Latest news with #Watch3
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Yahoo
OnePlus Watch 3 Review: The Best Battery Life of Any Android Smartwatch
In my ten plus years of testing smartwatches, I've never had to actively try to drain a battery. That changed when I strapped on the $330 OnePlus Watch 3" target="_blank. Five days into my battery test, after charging it to 100%, this watch was still going strong; tracking my sleep, runs and vitals without missing a beat. I'll admit that the Watch 3 didn't make the most favorable first impression, with its clearly masculine design and oversized screen that practically swallowed up my normal-sized wrist. I half-expected to write it off as just another mid-range smartwatch destined to collect dust in a drawer. But it turns out, I'm willing to overlook a few things like the size and lack of ECG functionality for exceptional battery life. See at Oneplus Four years after its shaky debut, OnePlus' underdog smartwatch has matured into a true competitor to Samsung and Pixel watches, delivering the best battery life I've ever tested on a Wear OS device—all while packing solid health features into a subdued and elegant (albeit large) design. Unlike the original $160 OnePlus Watch" target="_blank and last year's $180 Watch 2R" target="_blank, whose main draw was affordability, the Watch 3 shifts the focus from price to performance. With its $330 price tag, OnePlus is positioning it as a premium flagship device, competing directly with similarly priced Wear OS watches like the Google Pixel Watch 3 and Samsung Galaxy Watch 7. What truly sets it apart is its battery that is larger than its predecessor at 631mAh (vs 500mAh on the Watch 2). The Watch 3 uses a dual chipset system to split up tasks and optimize power consumption and get even more out of its big battery. The Snapdragon W5 processor focuses on powering app usage, while the BES2800 MCU Efficiency chip handles background tasks that don't use as much power. Though skeptical at first, my two weeks of testing confirmed that the OnePlus Watch 3 truly delivers on its five-day battery claim. I did three GPS workouts, one of which was an hour and a half hike, and six full nights of sleep tracking. Even its fiercest Wear OS competitors would struggle to last three days without resorting to using a low power mode that strips the watch of its 'smart' features and turns it into a glorified digital clock. The only caveat with the Watch 3 is that it remains on the default "Smart mode" to achieve the full five days. This mode has a raise-to-wake screen and requires using one of OnePlus' official watch faces. I typically prefer an always-on display with a busier watch face filled with my most-used complications and shortcuts which would likely bring the battery life closer to three days – still a feat considering how bright the screen is, even in dormant mode. When I first started testing the watch, I made the mistake of opting for a non-OnePlus watch face with a three out of three rating on the battery drain scale and still managed to squeeze in four days worth of charge. While I haven't tested the claim yet, OnePlus says the watch can make it to 16 days in "Power Save" leaving it mostly as a dedicated fitness tracker rather than a full-featured smartwatch. Of course everyone has a different version of what "normal" use is, and when you finally charge it, the Watch 3 goes from zero to 100% in just under an hour. The OnePlus Watch 3 has a sleek stainless steel design with a rotating crown that has an easy-to-grip texture making it simple to turn. There's a slim titanium bezel framing the screen that's reminiscent of the old rotating bezels on the early Samsung watches that I loved. Sadly this one doesn't move, but I like how it elevates the design, making it look less like a giant circular 1.5-inch AMOLED display strapped to my wrist. Objectively, this is a good-looking watch. But as a woman with an average-sized wrist, this watch feels huge and clearly not designed with me in mind. I don't need a rose gold frame and a sparkly pink band, I just wish it had more inclusive sizing options and maybe a classic gold option. The watch comes in a black or silver finish, with interchangeable rubber watch bands in moss green, black or Nordic blue that scream "made for men." If the Watch 3's size and bands were its only exclusion of female representation, I might be able to write it off. But it's missing one more feature I've come to expect on a smartwatch: menstrual tracking. It's a big miss that OnePlus didn't include menstrual tracking on the Watch 3. Menstrual tracking is now a standard feature in newer Apple Watch and Garmin smartwatches. The Watch 3 has pretty much every other health feature including temperature tracking, which can be used to help identify a woman's ovulation window. Oversight aside, it's clear that OnePlus is investing heavily in health tracking. Beyond basic heart rate and sleep data, the watch measures more advanced metrics like cardiovascular health, blood oxygen levels, wrist temperature, and overall well-being, including emotional and stress levels. It also features an electrocardiogram (ECG), though as of publication, OnePlus has not sought FDA approval, meaning the feature will not be active in the US or Canada. While not medical-grade, OnePlus claims that the Watch 3's health metrics are more accurate than in previous models, thanks to upgraded sensors, refined algorithms, and improved cover glass over the back sensors for clearer readings. The Watch 3 also debuts a 60-second health check-in, a feature that checks all your vitals at once by pressing your finger on the watch's bottom button to create a circuit. My first health check-in was concerning and displayed a red exclamation mark with the word "abnormal" next to it. It turns out that all my vitals were in range, but my sleep score was so low that it skewed the results. As a low-key sleep tracking hater, I never realized just how much battery life factored into my frustration. As a parent of young kids, I already know I'm not getting enough sleep