While the Apple Watch, Samsung Watch and Android Wear watches have a range of third party apps that make them true smartwatches, as opposed to enhanced fitness smartwatches, the smartwatch category is growing with true athletic prowess.
Now, there can be absolutely no doubt that Apple rules the smartwatch roost according to Strategy Analytics who says Apple enjoys 4x Samsung's sales and CounterPoint Research who says Apple accounts for more than half of all global smartwatch sales in 2020. Apple enjoys the greatest number of sales, powerful profitability, stacks of fitness smarts, the most styles, colours and bands, a model for almost every price point, awesome apps, wonderfully customisable watch faces and plenty more, but Apple Watches aren't for everyone - and a rising tide has lifted all smartwatch boats, as it were, with that Counterpoint report stating global smartwatch market revenue was up by 20% in H1 2020.
To own an Apple Watch, you need to be an iPhone owner, unless you're getting an Apple Watch for your kids that will be signed up to a parent's iPhone, and there are lots of challengers out there, in fact, more than ever. There's the Tobi Robot smartwatch, the SpaceTalk smartwatch phone, and lots of other brands, from Kogan own-branded models through to Garmin models, Oppo's square smartwatch to come, and of course all those new FitBit models just launched, and many more.
Apple's success in crafting a "square" faced smartwatch, rather than the circular watch style that has been popular for well over a century, has certainly proven popular with competitors, too - FitBit, Garmin, Oppo, SpaceTalk, Tobi and many others - with Huawei mixing things up a bit by going rectangular, giving a larger display able to display more info.
Now, the Huawei Watch Fit was launched at the company's 2020 developer conference in China earlier this month, and it hasn't taken long for it to arrive at retail.
|
|
Unlike the Huawei Watch GT 2, there's no ability to make or receive calls either that I can see, even though this would be as a Bluetooth device through to your existing phone rather than through any on-board cellular connectivity, which there isn't, or at least, isn't in this initial model.
From the name to its description, its clear the Huawei Watch Fit is "an intelligent fitness watch" which the company says will challenge users "to style up their fitness as they reframe their outlook on their own performance and the world around them".
This means it is GPS equipped, as you'd expect, has 96 workout modes of which six are enabled for automatic workout detection, has 5 ATM water resistance enabling usage in the pool for swimming workouts and even a "private trainer" with 12 animated quick workouts, although the animated workout feature will come in an upcoming OTA update.
Here's the official promo video - the article continues below, please read on!
So, what does Huawei have to say about this new model?
We're told it features a rounded rectangular face with a large 1.64 AMOLED display, and "encourages users to get into new forms of exercise through a variety of animated fitness courses, workout modes and scientific health tracking features that can be shared directly with the Huawei Health app so that users can accurately record their latest data and performance in real time, and help plan exercise regimes."
Larking Huang, MD of Huawei Consumer Business in Australia said: “The WATCH FIT boasts an impressive 10 days battery life, built-in animated personal trainer and the ability to track and monitor your workouts, heart rate, sleep, stress levels and blood oxygen saturation, making it the new smart workout partner that every Aussie fitness beginner or enthusiast needs this year.
“With an ultra slim and light design, I can barely feel it on my wrist – great for when I’m playing soccer, [when] in the office and even sleeping. It truly is the perfect all-day companion. A personal highlight for me is the auto-brightness adjustment, which offers better viewing in sunlight when I’m playing soccer outdoors – a feature that will be great for Aussies in the summer months.”
Here's a promo video showing some of those features off, the article continues thereafter, please read on!
Then Huawei wants you to "reframe your health"
Here we're told: "Through heart rate, sleep, and blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) monitoring, the HUAWEI WATCH FIT offers Australians comprehensive health tracking features."
Huawei notes that "oxygen saturation refers to the fraction of oxygen-saturated haemoglobin relative to total haemoglobin in the blood. This product is not a medical devices, and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease" and that the comprehensive health tracking features "are designed neither for medical use nor diagnosing, treating, curing or preventing any disease. All date and measurements should be used for personal reference only", although these are common disclaimers for all smartwatches.
I would say that while we won't have Star Trek level medical tri-corders yet, we're certainly on the way to developing them!
Anyway, Huawei continues, stating that its "proprietary TruSeen 4.0 heart rate monitoring technology allows HUAWEI WATCH FIT to support intelligent background heart rate monitoring, displaying users’ current resting heart rate, in addition to an infographic showing how their heart rate changed over the last 24 hours. It also provides an abnormal heart rate alert function which notifies you when your continuous resting heart rate is too high or too low (but only for Android users, not iOS users).
