Review: Huawei Watch Is Classy but Far Too Pricey

‘The Huawei Watch is a fine looking smartwatch that suffers from the Android Wear syndrome and its price.

We’ve said it time and again, the smartwatch is a device that has a long way to go before it reaches the level or value of a smartphone in our lives. But that hasn’t stopped phone makers from pushing their own wearable products.

If one takes a look at the global landscape of smartwatches, the most prominent name is Xiaomi Mi Band and the reason for that is its meager $13 price point.

A smartwatch costing around $300 (Rs 19,300 approx) or above has to prove its worth but that hasn’t turned out to be the case in recent times.

Huawei Watch ticks the design template but it looks like any other run-of-the-mill watch. For Rs 22,999, the case for a smartwatch is yet to be fulfilled and we’re yet to find one that fits the need.

Pros

• Classy watch looks
• Crisp and bright display
• Reliable smartwatch performer
• Quick charging supported

Cons

• Watch is on the expensive side
• Android Wear yet to fulfill its promise
• Battery life suffers

What’s Good?

Huawei has taken the good bits of most other brands selling smartwatch and sprinkled them with its own design taste, and it works. The brand is only selling the 42-mm leather variant in the market as of now, which should get expanded to other options in the coming months.

The 1.4-inch display with 400x400 pixels resolution thrives on the durability prowess of Sapphire crystal glass that makes the Watch look elegant. The other layer of protection is the IP67 standard, usually seen and offered with phones.

You get onboard 4GB storage, which we haven’t found useful till date and the Snapdragon 400 processor under the hood with 512MB RAM that keeps the watch ticking along smoothly, without major glitches to report about. You can change your phone’s music using the Watch.

In terms of connectivity, you get WiFi and Bluetooth which is your source of smartphone pairing.

What’s Bad?

Android Wear has improved but not up to the mark that one really expects a wearable operating system (OS) to be. Yes, the OS now works with iPhone but that doesn’t make for a happy reading for the Android user, does it? There’s nothing wrong in the Huawei Watch, but for the OS in tow.

The OS is the reason why the Huawei Watch needs a quick charger because the level of battery draining is ridiculous. I am really hopeful that this year’s Google I/O will offer us Android Wear in its best avatar. Also, this is in all probability Google’s last chance to get the house in order, before the likes of Samsung make their big headway with the Tizen OS.

The fitness acumen of the Watch again bears the brunt of a half-baked OS which doesn’t justify the plausibility of using the Watch as a fitness companion.

And finally, the Rs 22,999 is too much to pay for a product that delivers on the outside but heavily suffers from the OS that is supposed to run the show.

Why Buy It?

Huawei Watch is a nicely crafted wearable with smart features enabled by Android Wear. You might even mistake it for a traditional high-end watch and that works really well for Huawei and us.

However, it’s high time that Google finds a good reason that will compel us to aid their wearable cause and recommend people to buy a smartwatch that cost as high as Rs 22,999.

Android was always supposed to be pocket-friendly, so the fact that Apple Watch is priced around the 23K and Huawei’s Watch is at the same level doesn’t add up. Android Wear eats into the battery life of the Watch and that is never worth going for. So, the Huawei Watch is an expensive accessory that will only be worth the buy if Android Wear sorts itself out and the Watch gets cheaper.