and seeing a bad sleep report first thing in the morning just sets me up for a day of dragging and self-pity. I feel the same way about wellness checks. Not having to take off the watch for five consecutive days made me more inclined to track my sleep, and I may have even learned a thing or two about my sleep patterns. The Watch 3's long battery let me collapse into bed at the end of the day without worrying whether my watch had enough charge to last through the night. The watch even tracked my sleep on night six, despite being down to 10% battery in "Power save" mode. The watch also has an option to monitor SpO2 (blood oxygen levels) and breathing patterns during sleep to help identify more serious breathing issues, but it will drain the battery faster and needs to be activated manually from either the watch or the mobile app. According to a recent interview from Wareable, OnePlus is already in the process of seeking FDA approval for sleep apnea detection which may make the extra battery drain worthwhile. In terms of fitness, the OnePlus Watch 3 covers all the basics, with more than 100 different sports modes, six of which it detects automatically: running, walking, rowing, elliptical machine, cycling, and swimming. It also offers a "professional" mode for 11 sports that keep tabs of more nuanced metrics related to that sport. For runners it's things like form and foot balance, and for tennis players it's swing speed and stroke. While it may be overkill for most, as a runner who recently learned how to leverage heart rate zones to intensify workouts, I was excited to nerd out on the additional metrics. I used it during my usual three-mile run and learned that while I have excellent balance between my right and left feet, my ground contact time (how long my foot stays on the ground) and vertical oscillation (how much I bounce) could use some improvement to make my runs more efficient and less injury-prone. The app provides context for the additional data, but it be overwhelming, and you have to dig around for a definition of each metric. I was also left longing for more actionable tips for improving my stats. The One Plus Watch 3's heart rate tracking kept up with my Polar chest strap (the gold standard for athletes), with a lag of just a second or two and a one point difference in average heart rate between the chest strap and the watch. Heart rate serves as a baseline for many of the fitness metrics on the Watch 3. However, once I started running uphill and inching closer to my maximum heart rate, I noticed that lag time increased to about 25 seconds between what the chest strap was showing (on my phone) and the number on my wrist. I tried tightening the band, but it only helped temporarily. By the end of my workout, the watch showed that I had stayed in my peak heart rate zone for 19 seconds, while the chest strap recorded me in this zone for about three and a half minutes. The lag could be partially due to the sensor's proximity to the heart (versus the wrist). Sweat and arm movement could also interfere with an accurate read -- a problem for most smartwatches. Whatever the case, heart rate accuracy could be an issue if you use it for for high-intensity sports or more serious training. You're still better off using a chest strap. Another key feature for outdoor sports enthusiasts is its dual-frequency GPS tracking system, which OnePlus claims can position you accurately even in challenging environments, such as crowded cities surrounded by high rises. I live in a rural environment that's more sheep than skyscrapers, so I haven't been able to fully test this claim. It did position me perfectly on my hour and a half hike through oak trees and vineyards. With an IP69 rating, the OnePlus Watch 3 is also water-resistant up to 50 meters. The Watch 3 runs on Wear OS 5, with a few additional OnePlus design and navigation features. You can customize the rotating crown and side button as shortcuts, but everything else will feel like a standard Wear OS watch packed with whatever apps you've downloaded. The interface of the Watch 3 feels sluggish, with a slight lag in response time, though it became easier to use as I got more familiar with the swipe and tap directions. The UI isn't exactly intuitive, either. For example, the battery icon shows the remaining charge but doesn't let you switch to "Smart" or "Power Save" mode which after some trial and error I found hidden behind what looks like an infinity icon. There are also three ways to access the workout screen, but only one of those ways will allow you to add a workout type (through the list of apps). This may be more of a Wear OS navigation issue than a OnePlus problem, but it's still cumbersome. Additionally, you'll need to download the separate OHealth app to your phone to access the watch's full range of health tracking features. The app itself is visually appealing and intuitive, but the setup wasn't seamless. It took multiple tries to sync with my Google Health data. It's worth noting however that I was using a developers version of the OHealth app, so setup may be smoother on the public version. The biggest downside of the OnePlus Watch 3, however, is that it only guarantees two years of software and security updates, while some of its competitors like Samsung offer up to five. This means the watch, despite its impressive battery life, could become obsolete much sooner. If you're looking for a watch with a smaller footprint or a more feminine design, then the OnePlus Watch 3 may not be your best bet. But if battery life is at the top of your wishlist, this is one Android smartwatch that's definitely worth considering. The OnePlus Watch 3 is a premium smartwatch at a mid-range price point that checks nearly all the boxes for health and fitness features, and outlasts most competitors when it comes to battery life – just not when it comes to software updates. The OnePlus Watch 3 is now available for $330 on the OnePlus website.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
A key Pixel Watch 3 tool will finally arrive six months late in the U.S.
