HUAWEI GT 2e – Smart Watch REVIEW

This is a first for us here at we do tech, we are taking a look at the new Huawei watch GT 2e.

Now this is the more fitness focused smart watch,it does have a sporty look to it but still looks elegant as well,but more about the design later.

Inside The Box

Inside The Box you get the watch itself, a type-c to type-a charging cable, the charging dock and the manual.

Face

The face of the GTe2 is a AMOLED HD touch screen with a round design,with two physical buttons on the side that you can access your apps and go to the stopwatch.

The build quality is very premium and feels solid.

It does have Damage-resistant glass, i’m not sure whether it’s gorilla glass or not.

Band

As for the included strap it’s made out of  Fluor elastomer which is somewhat stretchable and a strong design. If you have a lot of arm hair like me, you also don’t have to worry about the band pulling on some hairs, it was perfectly comfortable for me. The strap has a ton of different adjustment levels which will allow it to fit almost any wrist. There are also quite a few bands to choose from which is nice for those trend setters.

Heart rate

Now of course the GT2e has a heart rate tracker it also boasts with a Sp02 tracker. The heart rate is tracked within the app on the watch, you will find a dedicated section that shows the latest, minimum and maximum heart rate for the day. You can also get them in weekly, monthly and yearly increments. The Sp02 tracker is an on watch app that can only be used by sitting still for a few minutes to let it get the reading. The reading isn’t logged in the app either and isn’t used as part of the sleep tracking stats. I’m not sure how accurate it is, but it is nice to have.

Features

The GT2e is packed full of features. The watch has a built in GPS which is a must have in a sports smart watch, its very accurate and the GLONASS satellite support locked on quickly.

All-day fitness tracking is a big offering here, you can swipe across the watch face to see your steps, active minutes and standing progress. It’s not the main focus of the watch although you do get stand reminders when you’ve been sitting too long.

The app doesn’t give as much data as would be expected, however it logs steps, distance, calorie and climbing data over time, but not things like total active minutes, which would have been nice.

There is a stress tracking feature called TruRelax, keep in mind this feature is for android users only. You will need to calibrate the watch first by answering some questions, your stress level will then be scored. You’ll then be able to see how those stress levels based on heart rate variability elevate or drop through the day, you can then go into the app to see longer term trends and average stress level scores. Huawei also says the stress level evaluations have been certified by the Institute of Psychology by the Chinese Academy of Sciences to give it some validity.

Now as a smartwatch the Huawei Watch GT2e does a pretty good job, notifications are easy to read, it can be easily silenced by swiping down from the top and retrieved by swiping up from the bottom. However, notifications are basic, and there’s no answering, quick replying or two-way voice calling from the watch itself.

There’s also no NFC payment feature here, which does put Huawei at a disadvantage compared to the likes of Apple and Samsung.

There’s a variety of watch faces to choose from, with some really nice designs, which was a pleasant surprise. Unfortunately there’s not really any third party apps and services, beyond sharing with Health kit and MyFitnessPal.

Android users can control music from the wrist,  the ability to store and play music from a pair of connected headphones. The music is also managed via the Huawei Health app.

Battery

As for battery life. When I got the watch it was on 95% it lasted me 11 days with casual use. Huawei claims a 14 day battery life, I think when used more for fitness as it was intended you would probably get around 8-10 days. Which is still very good. The charging time from 0% to full was about an hour and a half. Keep in mind that was only through a normal 5V usb port on my laptop, which is really good actually, given that it lasts as long as it does.

How to charge

It charges quite easily, you get a little charging station that snaps to the back of the watch with a magnet, just make sure the copper pins are lined up correctly otherwise you might come back later and be disappointed by a still flat battery. Also keep in mind to always bring it with you when going on holiday as there is no other way to charge the GT2e.

Waterproof

The Gt2e has a 5ATM rating means that it is water resistant at a depth of 50 meters for up to 10 minutes a time. So don’t fret when you accidentally jump into the pool with your watch. It will be just fine. Unless you have an oddly deep pool and can hold your breath for longer than 10 minutes at a time. Then, well good for you.

Conclusion

Overall, the Huawei Watch GT2e covers a lot of features as a fitness tracker, although the app does leave a lot to be desired. It’s way off the likes of Fitbit or Apple Activity in terms of the analysis of health, and long term trends. Especially for its price range, going for around $120 on amazon and R3500 here in south Africa. However, it’s still very good at tracking heart rate, sleep and daily activity. The GPS is very accurate and the battery is also very good.