Best Smartwatches of 2016: Best for Android, iPhone users, fitness-centric and luxury pick

[Jos]

Pebble is arguably responsible for helping to jumpstart the modern wearable movement. They raised over $10 million through their Kickstarter campaign in 2012, and since then pretty much every major tech company has hopped on the bandwagon, including Apple, LG, Samsung, Motorola and Sony. Even more traditional watch makers such as Fossil and Tag Heuer have made their own attempts at blending their classic designs with our connected lifestyles. Choosing the best smartwatch, however, is no easy task. There’s a plethora of options, and frankly, they are not powerful or versatile enough at this time to make any of them a 'must-buy' for most people - especially at the current prices.

If you are set on buying a smartwatch, however, there are a handful of things to consider - compatibility and key features being chief among them. With that in mind, the following are our picks for you - whether you are an iPhone user, commited to Android, looking for something that is fitness centric to track regular workouts or exercise, or if you're into into luxury watches and also happen to be curious about the current smartwatch trend.

Read the complete article.

 

[cliffordcooley]

Now all they need to do is convince me I need one. Good luck with that!

 

[AncientYouth]

I have a vivoactive and it's excellent, I use it pretty much just for daily step/mile measurement and it works great.

No need to use the GPS function once you work out how many steps you take to cover a mile and then the battery lasts for weeks on end but it charges real fast as well

 

[WangDangDoodle]

I just don't understand what possible use people have for these things. I never liked wearing a wristwatch. It's downright uncomfortable, it gets clammy and leads to skin irritation. I stopped wearing my watch when I got my first cellphone. Also, considering the fact that we live in an age of exploding batteries, I'd rather not have one of these things tied to my wrist.

 

[Skidmarksdeluxe]

I just don't understand what possible use people have for these things. I never liked wearing a wristwatch. It's downright uncomfortable, it gets clammy and leads to skin irritation. I stopped wearing my watch when I got my first cellphone. Also, considering the fact that we live in an age of exploding batteries, I'd rather not have one of these things tied to my wrist.

They wear them principally for image, bling and bragging and not much else simply because they don't really do anything of any value. They're not for everyone, least of all me. Fitness trackers that can display the time as well are a far more sensible buy. Each to their own I suppose.

 

[Jamibi]

I personally have a Huawei watch which I'm surprised wasn't really mentioned much in this article.

I think the design is better than the Moto just simply because of that awful flat tyre effect. I had to get my Huawei watch imported from France as it was so delayed in the UK for some reason. I'm loving it although like mentioned in this thread there is literally little to no reason to get a smart watch (I think anyway).

I just simply "wanted one", not to brag or anything just to use the fitness tracker (Endomondo), to be able to read any incoming messages at work etc. (Android wear 2.0 is introducing a full qwerty keyboard), and obviously tell the time without having to get my phone out.

I've wanted a real watch for years now, when I saw the Huawei watch I thought it just looked like a watch, with the added smartwatch features. I can make calls/see who's calling on the watch, it has its speaker activated (Which the moto does not as far as I know).

To summarize; I have a Huawei Watch and I love it, but there is no reason for it and I never needed it. Now when it's not on my wrist I feel I'm missing something.

 

[alabama man]

I just don't understand what possible use people have for these things. I never liked wearing a wristwatch. It's downright uncomfortable, it gets clammy and leads to skin irritation. I stopped wearing my watch when I got my first cellphone. Also, considering the fact that we live in an age of exploding batteries, I'd rather not have one of these things tied to my wrist.

I don't understand that either but your argument about exploding batteries is strange. Watch will have tiny battery and if you wear it on left hand (like normal people) it won't even destroy your main arm. Phone on the other hand has large battery right next to your groin.

 

[alabama man]

Isn't the applewatch the only choice for apple users (not including chinese bootleg ones)?

 

[lazer]

Now all they need to do is convince me I need one. Good luck with that!

I still have my Casio digital watch and it keeps on working, who needs this stuff? Except for show offs, and good let them spend the money, I'll save my money for something better.

 

[Badelhas]

Isn't the applewatch the only choice for apple users (not including chinese bootleg ones)?

No. You can use an android wear watch but with limited functionalities

 

[Kibaruk]

I just don't understand what possible use people have for these things. I never liked wearing a wristwatch. It's downright uncomfortable, it gets clammy and leads to skin irritation. I stopped wearing my watch when I got my first cellphone. Also, considering the fact that we live in an age of exploding batteries, I'd rather not have one of these things tied to my wrist.

I like them, actually have a mechanical watch with visible springs so it's quite cool, I like watching it go and hearing the pendulum inside it's something electric watchs don't have (Quartz, vibes to a frequency that indicates when to move forward a second). I like the concept of mechanical watches, I like how they look and I'm also one of those who likes seeing different watches on people, some even have great stories.

If your skin is sensitive and you get irritation, you could always go with the latex ones from swatch, which are pretty cool looking.

How many cases of exploding wearables have you heard about? This is typical aversion to change "there is probably something wrong with it so no way" when they are pretty safe.

 

[Reehahs]

Having to compromise on the mobile phones with regards to daily charging is tedious enough, now we are expected to compromise on wrist watches too?

I don't expect them to be taking off until they remove daily charging. Come on coloured e-ink displays and better battery technology.

