Huawei Watch Fit 3 test completed - no comments, good watch

While testing the latest Huawei Pura 70 Pro phone, I also played around with their latest sports accessory – the Huawei Watch Fit 3.

It's refreshing that I don't have to delve into how the US blockade affects the performance of a Huawei device. The dispute with America does not play a significant role in the watch, except for contactless payments, which is a feature that many people will not miss. Instead, I can only focus on how the watch works, which features are good, which ones need some work, how it looks, how comfortable it is to wear, etc.

Huawei Watch Fit 3 price in Slovenia?

• Huawei Watch Fit 3: €169 (white, pink, green and black nylon strap)
• Huawei Watch Fit 3: €189 (white leather)

Until June 3rd, you also get FreeBuds SE 2 headphones with your purchase.

Huawei Watch Fit 3 - only where did they draw inspiration for the design

The clock is square or round, at least in 99 % cases. Every now and then an exception sneaks in, such as the Nubia Alpha, where the screen wraps around the wrist, or a specialty such as the Huawei Watch GT Cyber, where the entire frame can be changed, but the screen itself is still round. Or the Huawei Watch Buds, which hides the headphones. The screen is still round. Circle or square, there is no other.

Apple does not own the square shape, but it is undoubtedly best known for it. And when you see a square watch, the first thing you think of is the Apple Watch, just as we think of the iPhone when we see flatter phones. I don't think this is controversial, it can only be a compliment to the Huawei Watch Fit 3, to which this comparison adds a bit of prestige.

Speaking of which, Apple watches could learn a lot from Huawei's. First, how to make a watch that lasts more than a day of use, and how the watch can work on Android and iOS phones. And that it is not necessary to shell out several hundreds for this. It sounds like I'm biased towards Apple, but I'm far from it. Apple makes good, high-quality products, but I'm surprised that, for example, with watches, this basic hygiene standard is not taken care of. Make no mistake, Apple is far from the only manufacturer with this problem. Samsung is also a good example.

Before I digress, let's go back to the Huawei Watch Fit 3. The case is made of matte aluminum, which is very pleasant to the touch, it also looks very elegant, and does not irritate the skin when worn. My test version had a gray nylon strap, leather is also available. According to my information, since Huawei uses its own strap attachment system, you will have trouble finding third-party straps. However, I don't think this will be necessary for most, as Huawei has offered quite a few choices.

On the right side, there is a rotating crown that can be used to move around the screen in addition to the classic finger controls. Below it is an additional function button that serves as a quick shortcut to the selected function. By default, it takes you to the exercise list, but you can choose any other function.

The screen (1.8 inches) is extremely bright (up to 1500 nits), the panel is OLED, which is always smooth. I didn't notice any stuttering, the menus slid nicely, which means that a sufficiently powerful processor is installed. Underneath the surface is the HarmonyOS operating system.

Works well, comfortable wear, more than too many functions, even quite a few unnecessary ones

The Huawei Watch Fit 3 has almost all the sensors and health features the average user needs. True, it does not have an EKG, which is to be expected for this price, but in this case, the question of who really needs it also applies. But it has a built-in GPS and, at least in this respect, you don't have to rely on a connection with your phone. The GPS was quite accurate, sometimes there was a small deviation, but nothing shocking.

The watch is quite light (26g), the nylon strap was very comfortable, although it doesn't complement the rest of the more sophisticated look of the watch. I think the leather strap is a better choice, although a bit more expensive.

When I see that the smartwatch supports several hundred (sports and other) activities, it is clear to me that this is a lot of ballast. When you browse among exercises, supported sports, dances and similar activities, you come across such as E-sport and Autosport. With both, I wonder what exactly it measures and how it then calculates the energy used. I turned on eSports while playing Apex Legends, and aside from being able to track my heart rate, I didn't see any added value. Even with more mundane sports activities, for example lifting weights, I've been wondering for a long time how to tell when I'm doing squats and when I'm benching.

For classic exercises (walking, running, cycling...) the measurements are accurate, the deviations may be a maximum of 5-10 %. It also measures blood oxygen saturation, and it also works overtime at night to measure sleep and the quality of breathing during sleep. The number of times I woke up during the night was a good measure. It's hard to say about the level of deep, light and REM sleep, but they work reliably. But the final reports are strange, where despite the average results and the fact that I wake up up to 6 times a night, I get a relatively positive rating. I've already noticed this with my Huawei Watch GT Runner and also with some others I've tested so far.

I like the layout of the menus on the screen, which are well transparent and basically you only need the application in rare cases. At least to me, that's a sign of a good user experience. The Huawei Health application is available on Huawei phones in the AppGallery store, on other Android phones you will have to download it from their official website or in other stores not controlled by Google.

The battery (400 mAh) is exceptional. An hour of exercise per day, if possible with GPS on, researching and testing all functions... with this use the watch lasts about 7-8 days. If you are more moderate, you can extend the use for a day or so, or shorten it if you are more active. It is charged via a special Huawei magnetic connector, so wireless charging is no longer required.

The operating system is as I am used to it. Huawei store does not offer many useful applications, contactless payment is not possible in our region. Notifications come up-to-date, and we can only respond to them with pre-set answers or smileys.

An underrated feature is the ability to upload your own music. Connect headphones to the watch, leave the phone at home and play music through the watch. A much better solution than shoving your phone in your pockets or buying a phone holder. Unfortunately, I have no information on how much space is available. I uploaded about 20 songs and didn't run out of space. I suspect around 1GB is available, maybe even more.

There are enough dials, quite a few unique ones that further brighten up the look of the watch.

That being said, the Huawei Watch Fit 3 works with both Android and iOS devices. However, I have not been able to check whether the functionality is possibly limited on an Apple device. From what I've found online from Watch Fit 2 users, the experience is the same as on Android.

Huawei Watch Fit 3 is a beautiful, good and cheap watch

For a good €150, I have nothing to complain about the Huawei Watch Fit 3. Not everything is covered in flowers, but even what is missing (contactless payment, useless apps in the store), many, including me, will not even miss.

Its closest competition is actually its predecessor, the Huawei Watch Fit 2. I haven't tested it, but on paper there are very few differences between them (larger screen, thinner case, more refined sensors...). If you can find it for around €90, for example, you can't go wrong with it either.