Slowly but surely smartwatches are becoming commonplace, you see them more and more on wrists. It is still a market that is developing rapidly, which makes you wonder if the time is right for a smartwatch. Or another wearable, such as an activity tracker. We will discuss below why a smartwatch or fitness band can be an interesting purchase for you.
Is a smartwatch interesting?
The rise of the smartwatch has been steady and has not led to a run to store shelves, as was the case with the rise of the smartphone. It’s also not quite a fair comparison, but a deliberate one: because the first smartwatches seemed to move tasks from the smartphone in the pocket to the wearable on the wrist.
nice? Secure. Impressive? Absolute. Indispensable? Far from. There seems to be a challenge in that. What unique features can a smartwatch bring that a smartphone doesn’t?
In this article we make a distinction between the smartwatch and activity tracker / fitness band. The latter is a thin bracelet with a screen, which is mainly aimed at activity measurement. Such a band is also sometimes called a fitness tracker, smart band, sports bracelet, activity tracker or a combination of those words.
We use wearables as an umbrella term for both the smartwatch and the activity tracker.
To your health
For that indispensable functionality, we first look at the fitness trackers, the sports bracelets that made their appearance for the masses since 2015 with the arrival of the first Fitbit Charge. The sports bracelets are of course continuously against the body, which opens a door for sensors such as a heart rate monitor, pedometer, movement meter and more. You can store these sensors in a smartphone, but they are more suitable for equipment that you can wear on the body.
Fitbit was not the first to put such measuring equipment in a band, but it was the first to build in a meter that continuously monitored the heart rate. Competitors such as Samsung, TomTom and Jawbone did not get further than a snapshot at the time. It did not take long before the measurement of bodily functions also made its appearance in the smartwatch.
In the field of health, sleep analysis, (sports) movement measurement, calorie burning and coaching, makers of wearables have therefore made many steps. Are you actively involved in sports and health or are you interested in doing more with this, then a smartwatch or sports bracelet is certainly the obvious choice. But remember: the bands don’t make you healthier or more active. They only make your activities measurable and provide you with tips to actually live a healthier life.
You can actually find these kinds of measurements in every wearable. The question is how accurate you want your measurements to be and what you want to do with this data. Are you looking for the most accurate measurement? Then Garmin and Polar are unbeatable. Apple, Samsung and Fitbit are more likely to opt for accessibility by presenting slightly less accurate data in a clear manner.
Not intended for self-diagnosis
About a year and a half ago we published the article ‘Does a smartwatch help you live a healthier life?’ That question was answered with a resounding ‘yes’. But with a caveat.
Although the wearables coach you to live a more active and healthier life, there are now even wearables available that make heart films. This allows cardiologists to detect possible cardiac arrhythmias. The experts interviewed agreed that they have regularly used heart films from smartwatches.
These are conclusions that only specialists can make. Therefore, if you suspect that you have heart problems, always go to a specialist and do not try to make a self-diagnosis based on your own smartwatch. Of course, this also applies to other health measurements with which wearables will be equipped in the coming years.
Smartwatch as a gadget
All activity and body functions that a wearable measures are extremely interesting. But what if you’re not in the market for that? In such a case, you can mainly see a smartwatch as an extension of your smartphone, which is doing its job more and more independently. For example, you can see notifications from your smartphone or even answer messages from your wrist.
Some smartwatches, such as those from Samsung and Apple, have their own application store with which you – just like with your smartphone – expand the functionality of your device. Think of apps to navigate with, so that you can see or hear from your wrist in which direction you need to go. There are also parking apps that allow you to start or stop the parking meter service, ticket apps that show a scannable barcode for access and much more.
The advantage is that the apps can also work without your smartphone with you, especially if you opt for a smartwatch with e-SIM support. This is a kind of built-in SIM card, so that your smartwatch has its own mobile data connection.
There are especially many smartwatches on the market without an application store. Or without a significant application store. Smartwatches from Huawei, Oppo, Amazfit (part of Xiaomi) and Fitbit cannot be functionally expanded with various apps. Some of these brands have a place where you can get apps from, but these are really just features from the manufacturer itself that you enable or disable.
Samsung joins forces with Google
In terms of functionality, the Apple Watch is miles ahead of the competition. But it’s not that other manufacturers don’t try. Google has an operating system, Wear OS (formerly Android Wear), which other manufacturers such as Fossil and TicWatch can use. But Wear OS wasn’t good enough and app developers left the platform alone.
Samsung is another player that is again miles ahead of Apple in terms of design. Only Samsung also struggles to reach a large audience and its own Tizen operating system is just so-so. In an ultimate effort to hook up and thus also offer an Apple Watch alternative that on android works, Samsung and Google have joined forces. The latest Galaxy Watch 4 now runs on Wear OS and there are rumors that Google is also making its own smartwatch.
This is an interesting development, but one that comes at the expense of existing Galaxy Watch users. After all, they see their platform being scrapped overnight. These older smartwatches do not receive an update to Wear OS.
Contact sports and wearables
Thanks to the body measurement, a smartwatch can help you especially well with coaching to move more and better. That is clear. But keep in mind that not every sport is suitable for a smartwatch.
If you are a swimmer, you can work with most smartwatches these days, with or without flippers. If you participate in a contact sport, it is better to ignore a wearable. In addition, a referee will also ask you to take off your gadget. Not entirely unjustified, of course, because a blow from a smartwatch – accidentally or not – can cause a serious bruise or a lost tooth.
If you really want to measure your contact sport, you can wear a fitness band under a sweatband in some cases, such as football. Other athletes, water polo players for example, have to do without measurement.
Conclusion
The smartwatch experience can be a little disappointing if you’re not interested in the body and performance metrics that are actually present on every device. Although a smartwatch is an interesting gadget, in that case you can seriously question whether it is such a useful purchase. It remains more or less an extension of your smartphone. If you are interested in these measurements, check whether you are fanatical about sports and living a healthy(er) life. If so, then it is best to look at the activity trackers and sports watches.
The smartwatches from Apple and Samsung are the most extensive in terms of functionality: if you want a smart gadget that offers many handy features and excellent measurements, then those are your best choices. An Apple Watch has by far the most to offer functionally, but only works with iPhones. The Galaxy Watch is functional and slightly less advanced in terms of measurements, but in turn has a beautiful design with a round watch screen.
If you are convinced that you want to buy a smartwatch, read our selection guide with the best smartwatches of the moment. There is bound to be something for you!
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