"HUAWEI TruSleep 2.0 delivers sleep stage monitoring, real-time heart rate monitoring, sleep respiration quality and big data analysis. The watch intelligently recognises when the user falls asleep and wakes up, using this data to present a comprehensive sleep analysis which shows the different stages such as light sleep, deep sleep, REM and wakefulness.
"Harnessing Huawei's AI technology, it can accurately identify six typical sleep problems including difficulty falling asleep, light sleeping, restlessness, early awakening, too many dreams, and an irregular work and rest schedule. Combined with the long-lasting battery life, this means users can track their sleep every night to improve their health.
"Rounding off the comprehensive health tracking features, SpO2 monitoring, stress level monitoring and menstrual cycle management ensure users have all the data they need to keep their mind at ease. SpO2 monitoring helps you keep track of blood oxygen saturation, while stress level monitoring offers breathing exercises to help you relax and menstrual cycle management helps female users accurately grasp their physical wellbeing and predict their menstrual cycle."
Finally, besides hoping you'll buy one, Huawei wants you to "reframe your style"
As noted, Huawei says this is its "first ever smart sports watch with a rounded rectangular face" Measuring 1.64 inches, the large yet perfectly proportioned AMOLED HD display allows consumers to engage with the animated fitness courses and other unique features. With ultra-slim bezels, users can enjoy the dazzling and colourful display with minimal distractions.
"Weighing only 34g, the HUAWEI WATCH FIT has a light and sleek appearance which will complement any outfit. On-trend wrist strap colour options including mint green, sakura pink, and graphite black give consumers the power to express themselves as they mix and match their looks.
"The customisation does not stop there, as HUAWEI WATCH FIT offers over 130 different watch face design options through Huawei’s Watch Face Store, meaning users can personalise their watch faces with their own photo albums synced directly from their smartphones, and they can choose which data is on display according to their own needs."
Availability
Retailing at $249, the Huawei Watch Fit is available in Mint Green, Sakura Prink and Graphite Black across Australia starting Monday 28 September, and is available for purchase from JB Hi-Fi, Harvey Norman**, The Good Guys, Amazon, Mobileciti, Kogan and the Huawei Authorised Experience Store.
JB Hi-Fi is only selling the Mint Green version online, and the colour is not available at Harvey Norman or The Good Guys.
More information here:
Size
- 46 x 30 x 10.7 mm
- Wrist coverage range: 13 ~ 21 cm (Standard Model)
- 11 ~ 19 cm (Sakura Pink Model)
Weight
- Approximately 21 g (without the strap), 34g (with the strap)
Watch Case
- Colour:
- Black, Silver, Rose Gold
- Material:
- durable polymer fiber
WATCH STRAP
- Graphite Black Silicone Strap
- Mint Green Silicone Strap
- Sakura Pink Silicone Strap
COLOUR
- Mint Green
- Sakura Pink
- Graphite Black
Display
- 1.64 inch AMOLED 456 x 280 HD
- The AMOLED touchscreen supports slide and touch gestures.
Sensors
- 6-axis IMU sensor (Accelerometer sensor, Gyroscope sensor)
- Optical heart rate sensor
- Capacitive sensor
- Ambient light sensor
Button
- Full screen touch + side button
System requirements
- Android 5.0 or later
- iOS 9.0 or later
GPS
- Supported
Memory
- 4 GB
- The available memory capacity is less than this value because the system software takes up part of the space.
BATTERY LIFE
- Typical usage: 10 days
- HUAWEI TruSleep is enabled, heart rate monitoring is enabled. Screen is checked briefly 200 times per day, 50 messages, 3 calls and 3 alarms reminding in 24 hours, and workout for 30 minutes per week.
- Heavy usage: 7 days
- HUAWEI TruSleep is enabled, heart rate monitoring is enabled. Screen is checked briefly 500 times per day, 50 messages, 3 calls and 3 alarms reminding in 24 hours, and workout for 60 minutes per week.
- GPS mode: 12 hours
CHARGING PORT
- Magnetic charging thimble
WATER RESISTANCE
- 5 ATM water-resistant
- Devices complying with the 5 ATM-rated water have a water resistance rating of 50 meters under ISO standard 22810:2010. This means that they may be used for shallow-water activities like swimming in a pool or ocean. However, they should not be used for scuba diving, waterskiing, or other activities involving high-velocity water or submersion below shallow depth. For details of waterproof precautions, please refer this document.
Bluetooth
- 2.4 GHz, BT 5.0, BLE
In the box
- Watch x 1
- Charging Cradle (including the charging cable) x 1
- Quick Start Guide & Safety Information & Warranty Card x 1
