Best types of smart watches for men
Some of the best smartwatches we have experienced are the most suitable for your wrist, mobile, and budget.
If your current watch just tells time then it’s time that you experience the new technology of smartwatches. Some smartwatches bring many features normally reserved for smartphones to your wrist. There is a lot that goes into a great smartwatch. The right smartwatch should also measure all the health, wellness, and fitness statistics you need, all while being comfortable and stylish to wear.
Some of the best watches we have selected for you:
I. Apple Watch series 9
II. Apple Watch Ultra 2
III. Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 and 6 classic
IV. Google Pixel Watch 2
V. Garmin Fenix 7X pro
What should you look for in a smartwatch:
Operating system
Apple, Samsung, and Google are the most powerful and advanced operating systems out there. While the Google Watch may work with the iPhone the experience will be better if you stick with the brand you have (If you like Apple Watch you have to own an iPhone for most of the features).
Cellular connection
Some smartwatches (most of the Apple and Samsung offerings) can access wireless data networks without tethering to your phone. Most fitness-first watches from brands such as Suunto and Garmin do not, meaning you’ll either need to keep your phone on you for messaging and other connected apps or download maps for offline use. Having a data connection for your phone makes it much more capable but it also drains the battery faster and almost always requires an additional line of data on your wireless plan, which usually costs around $10 per month.
Size and weight
Most smartwatches are fairly light, balancing the scales around 30 grams. While a few dozen grams might not seem like much on paper, we can promise you will notice the size and weight difference if you are used to lightweight.
Factors to consider when buying a smartwatch
Consider the latest model
Many new smartwatches offer hardware updates due to previous models, so you might to look at the latest model watch so you can get updates regularly because the new software version especially brings new features
Buy at the right time of the year
Smartwatches usually go on sale on different occasions like Amazon Prime Day, and Black Friday so it’s a good idea to look for discounts on these days
Look at added costs
Some smartwatches are moving towards a subscription model that unlocks certain features of your watch. For example, a Google Pixel watch charges 10$ to unlock some features of the watch.
How we test smartwatches
We test smartwatches in the real world, focusing on key features from fitness tracking to connectivity that you’ll use every day. Starting with the watch itself, we check overall performance and responsiveness. Is there any lag when navigating menus? Is the touchscreen responsive? Do apps launch quickly?
Then we check if it has all the functionality you’d expect for the price. That could be everything from music playback controls to cellular connectivity so you can use the watch away from your phone or an always-on display. All smartwatches need to connect to a phone, so we also assess how easy the companion software is to navigate.
Durability and design
Smartwatches are something you wear on your body, so we assess how comfortable they are to wear. We also know that everyone has a different-sized wrist, so we try to see how it fits and feels on a variety of people.
Then we look at how it stands up to wear and tear with daily life. Some smartwatches offer increased durability like dust resistance, or water resistance that’s suited for activities like scuba diving, and where possible we’ll test this out for ourselves.
Battery life
Battery life will vary depending on how you use a smartwatch, so we test battery life with a few standard tests. We see how long it generally lasts on a single charge with features that represent typical use, like the always-on display, sleep tracking, and doing an outdoor workout with GPS.
Fitness and health sensor accuracy
We test the accuracy of smartwatch sensors in a couple of different ways. For example, the heart rate sensor is compared against the readings taken from a chest strap, considered the gold standard in consumer heart rate tracking. We compare readings from the watch against the strap for resting heart rate, and heart rate during a variety of cardio-based activities like running or cycling. We check to see how long it takes to connect to a GPS signal when doing an outdoor workout.