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The FDA has signaled approval for the Loss of Pulse Detection feature on the Pixel Watch 3. It detects if the user is experiencing "primary cardiac arrest" or "respiratory or circulatory failure." Loss of Pulse Detection was previously available in 14 European countries, but will not arrive in the U.S. until late March 2025. A key draw to the Pixel Watch 3 is its Fitbit-branded health sensors for detecting heart issues. On Wednesday, Google announced that the FDA has given clearance for Loss of Pulse Detection to be used on its smartwatch in the United States, signaling that the feature is accurate enough to be trusted on a consumer device. As the name implies, Loss of Pulse Detection can "detect when you've experienced a loss of pulse." It will then vibrate with a check-in message before starting an alarm to alert people nearby; if you continue to be unresponsive, it will attempt to call 911 and send an automated message with your location to the emergency responder. Google heavily advertised this feature when launching the Pixel Watch 3 in September, but while it arrived quickly in 14 countries in the EU and United Kingdom, Google had to get regulatory approval before launching it in the United States. Since this isn't an active feature, many American Watch 3 buyers may have assumed it was available. Thankfully, Google announced that "we'll begin rolling it out in the U.S. at the end of March," so we won't have too much longer to wait. This feature won't be available on older Pixel Watch models, however. The Pixel Watch 3 sells in 32 countries, meaning a majority of them still don't have Loss of Pulse Detection. The current list is Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom; Google claims that "additional countries will be added as regulatory clearance is obtained." While this feature only becomes necessary in drastic circumstances, the Pixel Watch 3 also has more preventative heart health tools. It has an ECG to detect signs of atrial fibrillation (AFib) during active checks, as well as automatic irregular heart rhythm notifications to catch warning signs throughout the day. Plus, the Watch 3 can detect if the user experiences a sudden fall or a car crash, with a similar method of calling emergency services if the wearer cannot respond to prompts. Among Android smartwatches, the Pixel Watch 3 is one of the most accurate when it comes to heart rate data, both generally and during workouts, so we're happy to have this feature arriving for worst-case scenarios. And we're curious what new health features will come to the Pixel Watch 4.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
OnePlus is delaying the Watch 3 launch because of a typo
One thing writers and multinational consumer electronics corporations have in common is we both need a good editor. Or, failing that, at least a good spell-checker. OnePlus somehow missed that step when launching the OnePlus Watch 3, which had its scheduled Tuesday launch abruptly halted because of an embarrassing typo. On the back of the watch, early buyers discovered that their $330 smartwatch was "meda in China." As a result, you'll now have to wait until April to buy the device. At least someone on OnePlus' social team saw an opportunity. "Oops, we've meda mistake!" the company posted on X on Friday. "A typo slipped through and made its way onto your shiny new OnePlus Watch 3." The acknowledgment came three days after a post showing photo evidence of the flub gained traction in the OnePlus subreddit. "Yikes lol how did this pass QC?" u/kbtech wondered in the comments. The OnePlus Watch 3's new release date is sometime in April, with the order page currently estimating an April 9 ship date. On the bright side, the company is extending its $30 pre-order discount. (For those shopping in Canada, it's $50 off.) You can use code TIME1010 to get the lower price, which lasts until April. Those who already got one of the "Meda in China" models can either keep it or return it with no questions asked. (Not that the answers would be too difficult to guess.) OnePlus says the Watch 3 can run for an estimated 16 days in power saver mode, five days in smart mode and up to 72 hours for heavy users. The Wear OS watch also has a new titanium bezel and a sapphire crystal screen. All in all, it sounds like a well-meda piece of gear.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Yahoo
OnePlus promises two major Watch 3 changes, but they may not arrive until the Watch 4
