The Apple Watch Series 4 is, according to some, arguably the best smartwatch available in the current market. It’s the highest rated smartwatch by a number of tech magazines and websites to date. However, it still doesn’t mean that everyone’s going crazy for it. There are people who aren’t on board with all things Apple and are on the look-out for an alternative. And if you’re one of them, you’ll be glad to know that there are plenty of great watches to choose from. Here are some of the best watches for different needs.
Four Apple Watch alternatives
Samsung Galaxy Watch – Best for features
The latest Samsung flagship is second to none when it comes to features. Running Tizen OS, the watch comes in two different sizes and features Samsung’s signature rotating bezel, NFC, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. The watch also boasts waterproofing down to 5 ATM and a MIL-STD-810G durability rating. The Galaxy Watch comes with 4GB of internal memory and boasts LTE support. Sensors on board include HRM, accelerometer, gyro, barometer and an ambient light sensor.
The Galaxy Watch compares pretty well against the Apple Watch Series 4, and has some attributes to even beat the Apple flagship. The watch is available in Midnight Black, Rose Gold and Silver color options at a starting price of $329.99.
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Fitbit Charge 3 – Best for activity tracking
If you’re looking for a wearable that’s capable of tracking your daily activities while being able to show some of your smartphone notifications on your wrist, you don’t need to look beyond Fitbit Charge 3. It is water resistant and is capable of tracking your steps, distance, calories burned, sleep cycles, and much more. Its companion app further provides you with a much detailed view of your activity stats.
So basically, when it comes to activity tracking, Fitbit Charge 3 can do almost everything the above two Apple and Samsung flagships can. Furthermore, it also offers female health tracking, allowing female users to keep tabs on the menstrual cycle. It boasts a battery life of up to 7 days and supports Fitbit Pay for mobile payments. And the best part, it costs only $169.95.
Related story: Samsung Gear Fit2 Pro vs. Fitbit Charge 3: Which fitness tracker suits your needs
TicWatch Pro – Best Wear OS smartwatch
TicWatch Pro is a Wear OS-powered smartwatch by Chinese firm Mobvoi. It sports a 1.39-inch dual AMOLED and FSTN LCD display, and has a IP68 ingress rating for dust and water resistance. The watch houses a 415mAh battery, with a life of 2-5 days on smart mode, but as high as 30 days on essential mode. It packs the basic fitness features such as HRM, steps counter, calories counter, speed & cadence monitor, along with NFC and GPS.
Since the watch is powered-by Wear OS, you get Google Assistant on board for voice control. Furthermore, Google is toiling hard to improve Wear OS, and we might see even more features in days to come. The TicWatch Pro currently costs $249.99.
Related story: Samsung Galaxy Watch vs TicWatch Pro: Which watch suits your needs?
Amazfit Verge – best on budget
The Amazfit Verge by Huami is the best examples of a “small giant,” where small refers to its cost. Packing an impressive list of specs, such as 1.3-inch AMOLED display with Gorilla Glass 3 protection, IP68 rating, GPS and a battery life of up to five days, the watch is powered by a dual-core processor and 512MB of RAM.
Amazfit Verge runs on Huami’s own custom OS and has a built-in Xiao AI voice assistant. The watch also supports NFC for mobile payments via AliPay and costs only $115.
