Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro review

‘Professional’ branding has occupied the smartphone area for a couple of years at this level, however it’s far much less prevalent within the smartwatch market. Huawei is one in every of solely a handful of big-name wearable makers to supply up ‘Professional’ branded timepieces, with the primary such providing in its Watch GT collection arriving again in 2020.

Quick-forward 18 months and the newest entry – or fairly entries – within the collection are right here to proceed the strategy laid out by the Watch GT 2 Professional, specifically of their use of latest design aesthetics, enhanced by premium supplies.

The obvious distinction between the earlier Professional and this technology is that there at the moment are two variants to decide on between, providing extra selection from what’s – in all probability now greater than ever earlier than – one in every of Huawei’s most essential shopper product classes on the worldwide stage.

Design and construct

• 46mm titanium physique or 43mm ceramic physique
• Dive-proof as much as 3ATM
• Consumer-replaceable bands

The Watch GT 2 Professional got here in a single 46mm casing dimension, however with the GT 3 Professional collection, as with the usual GT 3 line, you now have the choice of two sizes to decide on between. Each GT 3 Professional fashions are a fraction bigger than their vanilla counterparts however the primary differentiator isn’t dimension, it’s supplies.

2020’s GT 2 Professional traded a stainless-steel casing for a titanium one and the bigger 46mm (46.6mm) GT 3 Professional follows go well with. In reality, the design of the 46mm mannequin is clearly knowledgeable by its predecessor, with the primary distinction being the shrouded lugs that angle away sharply from the flat entrance, at about 45°. It’s a definite sufficient adaptation that units the 46mm GT 3 Professional other than each its predecessor and the vast majority of the opposite smartwatches on the market, with out feeling over-engineered.

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Whereas the titanium-bodied GT 3 Professional is a pure evolution of the earlier Professional-branded Watch GT, the smaller 43mm entry is an thrilling new addition that comes clad in a fabric that, within the context of the trade, is reserved virtually solely for the posh watch market: ceramic.

The unusual caveat to the GT 3 Professional as a pair of timepieces is that your most popular materials can also be tied to casing dimension. As such, for these uncertain whether or not the Huawei Watch GT 3 Professional Titanium Version or the Watch GT 3 Professional Ceramic Version is the way in which to go, be sure you’re comfy with the design and materials at work at the beginning, earlier than shopping for.

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There’s no denying that each variants of the GT 3 Professional really feel somewhat particular in-hand. Not solely do they each supply distinct styling however the usage of titanium and ceramic throughout each fashions additionally comes with a couple of extra advantages: these supplies are markedly more durable sporting in comparison with chrome steel, hypoallergenic, corrosion-resistant, and impressively light-weight.

On this explicit occasion, each GT 3 Professionals are somewhat heavier than their vanilla siblings however neither feels significantly cumbersome or uncomfortable to put on.

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At a look, the end of the Ceramic Version (which solely is available in white) could possibly be mistaken for shiny plastic however boasts a singular lustre when held in opposition to the sunshine, to not point out polished ceramic is considerably extra proof against scratches and scrapes in comparison with plastic (though it’s liable to chipping and cracking if not taken care of).

Whereas the type of the Titanium Version seems like a dressed up normal 46mm GT 3, the ceramic mannequin sports activities a markedly totally different design in comparison with the 42mm GT 3, ditching the curved-edge cowl glass for a flat entrance accompanied by a definite seashell patterned bezel, rendered in gold or silver, relying on the strap you go for at buy. That steel accent additionally extends to the rotating crown and button, discovered on the proper facet of the watch’s physique too.

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Talking of straps, there are two variations of the Ceramic Version, one with a white leather-based strap (the place the casing options silver accents) and one with a ceramic hyperlink strap, sporting a chic butterfly clasp and (together with the casing) gold accents.

As for the Titantium Version, there are three strap choices to decide on between: black fluoroelastomer, gray leather-based, or a titanium hyperlink strap. In contrast to the Ceramic Version, the place a device is included in-box, each the strap and the person hyperlinks on the titanium hyperlink band supply tool-less adjustment, with spring-loaded pins which are designed to make the act of eradicating or including hyperlinks simpler. Whereas it’s easier, the method continues to be tough, with shorter nails making the method significantly difficult.

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Just like the final Professional, sapphire crystal protects the show and a ceramic again additionally options throughout each variations of the GT 3 Professional, with the underlying {hardware} providing comparable sturdiness to the usual mannequin. Huawei has, nonetheless, upgraded the road’s water resistance, making these considerably distinctive within the smartwatch area by being dive-proof as much as 30m.

Show and audio

• Round AMOLED show with 326ppi
• Dynamic watch faces for day & evening
• Built-in microphone & speaker

Behind that impressively resilient sapphire crystal lies both a 1.43in or 1.32in round AMOLED show (relying on casing dimension), with the identical 326ppi pixel density as the previous couple of generations of Huawei smartwatch (throughout each the GT collection and numbered entries just like the Watch 3), in addition to rivals just like the Apple Watch.

