Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro, analysis and opinion

I do not surprise anyone if I say that Huawei is regular (because they are soft) with their mobiles. At least in the West, since the veto of US companies was consummated, they are in the doldrums.

However, where they are doing very, very well is in the field of laptops (with some as interesting as the MateBook 16), speakers and wearables.

A few months ago we analyzed the Watch GT 3, a device that we liked a lot, but that was a bit far from the most premium ranges. Now, the Chinese company provides a solution with a Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro that we analyze below to see both the changes from the previous model and the obvious improvements.

Sections of the analysis of the Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro:

One of the most elegant smartwatches on the market with a wonderful screen

Along with the Apple Watch Series 7 that my colleague Iván analyzed and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Classic that Rubén was testing, This Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro seems to me to be one of the most premium smart watches that is on the market right now.

I am not referring to the functions, which I will tell you about later, but to the design and materials. As soon as you take it out of the box you notice that there is something special.

I really like Huawei’s packaging because it presents them as if they were analog clocks and this one, the truth, drinks a lot from the design of this type of accessories.

Here we leave the plastic of the previous version aside and move on to titanium or ceramic. And there are two models, the one with a 46-mm titanium screen -which is the Watch GT 3 Pro that we are testing- and the 43-millimeter one with the ceramic case.

The steel color suits him great and we have the two classic buttons on the right. On the one hand, a flat lower button, so that we do not press it by mistake, which is configured as a quick access to sports, but that we can customize.

On the other hand, the crown that allows us to control the scrolling through the menu and that maintains that elegance with the name of “Huawei” printed. The screen has a beveled edge of titanium and the glass has a very slight curve at the edgesbut it is something that does not affect the screen, which is flat.

It is very, very elegant and in the lower part, the part that is in contact with the skin, the plastic of the previous generation is replaced by a ceramic material with a polished finish. It is where several sensors are, including the temperature one, and it is one of the most suitable to avoid allergies.

At the end of the base we can see a speaker on one side and a microphone on the othersince we are going to be able to answer calls (it sounds good, although several people have told me that it sounds regular to me), but we are going to have to have the watch close to our mouths as if we were in an eighties movie or series.

And to that elegance of the box is added a leather strap that specifies that it cannot get wet, since it loses its properties.

You may be putting it on and taking it off every time you take a shower, but know that it has the standard clasp, so you can buy hundreds of different straps (or use one you already have from a previous watch) to be able to shower or swim , as the watch is IP68 certified.

If we go to the screen, we have an AMOLED panel which is a real delight. The first thing is that it has automatic brightness and, in addition, we have measured 928 peak lux. Outdoors it looks great and you won’t have any problems with it.

Also, at night you have to put the “do not disturb” mode so that the screen does not turn on, but in the case of not turning on, the brightness sensor is fast and as long as there is no light in the room, the brightness level of the screen is kept to a minimum.

When taking the photos I have seen that the traces remain marked, but the truth is that on a day-to-day basis it is something that has not bothered me and what I had not noticed at all.

Touch response is very goodwe have several customizable screens (although many are fixed) to put different information on the main screen and the truth is that it is one of the best screens that there is right now in a smart watch.

However, something that I do not like very much is the always-on Display mode. By default, we do not always have the information on the screen. The lift-to-wake gesture works very well and is quite reactive, but if you want to have a watch face always on, I have to tell you that the maximum is 20 minutes.

That is, I have not found the option to make it an always-on screen mode until the battery runs out and it is something that I would like to see in an update.

Harmony 2.1 takes care of fluidity and managing many sports sensors

And speaking of updates, it’s time to talk about the system. Here the truth is that I am not going to go too deep because it is the same thing that we find in the Watch GT 3 and in the Huawei Watch 3. So, I recommend you go to either of those two analyzes because it was our first contact with the system and it is where we go deeper.

We have HarmonyOS 2.1 and the truth is that the system is going very, very well. It’s stable, it’s fast… but it still lacks some things that we do find in other more advanced systems (WearOS or WathOS).

So don’t expect to be able to install Spotify or Twitter. You will receive notifications and you will be able to see them, but to respond or see an image you will have to go to the mobile app. And you can also control the music, but from what you have linked to your phone.

