Last Updated on August 31, 2021 by Rupesh Patil
Are you looking to buy a smartwatch soon? If so, we have shortlisted the best smartwatches in India that you can buy right now. Whether you want to buy an Apple Watch to suit your iPhone, the best Android smartwatch for your Android smartphone, or just an affordable smartwatch for tracking your fitness, we have chosen something for everyone. We have also explained the difference between a fitness tracker and a smartwatch in this article and listed the general questions that you should keep in your mind while buying smartwatches in India.
So, without any further ado, let us have a look at the best smartwatches to buy in India right now. We will keep this article updated frequently so that it always contains the best products.
Best Smartwatches in India: Top Trending Smartwatches For Android and iOS
Let us make it clear. If you have an iPhone, the best overall smartwatch for you would be an Apple Watch. Yes, Wear OS-based smartwatches and Tizen OS-based Galaxy Watches work with iPhones, too, but they don’t work as well as an Apple Watch does. The Apple Watch simply works and is tied deep into iOS, which means all your stock apps play nice with the iPhone, and you can control various aspects of your iPhone directly from the Apple Watch.
Best Apple Watch In India
This must be quite simple, right? How hard can it be to choose the best Apple Watch for your iPhone? Well, it once was quite simple as Apple used to sell just one version of its smartwatch, but it has now started selling different generations of Apple Watches, and it can be quite confusing to someone who doesn’t keep up with the consumer tech news. The company currently sells four different Apple Watches in India: Apple Watch Series 3, Apple Watch SE, Apple Watch Series 6, and Apple Watch Nike. And just as it is expensive to own an iPhone, it is expensive to own an Apple Watch in India. So, which is the best Apple Watch in India?
1. Apple Watch SE – ₹29,900
We think that the best Apple Watch for most people is the Apple Watch SE. It has almost all the features that you want and almost nothing that you don’t. It has a modern design with a bezel-less screen. Its OLED screen is the best in the industry, with inky blacks and high brightness. The Apple Watch SE runs the latest version of watchOS and has a blazing-fast processor. It can track your heart rate, your workouts, your day-to-day activity like steps and sleep, and it can even detect if you fall accidentally. It has GPS, too, for accurately tracking your runs and cycling. And since it is water-resistant for up to 50 meters, you can easily use it to track your swimming.
Its activity and fitness tracking accuracy are among the best. It has plenty of internal storage (32GB) that you can use to store music so that you can listen to it while working out. The loudspeaker-mic combo lets you take calls. Since it runs a full-fledged smartwatch operating system, you can run all the apps natively, have widgets, and choose from dozens of watch faces (in infinite different configurations with ‘Complications’). The only thing it is missing is always-on display mode, which is available in the Apple Watch Series 5 and the Apple Watch Series 6.
2. Apple Watch Series 6 – ₹40,900
If you really want an Apple Watch with an always-on display mode, blood oxygen measurement, and ECG, you will have to spend more and get the Apple Watch Series 6. Although the ECG feature isn’t activated yet for the Indian market, it could be activated by the end of the year. The Apple Watch Series 6 also features a slightly newer processor than the Apple Watch SE, but it is unlikely that you will notice a difference between the two. All the other features of the Apple Watch Series 6 remain similar to the Apple Watch SE, which means that it has the same bright OLED display, 50-metre water resistance, heart rate monitoring, fall detection, activity and fitness tracking, offline music playback, ability to download and install apps and widgets, and calling right from the wrist.
Best Android Smartwatches To Buy
Google’s Wear OS (earlier known as Android Wear) is the only real competition to Apple’s watchOS ecosystem, but it pains to see that it is so far behind watchOS that there is no competition at all. Wear OS is inefficient and has very few apps when compared to watchOS, and the apps that are present are not optimized well or are buggy. Moreover, Wear OS-based smartwatches don’t use energy-efficient processors, which results in poor battery life (usually lasting just one day on a single charge). Still, if you want to buy a Wear OS-based smartwatch in India, there are a few options.
1. Ticwatch Pro 3: Best Android Smartwatch For Men – ₹25,999
The Ticwatch Pro 3 is the longest-lasting Wear OS-based smartwatch in India. Thanks to its dual-layer display (a digital FSTN display on the top and an AMOLED display below it) and a high-capacity battery, the TicWatch Pro 3 can last up to three days on a single charge. It also uses a much more power-efficient Snapdragon Wear 4100 processor in combination with 1GB RAM and 8GB storage.
It has a 1.4-inch circular screen and standard 22mm straps. In terms of tracking and sensors, it features GPS, heart-rate monitor, barometer, accelerometer, and gyro. It is dust and water-resistant, too, which means you can track your swims as well. It has NFC, too, which means you can make mobile payments via Google Pay. And it has a loudspeaker and microphone for taking calls.