It’s a splendidly vibrant, vibrant and constantly responsive show that’s simple to see and comes paired with a smattering of customisable controls. It encompasses a well-timed tilt-to-wake setup by default (which is nice, as there’s no possibility to regulate sensitivity anyway) in addition to controls for brightness (together with auto-brightness), sleep, and screen-on occasions.

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Huawei has made a concerted effort to tailor the plethora of watch faces included on the GT 3 Professional to characteristic devoted always-on show alternates that also supply an analogous model and structure to their normal look, a stage of consideration to element that different smartwatch makers ought to pay attention to.

A number of the watch faces additionally assist customisable problems for metrics like battery life, coronary heart charge, and climate, with the UI additionally altering you to which watch faces may draw extra energy than others, which is a small however helpful consideration that, once more, can be good to have obtainable on rival wearables.

Just like the GT 3 line, the GT 3 Professional additionally options an built-in speaker and microphone, with the previous serving up surprisingly clear sound that may be heard over common din (akin to highway noise), making it usable for listening to progress updates throughout exercises whereas out working, for instance.

With onboard storage facilitating offline music playback, you too can play tunes via the GT 3 Professional’s speaker they usually don’t sound horrible however it’s removed from the best option to get pleasure from tunes or podcasts, so Bluetooth earbuds are in all probability the sensible plan of action.

As for the microphone, it’s primarily used for on-wrist calls or, for those who’re paired to a Huawei smartphone particularly, interplay with the person expertise’s assistant Celia. High quality is once more practical (offered it’s not too noisy within the background) and will solely be used in case your telephone is out of attain.

Software program and options

• HarmonyOS
• UI borrows from Put on OS and watchOS
• Diversified notification quick-action assist

Operating on Huawei’s personal HarmonyOS 2.1, the Watch GT 3 Professional affords a virtually similar person expertise to the opposite GT 3 watches, together with the corporate’s first HarmonyOS watch, the Huawei Watch 3.

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Concord’s wearable guise borrows from comparable platforms, like Google’s Put on OS, with swiping down, left, up, and proper summoning fast settings, widgets, notifications, and the watch’s assistant, respectively. In the meantime, by default, urgent the rotating crown brings up a decidedly watchOS-like apps grid (though a listing view can also be obtainable).

Whereas it makes for a typically pleasnt and wealthy expertise general, there are some quirks to pay attention to, like inconsistent fast actions on notifications, akin to conversations from varied totally different social apps you’ll have. In the meantime the voice assistant solely capabilities if in case you have the GT 3 Professional paired as much as a suitable Huawei telephone, making its ever-present place to the left of the primary watch face somewhat annoying for those who’ve paired it to a different producer’s Android telephone, or an iPhone.

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The GT’s line’s standing beneath the Watch 3 implies that though the Professional collection affords a few of the most premium {hardware} from Huawei’s present smartwatch portfolio, top-tier options like its on-wrist AppGallery app retailer and eSIM performance (for phone-free calls and information utilization) aren’t a part of the equation right here.

Health and monitoring

• Tracks 100+ sport modes
• New free-dive monitoring
• ECG & NFC are market particular

Health is the place the GT line locations its focus, with a well-known line-up of sport-centric options as discovered on the vanilla Watch GT 3. The GT 3 Professional is provided to trace all the things out of your steps to your sleep (together with sleep levels like REM), with the likes of coronary heart charge, stress, blood oxygen and pores and skin temperature too.

In some markets (specifically Huawei’s homeland of China) ECG performance can also be on the desk (together with NFC), nonetheless approval from native medical our bodies is required for this characteristic to be enabled in every single place the GT 3 Professional has launched (suggesting the performance could possibly be ‘unlocked’ in markets the place it isn’t presently obtainable had been Huawei to hunt the related approval).

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Pair all this with an improved TruSeen 5.0+ sensor for higher accuracy when logging metrics like SpO2 and the GT 3 Professional affords a few of the most complete monitoring of any smartwatch presently on the market.

Through the companion Huawei Well being app, that information comes dressed with extra perception too. Sleep information, for instance, is complemented by suggestions on enhance your habits for extra constructive outcomes (or just to let you know you’re already heading in the right direction).

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Together with the upgraded hardiness of this newest Professional collection, Huawei has additionally added to the present 100+ sport modes that the GT 3 line already provided by the use of dive monitoring that may log attributes like dive depth and curve; increasing on an already spectacular assortment of trackable actions.

The place Huawei hasn’t fairly ventured with any of its wearables is in the direction of the realm of supplementary exercise information and perception, akin to dietary consumption, one thing usually discovered on extra superior multisport watches from manufacturers like Polar.

