This previous week, I wrapped up a week-long journey to Barcelona, Spain, for the annual Cell World Congress. The present is stuffed to the brim with cell tech bulletins, and what higher strategy to take a look at out a kind of than by carrying it for the entire journey?
I am speaking concerning the OnePlus Watch 2, in fact, which made its debut in Barcelona. Our resident wearables editor, Michael Hicks, already in contrast the OnePlus Watch 2 vs Google Pixel Watch 2 based mostly on our critiques, and I needed to see which I most popular carrying for such a protracted journey. Nothing fallacious with a second opinion, proper?
For the journey, I wore the OnePlus Watch 2 on my left wrist and the Google Pixel Watch 2 on the fitting, each paired with the identical cellphone. I sat on planes for hours on finish, walked many blocks day and evening, spent tons of time within the Fira Barcelona Gran By way of transferring between cubicles and halls, and put these watches by the paces to see which one I most popular.
I got here away with blended opinions, as neither watch does all the pieces nicely, however every does particular issues extraordinarily nicely. Should you’re seeking to spend $300 on a brand new smartwatch, here is why you will wish to take into account one over the opposite.
Step counting and well being monitoring
In a head-to-head health monitoring competitors, OnePlus by no means stood an opportunity. The corporate talked huge about its health monitoring capabilities on the OnePlus Watch 2 in the course of the unveiling in Barcelona, however my expertise would not match the corporate’s rhetoric. Conversely, the Pixel Watch 2 has the total weight of the Fitbit app behind it.
As Harish famous in our OnePlus Watch 2 evaluation — and I’ve additionally skilled within the weeks since — OnePlus’ monitoring stats are sometimes a minimum of 15% off. In my expertise, that made me wish to take the watch off and by no means trouble utilizing it for health monitoring sooner or later.
On my busiest day in Barcelona, I walked 27,246 steps based on the Pixel Watch 2. In the meantime, the OnePlus Watch 2 logged simply 24,978 steps. Whereas it is troublesome to gauge which one was extra correct by a single day, the remainder of my journey (and testing earlier than I left) tells me the Pixel Watch 2 is extra right.
On one other day, I walked loads much less however nonetheless discovered the OnePlus Watch 2’s 9,217 step depend was far lower than the 11,077 counted by the Pixel Watch 2. Daily, the OnePlus Watch counted roughly 10-15% fewer steps than the Pixel Watch 2, a distinction that is greater than only a rounding error.
Likewise, a exercise at my resort on the primary day delivered one more spherical of too-low numbers from the OnePlus Watch 2. The collected complete well being information from the journey lined up with the 10-15% decrease numbers I noticed from the OnePlus Watch 2 throughout the board.
Well being monitoring stats on the OnePlus Watch 2 have been recurrently 10-15% decrease than the Pixel Watch 2.
The one attainable metric that OnePlus might have received is its twin GPS monitoring functionality, which is rated to offer much more correct GPS monitoring in some conditions. Sadly, I did not run throughout any scenario the place the Pixel Watch 2 failed to trace my walks precisely across the metropolis and I discovered no discernable distinction between the info in my 6-day take a look at.
Notably, Google’s Fitbit app offers a considerable quantity of well being information in comparison with OnePlus’ OHealth app. Along with this, well being information is synced to a Google Fitbit account so you may view it on different gadgets. OnePlus would not provide well being syncing or switch in any respect, however the firm is engaged on an replace so as to add it.
Battery life
One of many worst issues about any trendy smartwatch is the truth that all of them have a singular charger. Should you occur to neglect your charger on a protracted flight throughout an ocean — as a buddy of mine did — you are going to be contemporary out of luck when you have been carrying the Google Pixel Watch 2.
On common, I acquired three full days out of a single cost on the OnePlus Watch 2, and a fourth if I wasn’t utilizing it a lot. That first day heading to Spain included a 10-and-a-half-hour flight, which meant my watch was in airplane mode and barely used any battery throughout that point.
I needed to cost the Pixel Watch 2 4 instances earlier than I needed to cost the OnePlus Watch 2 as soon as.
This enabled me to get by the primary 4 days with out fear, and I might have gone longer if I had used the power-saving mode if I actually wanted it.
Whereas the Pixel Watch 2’s battery life is not unhealthy compared to most different Put on OS smartwatches, the OnePlus Watch 2’s battery life makes nearly each different smartwatch look unhealthy. Over the six days I used to be away from house, I solely needed to cost the OnePlus Watch 2 one time.
By comparability, the Pixel Watch 2 required a charge-up every evening. In any other case, I would be confronted with a useless battery midway by the following day.
Messaging and apps
Each the Pixel Watch 2 and OnePlus Watch 2 help the identical apps downloaded by the Google Play Retailer, however one watch is loads nicer to make use of apps on due to its measurement.
The Pixel Watch 2 might be probably the most snug smartwatch I’ve ever worn and a number of that consolation comes from the dimensions. It is tiny, however that additionally means apps and duties like texting simply aren’t very enjoyable to make use of on it.
Apps and typing have been much more fulfilling on the OnePlus Watch 2 due to its bigger measurement.
The OnePlus Watch 2 has a a lot bigger show that is useless simple to sort on, and I discovered myself truly having fun with replying on the watch. By comparability, I not often sort something on the Pixel Watch 2’s tiny show regardless of the 2 watches sustaining the identical stage of performance — and utilizing the identical Gboard keyboard!
A 19% bigger show measurement would not appear to be a lot on paper, however on a wrist, that bigger show leaves further room for keyboard keys and different vital software program buttons.
The large draw back is that the OnePlus Watch 2 would not have a rotating crown, so I recurrently needed to wipe finger marks off the display in the course of the day. Actually not a deal breaker for me, however it might be good to have to do this much less usually.
The decision
Should you’re not somebody who cares a lot about well being monitoring, the OnePlus Watch 2 is a terrific alternative. That is very true for a visit to a different nation, because the multi-day battery life makes it simple to put on your watch and benefit from the sights as a substitute of worrying about battery life alongside the best way.
The bigger show on the OnePlus Watch 2 additionally made it simpler to make use of apps, navigate, and reply to messages with out having to tug my cellphone out of my pocket. That might be an enormous sport changer if you end up in a public place and really feel unsafe holding your cellphone in your hand.
However, if well being monitoring information is an important smartwatch function to you, the Google Pixel Watch 2 is the king. Not solely are the well being monitoring stats themselves much more correct — that features step counts, coronary heart charge monitoring, stress information, sleep monitoring, and others — however the Fitbit app is so significantly better suited to well being monitoring information than OnePlus’ OHealth app.
I’ve little doubt that OnePlus will proceed to enhance and construct out its app over time, however for now, the Pixel Watch 2 is the watch to purchase when you’re monitoring exercises and steps or simply ensuring you get a very good relaxation.
