Creation
Honor’s maximum premium-looking smartwatch so far – the brand new Honor Watch GS 3 is with us. With its €220/£210 ticket it’s no longer precisely in top class watch territory however it’s no longer an entry-level tool both. The important thing specifications come with a spacious 1.46-inch AMOLED show, the standard checklist of well being and health monitoring in addition to 4GB of onboard garage along a microphone and speaker which means that hands-free calls and native media playback are a move.
Whilst it lacks third-party app toughen and sensible replies to notifications, Honor Watch GS 3 is rated at as much as two weeks of standard use which is far forward of a few top class watches. As well as, Honor is boasting a brand new eight-channel optical sensor for center fee and blood oxygen measurements all coated in a premium-looking casing.
I strapped up a evaluate unit of the watch to my wrist and carried it with me day and night time for over every week. Let’s see how the Honor Watch GS 3 fares in our real-world checking out and if it is price making an allowance for.
Design
Our Honor Watch GS 3 evaluate unit comes with a gold-colored chrome steel casing and brown Nappa leather-based watch strap. The design is truly very similar to a antique timepiece and can surely are compatible in on extra formal events. In spite of the huge 46mm casing, Watch GS 3 measures in at simply 10.5mm and weighs 44 grams – severely spectacular given the huge display screen genuine property.
The 1.43-inch AMOLED at the watch is superb with its sharp 466 x 466 px solution and 326 ppi. The three-D curved glass overlaying the show is a truly great contact and provides to the top class feeling aesthetic. Being an AMOLED panel you additionally get At all times-on Show (AoD) capability which is moderately neat since you’ll be able to at all times test the time and your well being/sports activities metrics relying at the watch face.
The watch feels comfy at the wrist and is solidly constructed. The leather-based strap is an added receive advantages right here regardless that for those who’re no longer a fan you’ll be able to simply trade it up with any 22mm identical band of your liking.
The retail package deal is composed of the watch, a proprietary two-pin magnetic charger and a USB-C to USB-A cable. Watch GS 3 is 50m waterproof (5ATM) and will observe your swims classes regardless that it will be recommended to change as much as a silicone strap ahead of you get within the pool.
Options
Honor Watch GS 3 brings center fee, SpO2, sleep and rigidity monitoring. Honor claims the brand new eight-channel PPG sensor used at the GS 3 will have to ship 97% minimal accuracy for center fee readings along 24/7 blood oxygen measurements. As for the job monitoring facet, you get get admission to to over 100 sports activities modes.
Runs, hikes and motorbike rides get the additional benefit of the dual-band GNSS receiver with toughen for all 5 main international positioning requirements. Not like the Chinese language model of the Watch GS 3, our world variant does no longer toughen NFC for contactless bills which is a drawback.
You’ll be able to obtain notifications from apps, regardless that you’ll be able to simplest respond to incoming calls with a couple of pre-typed replies. Because of its integrated microphone and speaker, Watch GS 3 can take calls out of your paired telephone by the use of Bluetooth. The watch additionally boasts 4GB of native garage (2.2GB to be had) which can be utilized to retailer track at the watch.
You’ll be able to even pair a Bluetooth headset at once with the watch which is perfect for those who don’t wish to lift your telephone with you all the way through workout routines. The vibration motor is somewhat underwhelming right here regardless that that’s most probably because of the restricted house throughout the skinny and light-weight watch profile.
The 1.46” AMOLED display screen comes with auto-brightness functions regardless that you’ll be able to additionally set one of the vital 5 phases of guide brightness all the time. Watch GS 3 pairs by the use of Bluetooth and you wish to have the Honor Well being app which is an Android unique this present day. You get 13 pre-loaded watch types in addition to 11 AoD choices and the Honor Well being app allows you to obtain much more types to fit your wishes. Some watch faces toughen customizable watch headaches and there’s additionally an strategy to create customized watch faces with photographs out of your gallery.
Watch GS 3 additionally boasts an Air Drive and Altimeter readings in addition to a compass. You additionally get upwards of 100 sports activities and job modes together with 12 health classes with step by step voice and animation directions at once at the watch. Those vary from easy stretching workouts to full-blown higher and decrease physique workout routines with in moderation timed workout directions with voice-assisted training.
The Honor Well being significant other app brings a blank design with slightly detailed information for all of the well being and sports activities monitoring metrics you’d want. There are temporarily obtainable playing cards that display you workout historical past, well being readings and different knowledge like steps and energy burned at a look. You’ll be able to additionally get started job monitoring classes at once from the app and tweak watch purposes like settings alarms, shifting track and downloading new watch faces.
