The Huawei Watch GT 4 is the latest addition to Huawei’s popular Watch GT series of smartwatches. It was released in October 2023 and I have been using this watch for about a month now. This is also my first smartwatch, so I’m going to let you know what I think about it.
What’s in the box?
You get the watch, a charging cradle (including the charging cable), Quick Start guide, safety information and a warranty card.
Design and build quality
The Huawei Watch GT 4 has a sleek and modern design. It features a circular AMOLED display with a thin bezel and a stainless steel frame. The watch is available in two sizes: 46mm and 41mm. The former is obviously geared towards men, while the latter is designed for the ladies.
It also comes in variety of colours and finishes, including black, silver, gold, and white. It also comes with a variety of strap options, including leather, silicone, and metal. The one that I have is the black 46mm with a standard 22mm Fluoroelastomer strap.
If you don’t like the strap that comes with it, there are plenty of aftermarket straps that you can easily buy online.
There are tonnes of smartwatches out there, and they all look pretty similar to each other, but not for the Watch GT 4.
Whoever Huawei hired to design these watches, they did a great job. The watch is pretty good-looking with its octagonal design.
The strap is soft and feels comfortable to wear. I have no issue with it even when I’m wearing it the whole day. It’s also easy to remove and change to another strap.
The watch exudes a sense of quality and sturdiness when held, thanks to the use of stainless steel in its construction and it doesn’t feel heavy on my wrist.
The digital crown provides a satisfying haptic response when in use and features an engraved “Huawei Watch GT” logo, adding a thoughtful detail to the design.
Additionally, the watch boasts dust and waterproof capabilities, holding an IP68 rating, and Huawei claims that it can withstand water pressure of up to 5 ATM (50 metres).
Display
The Huawei Watch GT 4 has a 1.43-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 466 x 466 pixels. The display is sharp and bright, and it’s easy to see in direct sunlight.
The display also has a wide viewing angle, so you can easily see the screen from any angle and you have the option to enable an always-on display in the settings.
One of the best things about the display is that it’s very responsive to touch. Apps load quickly and swiping through menus is smooth and fluid.
Huawei didn’t say what the display is made out of, but mine is still scratch-free after I have been using it for almost a month, so it seems pretty durable.
Features
The Huawei Watch GT 4 is a pretty useful smartwatch with a lot to offer. To get the most out of it, you need to install the Huawei Health app, which is available for Android and iOS. I’m using my OnePlus 10T with this watch.
You can scan the QR code on the back of the packaging, and it will lead you straight to the download page. For some reason, it led me to download a beta version of the app instead of the stable version.
The Huawei Health app is a companion app for Huawei wearables, including the Huawei Watch GT 4. The app allows you to view and manage your fitness and health data, as well as customise your watch settings.
The watch comes with Huawei’s TruSeen 5.5+ system that monitors heart rate, SpO2, sleep, and stress. It can also track periods, which can be very useful for the ladies.
The Watch GT 4 boasts support for more than 100 diverse workout modes, ranging from conventional activities like walking, running, cycling, and swimming, to less common options like pilates, fencing, plaza dancing, and even eSports.
There are plenty of watch faces to choose from, if you are not willing to pay for it, there are many free options too.
You can even download some limited number of apps onto the watch such as camera assistant, calculator, calendar, and etc.
The watch has a built-in speaker, and it can get quite loud, so remember to mute the watch before you go for a workout, or else the workout notifications will bring you unwanted attention.
Performance
The Huawei Watch GT 4 is powered by HarmonyOS 4.0, Huawei’s own operating system for wearables. HarmonyOS 4.0 is a smooth and fluid operating system that is easy to use.
The company didn’t specify what processor the watch is using, but it’s fast and responsive. Apps load quickly and the watch is able to handle multiple tasks at the same time with very little lag.
Though the watch offers quite a lot of sports/activities tracking, I mostly only use it for tracking heart rate, heart rhythm, blood oxygen saturation and treadmill walking.
The watch will show everything you need to know while working out, such as your heart rate, how many steps you took, the distance, how many calories you have burned, etc.
The watch will also show you a post-workout report, such as your pace, cadence, average heart rate while working out, etc.
I don’t have other smartwatches to compare the results with, but it works pretty well for me. I have no qualms about the tracking capabilities of this watch.
I didn’t try the sleep tracking as I don’t feel comfortable wearing a watch while sleeping, but Huawei claims it has made significant improvement to it. The smartwatch can now detect waking stages and differentiate between light, deep, and REM sleep.
Battery life
The Huawei Watch GT 4 has excellent battery life. It can last around one week and a half on a single charge on regular use. This includes tracking my fitness activity, receiving notifications, and using the watch to control music playback.
If you use the watch more heavily, you can still expect to get a week of battery life. Take note that opting for the always-on display can lead to a noticeable reduction in battery life.
When using the included charging cradle, the battery can be fully top-upped in slightly over an hour.
Should you buy it?
Overall, the Huawei Watch GT 4 is a capable smartwatch with good performance and a variety of useful features. It’s also affordable, at RM1,099 (for this version), making it a good value for money.
This smartwatch is particularly ideal for active individuals seeking a device that can monitor their exercise routines and health data while also offering a modern, stylish, and visually appealing design that they can wear to work or leisure.
Previously, I wasn’t much of a smartwatch guy, as I preferred traditional watches. But, after I got my hands on this, I must admit that I’m genuinely impressed with the Watch GT 4 and what Huawei has to offer. Now, I’m eagerly anticipating their future innovations in the smartwatch world.