2. OPPO Watch: Best Unisex Android Smartwatch – ₹12,990 (41mm) / ₹16,990 (46mm)
The OPPO Watch looks like an Apple Watch and has a bigger (1.95-inch on 46mm and 1.6-inch on 41mm), brighter, and better screen than the Fossil Gen 5 smartwatch. It can show notifications from the connected phone, track your activity and workout, make mobile payments, and check your sleep quality. The watch can last up to three days (1 day on 41mm) on a single charge and charges quite fast (75 minutes for 0-100% charging). It is water-resistant for up to 50 meters. It uses the Snapdragon Wear 3100 processor (and an Ambiq co-processor), 1GB RAM, 8GB storage, GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, and NFC. It lacks a loudspeaker, though, which means you can’t take calls directly on your wrist, so you’ll have to use Bluetooth earphones.
3. Fossil Gen 5 Julianna Smartwatch: Best Android Smartwatch For Women – ₹22,995
Fossil’s Gen 5 smartwatches are available in various designs; some suit men (Fossil Gen 5 Carlyle and Garrett), while other suit women (Fossil Gen 5 Julianna). They all feature circular 1.25-inch OLED screens with an always-on display mode, Snapdragon 3100 processor, 1GB RAM, 8GB storage, GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, and NFC. They all feature heart-rate monitoring, activity and fitness tracking, sleep tracking, and dust and water resistance. With NFC, you can make mobile payments via Google Pay. You can take calls via its onboard loudspeaker and microphone. However, they all last just one day on a single charge, and it can be a little slow at times.
Best Samsung Smartwatch
Although Wear OS smartwatches have more apps and deeper integration with Android smartphones, we still prefer Samsung’s Tizen OS-based Galaxy smartwatches because they use more advanced processors. Tizen is far smoother and more optimized in comparison. Samsung’s Galaxy smartwatches have an excellent display, attractive design, and long battery life.
1. Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 – ₹18,990
The Galaxy Watch Active 2 is the best smartwatch for most Android smartphone users. It has an elegant design, bright and colourful Super AMOLED circular display, and standard 20mm straps. Connectivity features include Wi-Fi b/g/n, Bluetooth 5.0, and NFC. The Galaxy Watch Active 2 uses an Exynos 9110 processor, which more power-efficient than any Snapdragon Wear chipset. The combination of Samsung’s efficient Tizen OS and Exynos 9110 processor means that the Galaxy Watch Active 2 can last 3-4 days on a single charge. It has 768MB RAM (1.5GB on LTE model) and 4GB storage.
It can track your activity, fitness, sleep (4-stage tracking), and stress levels. The Galaxy Watch Active 2 also features fall detection, ECG, and Samsung Pay, too, but those features haven’t been activated for the Indian market yet. We expect those features to be available in India by the end of this year. It also features excellent preinstalled and third-party watch faces. Another great advantage that the Galaxy Watch Active 2 has over most other smartwatches is Qi wireless charging. However, it only works with Samsung’s chargers.
Best Smartwatch Under ₹5,000
If you are searching for the best smartwatch under ₹5,000, please be informed that there are no real smartwatches for such a low price. All the smartwatch-like devices priced below ₹5,000 are glorified fitness bands with larger displays, which means that they have limited watch faces, no ability to install standalone apps, no storage for storing offline music, and won’t have as many features as proper smartwatches. Still, if you really want the best smartwatch-like fitness tracker under ₹5,000, here are those:
1. Huami Amazfit Verge Lite – ₹5,999
Yes, the Amazfit Verge Lite is priced slightly over ₹5,000, but it is a really good smartwatch (well, a fitness tracker, actually). It has the best screen on any smartwatch around this price. It has a 1.3-inch AMOLED circular display with Gorilla Glass 3. It comes with pretty good-looking watch faces. It has activity and fitness tracking via its accelerometer, gyrosensor, GPS, and a heart-rate monitor. It has sleep tracking, too. The Amazfit Verge Lite can display notifications from the smartwatch and control music. On a single full charge, it can last up to 20 days. If you can spend ₹5,999, you should totally prefer the Amazfit Verge Lite.
2. Realme Watch S – ₹4,999
The Realme Watch S has a 1.3-inch circular LCD display with auto-brightness and standard-sized watch straps. It has a heart-rate monitor, blood oxygen tracking, activity and fitness tracking, and sleep tracking. It has decent watch faces and can mirror notifications from the smartphone. It is dust and water-resistant, has a stylish and high-quality design with Gorilla Glass, and a magnetic charging base. And it can last anywhere between 7-15 days on a single charge. What more would you want from such an affordable smartwatch?
3. Huami Amazfit Bip S – ₹4,999
The Amazfit Bip S is another great smartwatch under ₹5,000. It features a 1.28-inch rectangular transflective screen that becomes brighter under the sun. It features activity and fitness tracking, heart-rate monitoring, sleeps tracking, and swim tracking. The Amazfit Bip S has an accelerometer, gyrosensor, and a heart rate sensor. It can last anywhere between 15-40 days on a single charge. It can show notifications from the smartwatch and control music. It has Bluetooth 5.0, GPS, and water resistance for up to 50 meters. If you can live with its low-color screen, you should go with the Huami Amazfit Bip S over the Realme Watch S.
