Due to its unique combination of fashion, utility, and ease, smartwatches have grown in popularity within the wearable technology industry. One such gadget that claims to succeed in these areas is the OnePlus Watch 2. We’ll look more closely at the features of the OnePlus Watch 2 Review.
OnePlus Watch 2 Review: Display
Moving on, the Watch 2 has a 1.43-inch 466×466 AMOLED display. The panel refreshes at 60Hz and claims a high brightness mode of 1000 nits. The display has vibrant and slightly oversaturated colors, inky blacks, and excellent viewing angles, making it easy to see at a glance. Under direct sunlight, the display is not as bright as I would like, making certain watch faces and complications difficult to see. The auto-brightness feature works well indoors, but it does not brighten the display any more than you can manually under extreme outdoor lighting conditions. Even so, many of the brighter watch faces, as well as the high-contrast menus, remain readable.
OnePlus Watch 2 Review: Design
If the OnePlus Watch 2 were smaller, I would appreciate its design more. The stainless steel casing exudes elegance, especially when paired with the gray band I’ve been using. Although it’s somewhat thick, it’s not the bulkiest watch I’ve worn.
However, the size of this watch is a sticking point for me. It takes up nearly the entire width of my wrist and stands out prominently, which could be a positive if you prefer a bold statement piece. I prefer watches that are more discreet and refined, qualities that the OnePlus Watch 2 lacks.
The OnePlus Watch 2 isn’t the only oversized watch I’ve encountered; Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 6 Classic shares a similar size and feels equally cumbersome on my wrist. Fortunately, Samsung offers the standard Galaxy Watch 6 in a smaller 40-millimeter size, providing a more suitable alternative.
Connectivity
The Watch 2 has support for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, NFC, and GPS in terms of connectivity. Unlike the original OnePlus Watch, where the GPS would frequently take several minutes to establish a connection, the Watch 2’s GPS was dependable. However, since Google Pay isn’t accessible in places like India, the NFC functionality could not be tested.
Out of the 32GB of internal storage on the watch, about 23GB could be used. This should enable you to download a large amount of audio material in a respectable quality to the watch. You can then listen to it by pairing your wireless earbuds with the watch directly. You can only access data via Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, as cellular connectivity is not an option.
Battery and Charging
The novel strategy proved effective. I never experienced any lag with the Watch 2. Its AMOLED touchscreen responds quickly, and during our testing, its battery life outlasted that of any other Android wristwatch on the market. In the default smart mode, which alternates between the operating systems, OnePlus claims that the 500mAh battery will power the watch for up to 100 hours on a charge. With heavy use, including GPS, it promises 48 hours; in power-saving mode, which turns off Wear OS, it promises 12 days.
With the watch mostly set to its default settings (I enabled blood oxygen saturation readings while sleeping but kept the display in raise-to-wake mode rather than always on), I finally plugged in the OnePlus after 103 hours, when the battery was at 2%. The test consisted of a 25-minute outdoor run with GPS and an hour-long indoor workout in which the smartwatch tracked my activity on three different gym machines. I manually turned off battery saver mode, which was activated when the watch reached 10% after approximately 99 hours of testing.
Sleep and activity tracking with the OnePlus Watch 2
The OnePlus Watch 2 occupies an intriguing space when it comes to activity, sleep, and health tracking. It is not as feature-rich as a high-end watch, but it still has more to offer than a cheap smartwatch. As an example: It has sensors for monitoring blood oxygen levels, dual-frequency GPS for more accurate location tracking (a feature only available on the Ultra model in Apple’s lineup), and the ability to measure metrics such as possible breathing disruptions during sleep.
I tracked a quick stroll through a subway station, where reception is usually spottier, to test the dual-frequency GPS. The OnePlus Watch 2 successfully recorded my quick walk and the results were shown on a map, but the Pixel Watch 2 also did the same thing. To find out if the OnePlus Watch 2’s dual-frequency GPS beats out other watches, I’ll have to test it in various conditions.
However, some features I would expect to see in a watch at this price point, like fall detection and period tracking, are absent from the OnePlus Watch 2. Moreover, it is devoid of temperature sensing, a feature that wearables have started to include more recently. Additionally, there isn’t an option to take an ECG, so it might not be a good fit for people who want a smartwatch primarily for monitoring their cardiac health more closely.
Conclusion
The OnePlus Watch 2 Review, characterized by a bright display and dependable performance, is designed to combine style and functionality. Despite its elegance, its subtle design may not appeal to everyone. Although there are many options for connection, certain health-tracking features are noticeably absent. Nevertheless, it is acknowledged for its outstanding battery life and all-around usability, making it a competitive choice in its class.
