Let's help you choose a smartwatch

Today's smartwatches are equipped with independent GPS chips, advanced sensors and independent cellular communication.

In terms of capabilities, they almost never fall off your smartphone - and can even save your life.

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Niv Lillian

25/06/2022

Saturday, 25 June 2022, 13:11 Updated: 13:51

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Apple Watch (Photo: GettyImages)

In the early days of the smartwatch, it was nothing more than a relatively stupid mirror device of the smartphone.

Back in 2004 Microsoft created a "smart" watch that used FM frequencies to get updates like news, weather and more.

But today's smartwatch is much smarter than the watches that existed 20 years ago and more.

Today's smartwatches are equipped with independent GPS chips, advanced sensors and independent storage capability and independent cellular communication, in terms of capabilities they hardly fall off your smartphone - and can even save your life in case of a heart attack, thanks to sensors that detect it even before you.

So what are the things you should look for in a smartwatch in 2022 or what features does a smartwatch contain today?

Walla!

Technology helps you choose what are the important features today for a smartwatch.

Good to know (promoted)

This button can save your life in case of a medical emergency

Served on behalf of Shahal

Screen quality and size

The quality and screen size of your smartwatch are derived from two important data: one, the screen area, and the other is the resolution.

The surface area of ​​the screen is a derivative of the size of the watch (currently available in sizes between 38 mm in diameter and 44 mm in diameter and more), and today you will usually find watches whose surface area is between 1-1.1 inches and the smallest between them and the fitness straps, up to 2 inches and more for the big ones (there are also monstrous ones whose screen size is close to three inches ...).

Can even save your life in case of a heart attack (Photo: ShutterStock)

The second statistic is the resolution, the degree of diagnosis, which is measured in the amount of pixels.

The larger the result of the multiplication (the number of pixels in width times the number of pixels in length), the higher the resolution.

For example, the simple and inexpensive Amazfit Band 5 fitness band has 126 by 294 pixels, that is, 37,044 pixels in total, while the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, which is considered a top smartwatch, has 450 by 450 pixels, that is, 202,500 pixels in total on the screen.

And finally, one should pay attention to the type of screen.

Although most well-known brands today use AMOLED screens that are colorful and good, here and there you will find TFT / LCD screens that are of lower quality.

Independent GPS

Most smartwatches today, apart from perhaps the really cheap ones (the simple fitness straps), now contain a standalone GPS unit, which means they do not have to rely on the phone to know their location, or measure the distance you have run or walked.

It has two main meanings: one, the ability to measure distances independently, which means you can only run with your smartwatch, and independent GPS also helps the phone automatically detect that you are exercising, simply by recording the distance you traveled in a given time (and so it can detect Running for example, automatically or cycling).

Of course, the watch weights some more data in auto-activity detection.

In any case, make sure you get a standalone GPS on the watch.

- And if we are talking about independence from the smartphone, what can really set you free in the end is a standalone SIM on the watch or an eSIM.

While there are now quite a few watches that support the ability to talk and dial directly from the watch, they do so via Bluetooth, and in this sense, they are not fundamentally different from the built-in headset with the car screen.

No need to rely on the phone to know what their location is.

Apple Watch (Photo: ShutterStock)

Watches with eSIM (also often called LTE versions), contain a standalone virtual SIM card, which actually replicates your mobile number (or with a standalone number if you prefer), to the watch - and that way you can dial and receive calls to the smartwatch, regardless of your smartphone , Including connection of information traffic.

The smartphone can be at home or even off without a battery, with eSIM your smartphone has an independent connection to the cellular network, and you can always be connected, and not just as a sales password.

Advanced monitoring capabilities

There is actually no smartwatch in the market today that does not measure steps, heart rate, distance, calories burned and sleep.

These are the basic metrics, and also the cheap fitness straps already offer sensors that measure pulse continuously 24/7, which is great.

For most people by the way, these basic measurements are sufficient.