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. In an interview with Wareable, a OnePlus rep acknowledged that the one-size Watch 3 "remains heavy for a small wrist." He promised that they will "fix" the lack of a small option this year, which could suggest a smaller OnePlus Watch 3R or Watch 4. He also discussed the reason why the OnePlus Watch 3 only has an LTE version in China. As much as the OnePlus Watch 3 has impressed us so far with its incredible battery life, we don't know how long it would last with a lighter, more comfortable case size. But based on statements from Dr. Leo Zhang, the Head of R&D at the OnePlus Health Lab, they're "working on" a smaller OnePlus Watch that should answer that question soon. PULSE by Wareable, which interviewed Zhang, quotes him as saying, "It's true that the [46mm OnePlus Watch 3] remains heavy for a small wrist and that this typically affects women, but we will fix that this year. We value our customer's voice and we're working on that." As much as the OnePlus Watch 3 improved on the Watch 2, a smaller model was one of the few requested changes that OnePlus didn't deliver this year. The Watch 3 weighs about 50g without the strap or 80g with it; that's lighter than the 60g Galaxy Watch Ultra, but significantly heavier than the 34g Galaxy Watch 7 or 37g Pixel Watch 3 with comparable display sizes. Given that OnePlus will "fix that" in 2025, we could theoretically see a smaller OnePlus Watch 3R this summer — a successor to the sporty Watch 2R — but the Watch 4 in 2026 seems more likely. Either way, we think plenty of people would lose a day or two of battery life and swap from a 1.5- to 1.3-inch display to make the OnePlus Watch 4 less distractingly hefty. In this same interview, Wareable asked Zhang about the lack of an LTE option in North America and Europe. "The technology isn't a problem, that part is quite simple," Zhang explained. "In China's domestic market, we have an LTE version. In an overseas market, we need to work with the carriers—and that's a big hurdle. We need to work with carriers so users can put in an eSIM and have a data plan." Zhang continued on to tell the site that they're also "working on" adding LTE by speaking with carriers, "especially in Europe." Unlike his promise about a smaller OnePlus Watch, he didn't give a timetable for adding LTE, whether to the Watch 3, Watch 4, or a later model. And based on his words, it appears OnePlus's first priority will be to bring LTE to Europe before it focuses on the United States, where its wearable sales may be lower. OnePlus has had a slightly messy Watch 3 launch week, given its "Meda in China" typo and a disappointingly short update promise. Despite this, we're highly encouraged to see OnePlus prioritizing a smaller watch design, in order to make its watches more competitive with the other best Android smartwatches.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Why the OnePlus Watch 3 is missing a key Apple Watch feature in the US and Canada
The OnePlus Watch 3 has officially launched and has several new features, including an ECG (electrocardiogram) analyzer, which was unavailable in the second-generation model. However, as OnePlus told 9to5Google, this feature will not be accessible to users in the U.S. and Canada because the watch has not received official certification for its ECG capabilities from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Despite this limitation, all users, regardless of location, will have access to the new '60-Second Health Check-In' feature expected to be released in the year's second quarter. The OnePlus Watch 3, priced at $329, is a significant upgrade over its predecessor, the OnePlus Watch 2. The new model boasts a slightly larger 1.5-inch LTPO AMOLED display with a peak brightness of 2,200 nits compared to the 1.43-inch display with just 600 nits on the OnePlus Watch 2. This increased brightness enhances visibility in bright sunlight. Additionally, the OnePlus Watch 3 features a functional rotating crown that makes it easier to navigate menus and apps. This addresses a common complaint about Watch 2, which had a crown that only served as a button. The new watch also has a titanium bezel, which is more durable and lighter than the stainless steel bezel found in the previous model. The OnePlus Watch 3 features Wear OS 5, an improved coprocessor, battery life, and various enhancements. It is particularly notable for its advanced health-related features, starting with the new health check-in that tracks multiple metrics, including heart rate, SpO2 levels, vascular health, wrist temperature, sleep patterns, and overall physical and mental well-being. Furthermore, thanks to upgraded sensors and algorithms, OnePlus promises more accurate fitness tracking for outdoor activities like running. The Watch 3 includes over 100 sports and 11 professional modes for detailed workout analysis. The $329 OnePlus Watch 3 is now available for preorder.
