Kellen
When OnePlus announced that it would bring a smaller version of the OnePlus Watch 3 to market, I’ve got to admit that I was pretty excited. The original (and quite large) OnePlus Watch 3 is excellent and so easy to recommend as one of the best smartwatches on the market. In fact, I had it as the best, but that was before the new Galaxy Watch 8 series was announced, which should also be quite good.
As OnePlus teased and promoted the upcoming smaller version of the OnePlus Watch 3, we got the impression that they were really going to crush it with this release. The idea was that of the original OnePlus Watch 3 and all of its specs, only in a smaller package that would fit on more wrists and hopefully with a smaller price tag.
Well, the OnePlus Watch 3 (43mm) is available and we’ve been testing it for a couple of weeks now. Is it as we expected? Let’s talk about it in our review.
The differences (or cuts) are the story. To put it simply, this is not just a smaller version of the OnePlus Watch 3. While it is indeed a smaller case with a solid set of specs, it is also a very different device. That could be OK for some, but OnePlus does still ask you to spend a sizable amount on it while they made several cuts. And unfortunately, I think that’s where this review sort of needs to go – is this truly a watch to consider at the price point?
The OnePlus Watch 3 (43mm) costs $299, which is $50 lower than the bigger version. At that price, you get a similar set of specs, like the same Qualcomm chipset inside, fast charging experiencing, 5ATM and IP68 water resistance, RAM and storage, connectivity, and software experience, which is a combination of Wear OS and RTOS to try to extend battery life.
That’s where the similarities end, though. Instead of sapphire crystal cover glass, you get 2.5D cover glass, which is a pretty big downgrade. Sapphire basically can’t be scratched, while this other material certainly can be. The titanium bezel of the original is gone, so you instead just get a very shiny looking glass bezel that is glossy all over. There isn’t a temperature sensor, which is pretty standard in high-end watches these days. The GPS appears to be a downgrade without Dual band L1+L5 from the original, there’s no military durability rating (MIL-STD-810H), and they weirdly made the strap 18mm.
Of course, there are the expected downgrades in a smaller device, like a slightly smaller display, but the battery capacity has almost been cut in half. So where the original OnePlus Watch 3 excelled in battery life, this one could struggle with that small capacity.
Hearing that, do you think a $50 price reduction matches the level of changes? Ehhhh, that’s tough.
It’s still a fine smartwatch, just not the OnePlus Watch 3. In testing, if you do try to remove everything I just said, the OnePlus Watch 3 (43mm) is actually a solid smartwatch. Performance is great, the Wear OS 5 + RTOS experience works seamlessly like it does on other OnePlus Watches, and the oHealth app for all of the fitness tracking is quite solid. In general, those items all do match the original OnePlus Watch 3 and if you’d like to know more about those items, read that review.
Battery life is probably an area you were most curious about and I can tell you that with the always-on display active this little 354mAh battery was getting me roughly 2 days of use. That’s from a combination of wearing the watch all day and night, tracking everything (including sleep), and often getting in hour-long workouts. By turning off always-on display, I’d guesstimate it extended to another day, although I just feel like I’m charging this device so much more than I expected to – thankfully it charges really fast. Overall, battery life is probably fine for a device of this size.
Speaking of size, the 43mm case is quite nice on the wrist. 43mm isn’t exactly small in the watch world, but for a smartwatch, it is and this watch wears well on my slim-ish wrists. It’s never in your way, you aren’t constantly bumping it throughout the day, and it doesn’t look obnoxious on the wrist.
I’m not really a fan of the overall design, though. The watch lost its sporty masculine style and is instead a glossy, somewhat-cheap looking smartwatch. It really reminds me of those cheap plastic non-Wear OS watches we saw flood the market years ago, even if it isn’t completely plastic. Nothing about this watch will make you think it is worth $300. It’s a bit like a toy or non-serious smartwatch, at least in how it looks and feels.
The band, at 18mm, is a disappointing move to see. Most watches these days are either 20mm or 22mm, so it wasn’t easy for me to find something in the drawer that I could switch to. And I wanted to switch because this is about the most basic of rubber straps you’ll find. I wanted to see what other bands would look like with this design, but couldn’t do so.
On a fitness front, while I mentioned the oHealth app being mostly good, this watch’s lack of a temperature sensor seems like a semi-big omission. Establishing a baseline temperature is pretty important these days to predict an oncoming cold or sickness, but it’s especially important for women and cycle tracking. The lack of one would make me not really trust this watch in predicting those times. And with this smaller case size and 18mm band, I’d imagine women are a big target audience.
I will say that the sleep tracking and heartrate monitoring all appear to be accurate and matched other devices I’ve been testing, like my Oura Ring and the new Amazfit Helio Strap. It also has a long list of workout types to select, you just need to navigate through the library of them first to make sure they are in your favorites. The display is bright when it needs to be during workouts, performance of the watch during workouts is solid, and it very much met my needs as a workout tracker.
Should you buy a OnePlus Watch 3 (43mm)?
At $299, there is a good amount of competition. Sure, the new Galaxy Watch 8 just jumped to a starting point of $350 and the Pixel Watch 3 is already there, but you can almost always score big discounts on these devices at any time. Both watches are probably a better overall smartwatch than this one. However, the OnePlus Watch 3 (43mm) is still a solid watch that would be worth a look if it too saw a steep discount. Otherwise, I’m still going to recommend the original OnePlus Watch 3 over it. That watch truly has everything and this one might be missing too much.
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