Three smart watches to choose this Christmas

If you’re looking for a smart watch to pair with your smartphone this Christmas, there’s basically just three choices to look into. These are the ones we think are the best smartwatches in the local market.

Apple Watch

If you are using an iPhone, then it makes sense to get the Apple Watch to pair with it as it is fully compatible with the Apple Watch. The metal body has that premium look and you can choose from two face sizes, colors and various strap materials and designs.

The Apple Watch seamlessly integrates with the iPhone and includes quite a number of native apps and functions that extends the features of your smartphone into the watch.

The Apple Watch can also serve as a remote control to your Apple TV and even work as a remote shutter for the camera of your iPhone.  It also includes a heart rate sensor, a pedometer and you can even check Google Maps right on the watch screen.

Suggested retail prices of the Apple Watch ranges from P20,000 and goes up to P960,000 if you pick the 18-karat gold variant.

Samsung Gear S2

The Gear S2 is a second generation smartwatch from Samsung and has been improved a lot. While it is not running Google’s Android Wear operating system, Samsung’s Tizen OS allows the Gear S2 to be compatible with a number of Android smartphones from various manufacturers as long as they run on Android 4.4 Kitkat. It is a limitation that Samsung has somewhat addressed.

Perhaps the most unique feature of the Gear S2 is the rotating bezel that  assists in navigating the circular UI like scrolling thru a webpage, zooming in or out of Google Maps or browsing thru your favorite music tracks.

The Gear S2 has a built in storage that can accommodate up to 300 songs and with Bluetooth connectivity, can stream music straight to your wireless earphones.

The watch is available in two models – the Gear S2 which has a young and sporty look and the Gear S2 Classic which is more formal. Price starts at P13,490 for the Gear S2 and P15,490 for the Gear S2 Classic.

Huawei Watch

Running on Google Android Wear, the Huawei Watch is the most versatile of the lot. It is compatible with the iPhone (iOS 8.2 and up) and most Android devices (version 4.2 and higher) which means you’ll be able to pair it with any of the recent iPhone and Android models.

With a stainless steel body, the Huawei Watch comes with a large 42mm circular face. The 1.4-inch AMOLED display is protected by sapphire crystal from the usual bumps and scratches.

The Huawei Watch supports a lot of 3rd party apps from Android Wear, including Google Now, so you have access to your emails, instant messaging, social media on top of the normal voice and SMS notifications.

You also have three options of face colors (silver, black and gold) as well as a huge selection of custom straps from leather to metal links.

The Huawei Watch will be available this December with a starting price of P19,990 for the classic and P24,990 for the active black.

All three smart watches have their own respective charms. Both Apple and Samsung leveraged on their own operating system so compatibility with other devices is somewhat limited. Only Huawei has Android Wear that both supports iOS and Android so it will be the most widely compatible of the three.