Best Smartwatches For Kids
There aren’t really any good smartwatches for kids in India that we can wholeheartedly recommend. However, there are some smartwatches and fitness trackers that may fit well with kids.
1. Huami Amazfit Neo – ₹2,499
The Amazfit Neo is like any other fitness tracker out there. It has an accelerometer, gyrosensor, and heart rate monitor for activity tracking, fitness tracking, and sleep tracking. However, it has a CSTN display like regular digital watches, which means that it can’t show notifications or fancy watch faces, but it has an extremely long battery life.
2. Huami Amazfit Bip S – ₹4,999
This smartwatch, as mentioned earlier, has a 1.28-inch transflective screen that appears brighter under bright light, but is not very colorful. It has all the basic activity, fitness, and sleep tracking features, and on top of that, it features GPS, too. It can mirror smartphone notifications and is water-resistant.
3. Apple Watch SE (GPS + Cellular) – ₹33,900
If you can cough up ₹29,900 for your kid and if you use an iPhone, the Apple Watch SE (GPS + Cellular) is a good choice since it has excellent smartwatch features, as mentioned earlier, and offers LTE connectivity. This means that you can contact them in case of an emergency even if they don’t have a smartphone. It has an industry-leading display, excellent activity and fitness tracking features, sleep tracking, a great set of apps, groundbreaking parental controls, and 2-day battery life.
What About Xiaomi’s Mi Watch Revolve Smartwatch and Mi Band 5?
The Mi Watch Revolve has an impressive feature set, and so does the Mi Band 5. While Mi Band 5 is the best fitness band that you can buy for under ₹3,000, the Mi Watch Revolve is overpriced, in our opinion. Comparative fitness bands from Amazfit, such as the Amazfit GTS 2 Mini and the Amazfit GTS 2, offer better design and feature set.
General Questions To Keep in Mind While Buying Smartwatches in India
While buying a smartwatch, you should keep a few important questions in your mind, and you can read about them in detail in our smartwatch buying guide. However, if you want to read about them in short, here are those questions:
Q. What is your budget for buying a smartwatch?
A. First, you should first decide your budget. If it is in excess of ₹10,000, you can buy an actual smartwatch that lets you install full-fledged third-party apps, more watch faces and offers deeper integration with your smartphone. If your budget is below ₹10,000, you can just buy glorified fitness trackers that look like smartwatches. They can track your activity and fitness, but they don’t let you install third-party apps and they don’t have Wi-Fi connectivity or offline music storage.
Q. Which operating system does your smartphone use?
A. Then you should check which smartwatch platform suits your current smartphone. If you have an iPhone, you should prefer getting yourself an Apple Watch if it fits within your budget. If it doesn’t, you will have to buy more affordable smartwatches from brands like Amazfit, Fitbit, and Samsung.
Q. Which activity and fitness tracking features do you want?
A. You should decide which fitness tracking features you want from your smartwatch: workout, running, cycling, sleep, stress, blood oxygen, yoga, menstrual cycle, and others.
Q. Which connectivity features do you want?
A. Now you need to look at the connectivity features and decide which smartwatch offers more options. Most real smartwatches offer Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS. Fitness trackers offer just GPS and Bluetooth connectivity.
Q. Which smartwatch offers the best battery life?
A. Check which smartwatch offers the best battery life among the ones that you shortlisted. Real smartwatches last anywhere between 1 and 4 days. Fitness trackers can last anywhere between 7 and 40 days.
Q. Does the smartwatch support Qi wireless charging?
A. Smartwatches that offer Qi wireless charging offer more convenience. The ones that charge via pogo pins are not as convenient, and they might be harder to find 2-3 years down the line.
Q. Do you want a smartwatch with a circular display or a squarer display?
A. You should also check if the smartwatch’s size and style suit your style preferences. Decide whether you want a smartwatch with a circular display or a squarer one. Most people prefer circular watches, but your preference may be different.
Q. Is the smartwatch compatible with standard-sized (20mm or 22mm) watch straps?
A. If a smartwatch is compatible with standard-sized watch straps (20mm or 22mm), you get access to thousands of watch straps that you can buy from any watch shop or online store. You can buy silicon, leather, vegan leather, or metal watch straps. Smartwatches like the Apple Watch are not compatible with standard-sized watch straps, but they still have access to a lot of watch straps. However, its watch straps are costlier compared to usual watch straps.
What Is The Difference Between Fitness Trackers & Smartwatches?
Most people get confused between a real smartwatch and a fitness tracker that looks like a smartwatch. There is only three real smartwatch operating systems: Apple’s watchOS, Google’s Wear OS, and Samsung’s Tizen OS. Smartwatches offer the ability to install third-party apps and advanced watch faces with customizable parts, offer enough storage space to store and play music, and have Wi-Fi connectivity.
Fitness trackers that have a large circular or squarer display do not offer the ability to install third-party apps and widgets, storage space for storing music and images, or Wi-Fi connectivity.
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