches will be able to do a decade from now.
