One Plus Watch 3 Review
We are big fans of smart watches in our home, and after using a number of different watches from a number of different companies, we realized that all are doing about the same stuff, so it is the little things that separates one watch from another. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we actually got to spend a lot more time with the OnePlus Watch 3 prior to writing this review than we normally do, but that time has only made us love it more. Let’s dive in!
First and foremost, it’s the size of the watch that is so attractive to me. Way to often I find that Android watches are far too big; it’s the reason I don’t love the larger Apple Watches – size matters, and I prefer something a bit smaller and more compact. The size of the OnePlus Watch 3 is perfect and bridges the gap between those looking for a smaller looking watch and those that still need a decent sized screen. It is substantially heavier than the OnePlus Watch 2 I’ve been told, so take that into consideration as well.
The OnePlus Watch 3 has all the gimmicks you expect out of a smart watch. Fitness tracking, email checking, texting, music, and so on. Nothing here is going to wow you, but the performance overall has been really good. Jumping between apps on the watch has been very seamless – I wasn’t expecting to love the performance as much as I did, so I would say I’m pleasantly surprised and happy here.
That does come at a bit of a cost though – the OnePlus Watch 2 and the OnePlus Watch 2R were praised for their value – a fantastic product at a much lower price point than people were expecting. The OnePlus Watch 3 still delivers value, but there is a higher cost associated with that value as well. A worthwhile cost, you might ask? I would say so, but if you were wow’d by the features to cost ratio of the OnePlus Watch 2, you aren’t going to be as excited about that ratio with the OnePlus Watch 3.
OnePlus isn’t fixing what isn’t broke, though, so the proprietary magnetic watch dock is back – I honestly wish this was something more companies invested in – I cannot tell you the number of times I’ve plugged in my Apple Watch only for it to get knocked slightly off that little puck and stop charging. With the OnePlus charger, I have no concerns of it not getting charged, even when bumped around! What has been added this time though is a clickable dial which provides a wider array of options for users; some may call this a rip off what Apple has been offering for years, I call it being competitive. Other upgrades exist as well, and while GamesReviews has never been at the top of the tech game, we can tell that this sports a much better 1.5″ LTPO AMOLED display which not only helps with battery usage, but also readability, especially in the outdoors in direct sunlight.
We could jump under the hood to highlight the next big upgrade, but again – we are an average site for average people, so let’s just jump to the feature, shall we! The OnePlus Watch 3 boasts an incredible battery with up to three days of heavy use. Heavy use isn’t really a logical term to use here as we all use our watches differently, but even with heavy use of downloaded music to the watch itself, we were seeing 2+ days of use, listening to music 8+ hours per day. Impressive. With light use, OnePlus boasts 5 days and in battery saving mode, 16 days. I never got around to really testing those numbers as I’m fairly consistent with when I charge my watch – it’s a habit I couldn’t break to test these claims, sorry! – but I have no concerns about battery life at all. There was a weekend where I forgot my charger on a trip to Toronto, and I got through the entire weekend without thinking too much about battery saving options. That’s impressive.
Are you a fitness nut? OnePlus 3 is boasting sensors that are more accurate than ever before, tracking things like blood oxygen levels, heart rate, wrist temperature, sleep quality, vascular age and mental wellness. Again, we haven’t dabbled in all of this, so your mileage may vary, but we found the heart rate, wrist temperature, and sleep quality sensors interesting enough to continue checking day after day, and sometimes hour to hour. The sleep quality sensors were of particular interest to me. How the watch is capable of doing this, I’m not sure, but what the watch said did seem to mimic how I felt about my sleep the previous night. Crazy.
There are a few other key features that I think average users will want to know about. The titanium bezel for the watch face will keep your watch from scuffing and fast charging can get you an extra day of battery life in just 10 minutes. All-in-all the OnePlus Watch 3 is doing exactly what I expect the average person wants it to do: run the apps they need (email, texting, calls, music, fitness), have a good build quality, looks attractive, and has a really nice battery life. If an Android Watch is what you want, there aren’t a lot of better options at this price point available right now.
Article By Adam
