The 9 Best Smartwatches In 2020 - Forbes

wristwatch.indah.link

Getty

It was only a few years ago that tech pundits weren’t sure what to make of smartwatches. Did they add value? Why look at your wrist when your phone was right there? Both are wholly valid questions. These days, though, there’s little debate that smartwatches are indispensable for many people. They’re particularly great for health and fitness, while on-wrist smartphone notifications help you keep your phone out of sight.

The best smartwatches don’t just track your daily exercise, but also potentially identify health risks. Many modern watches are bristling with sensors that can track your ECG and irregular heart rhythms, blood oxygen levels and even detect trips and falls. Some, like the Apple Watch, pair best with iPhones; Samsung’s Tizen OS watches and Android Wear models are optimized for Android, but can also work, albeit clumsily, with iPhones. Regardless of which kind of phone you have, there are premium models with every bell and whistle. From budget watches, style-forward models, fitness-focused smartwatches and more, here are the 9 best smartwatches you can get right now.

---

Best Overall Smartwatch for iPhone

Apple Watch Series 6

It’s something of a cliché to call the Apple Watch Series 6 the best Apple Watch yet — without exception, each one has been “the best one yet,” only to be topped by the next model. But if price is no object, the Series 6 is a worthy investment. It has all the great features from the Series 5, including the always-on display, plus the all-new SpO2 blood-oxygen sensor.

It also has somewhat faster charging, which comes in handy for the new sleep tracking feature (at long last). Unfortunately, it suffers from the same Achilles’ Heel as all Apple Watches: A battery life that is measured in hours, not days. Few other smartwatches struggle to make it though a single day on a charge.

---

Best Overall Smartwatch for Android

Samsung Galaxy Watch 3

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 3 has a lot to offer, not the least of which is its superb and innovative rotating bezel, which makes it easy to quickly spin through apps, notifications, music and more. You can get there using the on-screen menus as well, but the bezel brings an immediacy to the Galaxy Watch you don’t get in most other smartwatches. It runs the excellent Tizen operating system and has a wealth of health and fitness features, including automatic exercise identification, the ability to take your ECG and even a fall detector.

While this watch works best with Android, your investment isn’t lost if you switch ton an iPhone at some point, because it works (in a limited way) with iOS as well. Like the Apple Watch, it has a pretty modest battery life, but it can last for the better part of two full days.

---

Best Stylish Smartwatch

Motorola Moto 360 3rd Generation

There are a lot of smartwatches on the market, and a lot of premium design-focused watches at that. But few look as sharp as the Moto 360, and the latest—2020’s third generation—is the one you want if style is your key criteria. The classic round display with a stainless steel bezel, always-on display, tasteful watch faces and optional leather band make this watch look good on any wrist. (You can also opt for a silicone strap that’s well-suited to exercise.)

And if you remember the older version of the Moto 360, fear not: The notch at the bottom of the display is gone. Now it’s a completely round digital display. The display is powered by the familiar Android Wear OS, which gives you access to a huge library of apps, but you only get about a day of runtime on the battery.

---

Best Budget Smartwatch for iPhone

Apple Watch Series 3

The Apple Watch Series 3 has been around since 2017, and unlike most Apple Watch models that Apple “sunsets” fairly quickly, this one doesn’t seem to be going anywhere, serving as Apple’s low-cost entry level smartwatch. It’s reasonably affordable—especially when it goes on sale, which it does regularly—and gives you all the essential health and fitness Apple Watch features. It even works with Apple’s new sleep tracking, though the battery isn’t especially robust and you’ll need to take the time to charge it every evening.

---

Best Budget Smartwatch for Android

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2

Amazon

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 (44mm, GPS, Bluetooth)

The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 is exciting because it borrows most of the features from the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 while clocking in at a budget price tag. You get the smart Tizen OS, a great rotating bezel for quick access to the watch’s major features, and even the same ECG, VO2 Max (maximum rate of oxygen consumption while exercising) and fall detection. There’s also menstrual tracking for those in need. This is a superb health and fitness watch for Android owners.

---

Best Value Smartwatch for iPhone

Apple Watch SE

If you’re shopping for an Apple Watch right now, you have more choices than usual, since there’s a new flagship (the Series 6), a budget model (the Series 3) and the Apple Watch SE all available. So where does the SE fit in? It’s the best value and probably the right choice for a lot of smartwatch users.

For an excellent price tag, you get most of the features found in the iPhone Series 5 and Series 6. What’s missing: the always-on display, ECG and SpO2 sensors. Otherwise, the watch can ID many exercises, has fall detection, detects irregular heartbeats, and it’s compatible with all the usual apps. There are also many watch faces to customize it with, plus sleep detection to help your restfulness.

---

Best Fitbit Smartwatch

Fitbit Versa Lite Smartwatch

Fitbit more or less pioneered the fitness band category, and its Versa Lite smartwatch is a superb fitness-focused smartwatch at a budget price. It doesn’t do everything, but it more than justifies its cost. Unlike all the Apple Watches and many top-tier Android watches, the Versa Lite lasts for you three or four days at a time, which is a welcome relief from the charge dock.

Fitbit has exercise identification and tracking down to a science, and the Versa Lite benefits from that. You also get the obligatory heart rate tracking and sleep tracking, and with waterproofing, you can take it in the shower or pool. It lacks stair tracking and GPS, however.

---

Best Fitness Smartwatch

Garmin Vivoactive 4

If you are serious about your fitness routine and you are an Android owner, there may be no better watch than the Garmin Vivoactive 4. It’s hard not to love the on-screen animated exercise demonstrations, including Pilates and yoga routines—handy for checking your form.

You also get built-in storage for playing music while you work out and a large library of workout apps. Integrated sleep and menstrual tracking help you manage other aspects of health. You’re not going to use this for workouts 24/7, so Garmin also includes Garmin Pay (contactless payments like Apple Pay or Android Pay) and one of the best battery life ratings around with up to eight days of usage.

---

Best Smartwatch Under $100

AmazFit Bip S Smartwatch

Adorama

AmazFit Bip S Smartwatch

There are budget smartwatches, and then there are budget smartwatches. For well under $100, the AmazFit Bip S (don’t judge it by the goofy name) is a stunningly good value. It might not have the same classy industrial design as Samsung, Garmin or Apple, but it has all the most important features. Those include heart rate monitoring, water resistance to 5 atmospheres (meaning it protects against full submersion a bit more effectively), built-in GPS, a slew of exercise tracking modes and more.

It does all this with an impressive 40-day batter life, one of the longest of any smartwatch. In addition, you can choose from more than 40 standard watch faces and edit widgets on several as well, similar to the Apple Watch.

The Link Lonk


December 09, 2020 at 02:00AM
https://ift.tt/2JM1T4l

The 9 Best Smartwatches In 2020 - Forbes

https://ift.tt/2YGK9Ms
Smartwatch