Efficiency
Honor Watch GS 3 runs on LiteOS which is a proprietary working machine used on previous Honor and Huawei watches. GS 3 packs an Apollo4 chipset which handles day by day duties decently neatly with none main stutters or lag.The watch interface is lovely simple and simple to make use of. Navigating the interface is completed essentially by the use of swipes regardless that the highest button will at all times take you to the lock display screen. You’ll be able to get up the display screen by the use of a double-tap or from one of the vital two facet buttons.
The highest button takes you to the apps web page whilst the ground one is assigned by means of default to the workout routines app regardless that you’ll be able to remap it to any app in settings. You additionally rise up to 6 app shortcuts subsequent to the house display screen by means of swiping left or proper. The integrated track participant is an engaging contact however shifting tunes to the watch is a gradual procedure finished by the use of the Honor Well being app.
The in-built speaker will get moderately loud which turns out to be useful for those who plan to make use of the GS 3 for taking calls. Microphone high quality is ok regardless that no longer at the point of your smartphone or a tight pair of TWS earbuds. Nonetheless, it’s great to have the ability to take calls for your watch if you wish to have to.
Well being monitoring at the Watch GS 3 advantages from the brand new eight-channel PPG center fee sensor with frequency monitoring and an extra AI center fee set of rules. Honor’s webpage claims center fee accuracy is over 97% and in my checking out, I discovered center fee readings consistent with the ones on my non-public Xiaomi Mi Band 5.
SpO2 readings are related to another smartwatch/band – which means they’re a excellent level of reference regardless that on no account scientific grade. In an immediate comparability with a pulse oximeter, Honor Watch GS 3 confirmed effects that numerous between 95-100% in comparison to the oximeter’s 93-95% values. I additionally needed to restart the guide SpO2 measurements at the watch a number of instances as I used to be “dressed in the watch mistaken”.
You don’t get get admission to to detailed well being metrics at the watch at once like you’ll be able to on any other watches. If you wish to test your detailed sleep metrics or examine weekly information, you’ll wish to head over to the Honor Well being app for your telephone. Sleep monitoring effects confirmed correct fall asleep and wake-up instances and in addition be offering a snooze breakdown by means of class with fast eye motion (REM) integrated.
Process monitoring appeared consistent with different smartwatches and smartbands we’ve examined. Working information presentations you the standard metrics like moderate tempo, velocity and stride frequency along the guts fee and energy burned metrics. Should you allow GPS monitoring you’ll additionally get your runs mapped slightly appropriately regardless that your smartphone’s receiver is more likely to provide you with extra correct readings. The GPS sensor at the watch took about 10 seconds to fasten my location.
I discovered the health direction choices moderately helpful. You get twelve various varieties of workout routines starting from 3-minute stretching classes to full-body workout routines all with audio and workout shape steering. Those guided workout routines are a good way to change up your workout regimen or end up a exercise with a step by step stretching consultation.
Battery Lifestyles
Honor Watch has a 451 mAh battery cellular rated at 14 days of standard utilization and 30 hours of staying power with GPS became on. All the way through my checking out I used the watch with guide brightness set at point 3, AoD became on, 24/7 center fee, SpO2, sleep and rigidity measurements along notifications syncing and 3 to 4 workout routines a week. With those utilization patterns, I controlled to squeeze 4 days of utilization.
With lighter use, it’s worthwhile to get to the two-week claims however that will require sacrificing options and restricting the watch’s possible. A complete rate takes simply over an hour. The 5W charger too can get you an afternoon’s price of energy from a handy guide a rough five-minute rate.
Verdict
Honor Watch GS 3 is a flexible smartwatch with a comfy and trendy design and numerous helpful sports activities and well being monitoring options. You get dependable metrics due to the up to date optical PPG sensor with an extended checklist of actions to choose between together with voice-guided workout routines with various difficulties to fit the wishes of each amateur and complex customers.
The spacious 1.43-inch AMOLED show comes with a tight quantity of watch faces in addition to AoD capability and auto-brightness. The device revel in at the watch is easy for essentially the most phase regardless that the absence of an iOS significant other app is a letdown in the case of compatibility.
Having an onboard speaker and microphone in addition to standalone GPS provides you with the strategy to depart your telephone for your pocket or ditch it totally all the way through your workout routines. The voice-guided workout routines and their animations are moderately the software to have for your wrist and will lend a hand even the extra green customers into a normal exercise regime. Battery existence is first rate, regardless that for those who activate all of the complex options and take calls at the watch you’ll must recharge each 3 to 4 days.
The loss of third-party apps, NFC and the choice to answer notifications are the one downsides right here regardless that watches that provide those purposes include upper worth tags. Honor Watch GS 3 nails the important thing pillars of a super smartwatch and delivers it in a trendy shape issue that may be simply tailored due to the detachable 22mm watch strap. If you’re available in the market for a brand new smartwatch within the €220/£210 vary then the Honor Watch GS 3 is price searching into.