 

[Kibaruk]

Having to compromise on the mobile phones with regards to daily charging is tedious enough, now we are expected to compromise on wrist watches too?

I don't expect them to be taking off until they remove daily charging. Come on coloured e-ink displays and better battery technology.

As soon as I get back home, one of the first things I do is empty my pockets and take off anything that is not required -pants included, I know... too much info-, one of those things is my watch and I leave by the night stand... how is that different from instead of putting it anywhere on the nightstand to put it in a dock where it charges?

Maybe it's just me but I don't see that "tedious" activity and having to "compromise", normally I leave the thing charging while I sleep and if I need extra juice during the day I plug it anywhere (Good thing about non-proprietary plugs but rarely need to).

 

[Tanstar]

Does the Moto 360 do anything the Huawei or LG Urbane don't do? Because both look MUCH better than the Moto 360.

Personally, I enjoy being able to check txt messages and work emails quickly from my Urbane when on the move or in meetings. If it's important I pull out the phone or laptop. It's also great for starting a phone call after I get into my car, but before the contacts sync. The voice recognition is better than that of my 2015 Mazda 3 as well.

I get compliments on it all the time and enjoy fiddling with it and any other gadget.

 

[Tanstar]

Also, my Urbane is charged every other day. If I need it to stretch to three days I turn it off overnight each night and it's no problem.

 

[Jeff Schmidt]

They should have added a category for battery life. Charging your smartwatch every night to every other night sucks. This is where the pebble line would fit in. Yes, the new screen is garbage but getting a week on one charge is amazing.

 

[rvnwlfdroid]

As far as the best watch for Android. This comment "You can't answer calls, which is not really a big deal." I beg to differ on. That in itself was the biggest selling point of a smartwatch to me. Like Jamibi I also have the Huawei watch which has the capability to answer/make calls. Also the fact that it has a Sapphire crystal lens so I'm not afraid of scratching the lens on a daily basis. Smartwatches are primarily for techies and stature. Being the former there is nothing cooler then answering/making a call and talking to your watch. Which by the way does not have to be directly in front of your face to work. At least not with the Huawei watch.

 

[p51d007]

I've worn a watch since the first Pulsar LED watches in the mid/late 70's. It just feels weird not wearing a watch, just as those under 30ish feel wearing one. To me, the "smart" watch is a creation, in search of a function. I wear a cheap casio wave-ceptor watch that is less than 80 bucks online, keeps perfect time (thanks to checking with WWV each morning and resetting if needed), day/date, stopwatch. That's all I need. No need to worry about charging, battery or anything else since it will last 3-4 years.
And, I don't have to worry about being careful that it might get shattered, dunked in water (I think most watches including smart ones are somewhat water resistant?)
Unless these things get down under 100 bucks, forget it.

 

[Raoul Duke]

Maybe the smartest watch is the one that simply displays the time and has a cost that needs 2 digits

 

[Kibaruk]

Guys... remember when "cool" phones started comming into markets?
- "I don't need a smaller device, I'll probably loose it"
- "Why do I want to play snake?"
- "Polyphones? What's wrong with the beeep beeep sound?"
- "A phone with a color screen? Why?"
Then first smartphones...
- "Why do I want to listen music from my phone, that's what the ipod is for"
- "A camera? Come on my phone is for taking in calls only"
Blackberries are an exception, everyone wanted one when they first came into the market... then iPods got into shuffles, then itouch, then iphones and we all know the story. There will -probably- be a point when we can't think on how we lived without a smartwatch, it's like now I don't know how I did it without internet on my phone 15 years ago =P

Things change, we find something useful at one point, we adapt, it's how things work.

 

[cliffordcooley]

Things change, we find something useful at one point, we adapt, it's how things work.

At this stage the smart watch is as pointless as VR. In time though it will be different, just not today.

 

[Kibaruk]

Sorry, more than adapt, it grows on us and we create a neccesity out of something. Wait until we can answer and talk through our watch without much hassle and everyone will want one =P (I saw once a model that had a BT headphone within the watch that you could "pick up", looked cool but too much hassle).

 

[Reehahs]

As soon as I get back home, one of the first things I do is empty my pockets and take off anything that is not required -pants included, I know... too much info-, one of those things is my watch and I leave by the night stand... how is that different from instead of putting it anywhere on the nightstand to put it in a dock where it charges?

Maybe it's just me but I don't see that "tedious" activity and having to "compromise", normally I leave the thing charging while I sleep and if I need extra juice during the day I plug it anywhere (Good thing about non-proprietary plugs but rarely need to).

One night stand... I need to get one.

What you have formed is a habit, something which I have also done with my smartphone since it necessitated having it charged frequently. Despite the habit formation, I still dislike the idea of having to charge the phone everyday as some days are different and may involve having to plan backup recharging rather than just picking up the old brick and going. Though your later comment regarding turning it off and on during the night is a good idea unless you are using it as an alarm.

 

[Gadgety1]

@TechSpotStaff I think you need to list your criteria for "best" because it is not clear why the Moto360 2015 ended up before the Huawei Watch, which not only sports a sapphire AMOLED screen and a speaker, which means it'll last longer and is better prepared for Android Wear 2.0.

 

[Greg S]

What happened to the Samsung Gear S2 and Fitbits? Fitbits do function as smart watches even though they aren't advertised directly as such. I'd like to see a follow up to this.