Efficiency and battery

• Responsive person expertise
• Handy, fast charging
• Robust longevity

Given the GT collection’ marginally decrease standing in comparison with the likes of the Watch 3, I used to be anticipating middling efficiency from the person expertise, particularly as that was what the corporate’s earlier Lite OS-powered watches usually doled out.

In follow, the GT 3 Professional proves pleasantly snappy, with easy UI animations little doubt serving to the watch stay clean and aware of a level approaching premium smartwatch market leaders just like the Apple Watch Collection 7 and Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 household.

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Interplay through the touchscreen, rotating crown, and facet button seldom proved problematic, with solely the occasional delay or stutter as I moved across the UI.

As for battery life, the 2 totally different casing and show sizes lead to differing battery longevity. Huawei quotes as much as 7 days of ‘typical’ utilization from the 43mm Ceramic Version and as much as 14 days from the 46mm titanium mannequin and in follow, that proved proper on the cash, the place earlier Huawei watches have usually fallen a day or so in need of the corporate’s claims.

Even with half-hour of GPS-based monitoring a day, the 46mm Titanium Version ought to nonetheless serve up eight days of what Huawei calls ‘heavy use’, which is spectacular, to say the least.

When you’re new to wearables, small modifications in utilization – like tweaking display brightness or timeout, enabling GPS whereas going for a run, or turning fixed coronary heart charge monitoring on or off – can all have sizeable impacts on a watches longevity and that’s simply as true right here. Nonetheless, Huawei has discovered an excellent stability of health options, software program fluidity and battery life that’s tough to search out elsewhere.

Recharging the Ceramic mannequin introduced it to 75% cost in simply half-hour, with a full cost in beneath an hour, whereas the Titanium mannequin takes a short time longer. Charging takes place through a well-known magnetically attachable wi-fi charging puck that attaches to the watch’s ceramic again in any orientation.

Charging is, for essentially the most half, painless, though the Ceramic Version did tend to complain about needing the again of the watch to be cleaned to permit for charging consistency, even when the watch was field contemporary.

Value and availability

Each fashions are available for purchase direct from Huawei’s web site (Titanium Version/Ceramic Version), with some areas additionally providing availability via native retailers, akin to Amazon (Titanium Version/Ceramic Version) and Currys (Titanium Edition/Ceramic Edition) within the UK.

Maybe probably the most divisive features of the Watch GT 3 Professional is its value. For a begin, not like the usual GT 3, the ceramic bodywork of the smaller 43mm Professional renders it dearer than its bigger titanium-clad counterpart, whereas the selection of strap that you simply pair together with your most popular GT 3 Professional can up the fee much more.

Titanium mannequin pricing:

• Huawei Watch GT 3 Professional Titanium Version (46mm) w/ fluoroelastomer strap: €369/£299
• Huawei Watch GT 3 Professional Titanium Version (46mm) w/ leather-based strap: €369/£299
• Huawei Watch GT 3 Professional Titanium Version (46mm) w/ titanium strap: €499/£429

Ceramic mannequin pricing:

• Huawei Watch GT 3 Professional Ceramic Version (43mm) w/ leather-based strap: €499/£429
• Huawei Watch GT 3 Professional Ceramic Version (43mm) w/ ceramic strap: €599 (or €699 in some areas)/£499

In each instances, the hyperlink strap of every mannequin’s respective signature materials makes for the priciest pairing, whereas the black fluoroelastomer strap obtainable with the 46mm Titanium Version is among the many most inexpensive choices within the vary (and coincidentally the best choice for individuals who need to work out whereas sporting their GT 3 Professional).

The silver lining for these postpone by the worth is that Huawei doesn’t use a proprietary strap design like Apple, so whilst you can go for any of the corporate’s personal EasyFit 2 bands, you’re not restricted to them.

Take a look at our greatest smartwatch roundup to see what the GT 3 Professional line is up in opposition to.

Verdict

When it comes all the way down to it, virtually all the things that makes the Huawei Watch GT 3 such an achieved pair of smartwatches can also be true with their Professional-branded siblings.

The array of metrics these wearables can monitor and the first-party performance afforded to that information is wealthy and assorted, whereas battery life and efficiency stroll a cautious line that guarantee a powerful stability.

Certain, HarmonyOS has its quirks and a few of the extra nuanced performance of those watches stays walled behind Huawei exclusivity however the underlying expertise is arguably sensible, albeit acquainted.

Contemplating the extent of performance on supply the GT 3 Professional line is dear, however there simply aren’t many options prepared to toy with such luxurious supplies, which means there’s little else on the market to select from.

The Huawei Watch GT 3 Professional affords itself as much as those that need luxurious and connectivity of their timepieces, with out having to fork our 4 figures for the closest different in entries like Hublot’s Large Bang E or the most recent Tag Heuer Related. Even at its costliest, the Ceramic Version undercuts Apple’s top-tier titanium-bodied different, making it best for iPhone customers who favour Huawei’s round stylings over Apple’s squircles.