The OnePlus Watch is official – and there’s big surprises in store
The OnePlus Watch has been announced and here’s the shock – it doesn’t run Wear OS at all.
The OnePlus Watch, which is set to go on sale globally for just $159/£149, runs on a proprietary OS – but punches upwards with a spec sheet that will have it fighting out with the big names of wearables.
It’s an impressive set of features that immediately puts the OnePlus Watch in the same conversation as the Xiaomi Mi Watch, Amazfit GTS 2 and Huawei Watch GT 2e.
Quick look
- 2 week battery life
- Stainless steel design
- 110 tracked sports
- Proprietary OS
OnePlus Watch specs
The circular design comes in a 46mm stainless steel case that’s available in two colors (black and silver) – so it’s certainly a fair chunk of watch and leaning to the male market. That case houses a 1.39-inch AMOLED screen, with a 326 pixel-per-inch resolution which stacks up pretty well against the competition.
The heart rate monitor is also capable of blood oxygen monitoring, and it will also keep tabs on stress levels using heart rare variability tracking.
It passes the first test of a good smartwatch, featuring built-in GPS and 110 workout profiles for pretty much any sporting pursuit. It will also auto-detect activity
Swimming is supported with IP68 water resistance, and it will track SWOLF (stroke efficiency) as well as other distance and lengths metrics in the pool.
On board is 4GB of storage and you can control a OnePlus TV from the wrist, if you have such technology in your home.
Inside is a massive 420mAh battery that can deliver two weeks of battery life.
Fast charging is a notable feature, with a 20 minute charge giving enough battery life for a week. Just five minutes on the charger will get you through a whole day, and this makes battery life one of the key stories of the OnePlus.
And that must explain the decision not to use Wear OS. In an interview at the end of 2020, Pete Lau, OnePlus CEO, said the company was working with Google to improve Wear OS.
This led us, and many others, to hope that Wear OS was heading to the OnePlus Watch with substantial changes.
We’re not quite sure when the OnePlus Watch is set to launch but it won’t be long – we’ll update this story with more information as we get it.