Something I like is that you will be able to respond to WhatsApp notifications with an emoji or with short answers both preselected and customizable from the Huawei health application.

From this app you will have access to apps from the AppGallery, but the only useful ones are Petal Maps (like Google Maps) and TickTick. And beware, because you can use Petal if you have an Android mobile, it won’t work with an iPhone.

In the watch you will find the typical applications of altitude, compass, skin temperature (it may be very useful for you), heart rate (which I think measures it very well) and blood oxygen (which I don’t know if it is reliable, since I have not compared it with an oximeter, but it has not given me any strange value).

Although it is not at the level of other smart watches in which an on-screen keyboard appears to answer notifications, the truth is that being able to answer a WhatsApp is quite good, even if it is with default options, but I think that a little more progress must be made both in integration with Android and in response options .

What I love is that we have a watch that is clearly oriented to day-to-day use, to be a fashion “accessory”, but that does not leave sports practice aside.

I think the app could give more session databut the count of our status and steps is more than correct and is a way to measure and ‘gamify’ what we do.

It has reminders so you don’t waste too much time sitting down and in the end it knows how to keep you motivated. And, as always, it incorporates new sports measurements, but if I’m honest, the ones I use are hiking with integrated GPS, running and “others”, which ends up being a mixed bag.

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oh! Speaking of sports measurement. You’ll be able to see various real-time stats and control your music, but if a notification comes in, you won’t be able to leave that “sport” screen until you log out. It is something that already happened in previous generations and that, in the end, shows that multitasking is still fair in Harmony.

Now, if you buy it, you should know that, at least for me with an Android mobile with Android 12, I have not been able to activate NFC for mobile payments.

When I try it on the watch, it tells me to go to the app, and when I’m in it, I get a message that I don’t have a device that supports a mobile payment system.

The truth is that it is a shame and one more example of how limited HarmonyOS is right now, either due to internal development or external factors such as the veto.

With all the functions “eats” between 10 and 15% of battery per day

One of the aspects that worries me the most when I have to analyze a smart watch that I know has a lot of options is the battery.

After the two days of use, more or less, that the Huawei Watch 3 allowed me, I was afraid that in this GT range there would also be a considerable cut in autonomy.

Huawei Watch GT 3, analysis and opinion

Luckily, it seems that is not the case and, according to my tests, with all the sensors and notifications activatedI spend between 10 and 15% of the battery every day. This is not a bad figure at all and it is something that will depend a lot on the use of each one.

If you use the GPS a lot, it will last less, but if you do not have as many notifications as I can have, it can also last longer. In any case, it is complicated that you do not have a full week of use without having to give up anything.

This model, the 46mm, has a surprisingly large battery of 530 mAh, which also has a slightly faster load than we had until now. I like the charger, since it is enough to place the watch, regardless of the orientation, for it to start charging.

In 10 minutes you recover more or less 15% of battery, which is not bad at all. So, I think you will not have to worry about this issue and, luckily, it is not as poor a performance as the previous high-end from the Chinese company.

It is not only beautiful, but also versatile and useful in everyday life

At the end, The Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro is, for me, the best smart watch that Huawei has right now in its catalog. It has many of the good things of the Watch 3, but with a more classic design like that of the GT 3 and much more noble materials than those of the previous generation.

The screen still looks amazing and one of the best on the market both for its resolution and for the response, how elegant the spheres that are installed are and for the brightness.

And speaking of elegance, It is a watch to wear when you go out to dinner, for a drink or at an eventsince it not only has very good materials, but it is also very elegant while maintaining its off-road condition thanks to the protection against water and dust.

However, It is not perfect and for the 369 euros from which it starts, I think they should have fine-tuned some things. For example, the microphone is not as good as it should be, not being able to install apps weighs it down compared to the competition and that it won’t let me pay is something I don’t understand.

If these are not problems for you and you want a watch of this style that, in addition, has a very good autonomy, and you do not have an iPhone where the Apple Watch is the ideal recommendation, I think it will satisfy you completely.

However, if you have slightly higher demands on the software, you may want to take a look at Samsung’s options or the TicWatch 3 Pro Ultra.