But for those who want or need more advanced measurements for special needs - here the business becomes interesting: sports watches for serious athletes or elite watches will also offer SpO2 measurement, ie saturated oxygen in the blood (a feature that has become quite common in most devices), voltage levels you are in, how much energy you expend (A feature of Garmin watches for example, called Battery), oxygen saturation with effort (VO2) and other things like activity detection and heart rate ranges in training, something very typical of sports watches - which will also help you train and give you an indication of training efficiency and recovery time.

Watches from the top segment, like the Galaxy Watch 4 or Apple Series 6 also offer things like measuring blood pressure for those who need it or measuring ECG to detect heart rhythm disorders.

Apple by the way is proud that their watch, which is also capable of automatically calling emergency contacts or rescue forces, has already saved people who have had heart attacks.

These are traits that may not be worth paying anyone more for, but if you have been diagnosed with blood pressure problems, you are older people with a background illness or heart attack risk - a smartwatch that detects these things, as well as not detecting a fall or a bump on us, can really be an investment. Life-saving, without exaggerating.

Measures steps, heart rate, distance, calories burned and sleep.

Smart Watch (Photo: ShutterStock)

Support for voice assistants

Different smartwatches support different voice assistants.

Sometimes it depends on the watch's operating system and manufacturer (for example, Apple Watches will support Siri), but there are watches on the market that support various assistants, such as Google, Amazon's Amazon or even a voice assistant that does not need an internet connection like the one built into GTR 3 Pro's. Amazfit.

If you have a smart home or a preferred voice assistant, it is definitely a consideration of convenience to choose a watch that supports your favorite voice assistant.

Music storage

Local storage for music is a feature that is often pushed to the corner, but at Techel's it is quite important: most major manufacturers of smartwatches offer in their smartwatches (sometimes in a special version like at Garmin, called Music), local storage for music.

This can be through downloading songs and saving locally via Spotify or Dizer, or actually uploading MP3 files to the watch.

For those who go for a run and do not want to part with their music without taking a smartphone (see also the eSIM section) in favor of streaming, a smartwatch with local storage is a desirable solution.

Of course, you can pair it with wireless headphones through its built-in Bluetooth connection, and as mentioned, leave the smartphone at home.

Leave your smartphone at home and listen to music (Photo: Samsung)

Operating System

An operating system may be a secondary consideration in purchasing a smartwatch, but it still has significance.

Now that Samsung is back in Google's arms with WearOS 3, it and Apple's WatchOS are the major systems, alongside proprietary operating systems developed by manufacturers like Amazfit or Garmin.

Most of them have good support and a decent interface with all common smartphones - for example in transmitting messages or local versions of applications to the device.

But those who already work with one ecosystem, be it Google's Apple or Android, will be able to enjoy more if they choose a smartwatch that supports the same creator.

For example, snoring detection is something that is only possible within Samsung's ecosystem (you will need both a supportive smartphone and a Samsung phone), or advanced features in the same manufacturer's headphones and operation via the watch.

Battery life

And finally, there is the matter of battery life.

Smart clocks used to be battery-eaters and that was their weak point: they lasted maybe less a day and really had to be charged every night, which took the sting out of sleep monitoring a bit ... It's a bit hard to measure sleep quality when the watch is charging, right?

But not anymore.

Thanks to smarter power management than before, advanced sleep modes (watch the clock, not your snoring) and more, smart watches now exhibit excellent battery life of 5 days or more, in normal operation, and if you use it as a stupid clock only, it can reach up to a month .

On the other hand, continuous activation of GPS for example, will drain your watch battery quickly or set high screen brightness regularly.

Overall most of the watches you will need to charge once every few days.

Smart watches used to be battery eaters and this was their weak point (Photo: PR)

price

And of course, how much does it cost us?

The beauty is that apart from a huge selection in different price ranges, you can find cheap fitness straps today that really give basic and a little more functionality (messages, continuous heart rate measurement and more), for 200 shekels or less, and will really do the job for most people, without tearing their pockets.

If you want a little more, today there is a large selection of smartwatches in Israel, most of which are around a few hundred shekels, while for dedicated watches such as the Garmin running watch series or the Samsung and Apple elite watches, you will already pay more than a thousand shekels.

Examine the features carefully according to our guide, and choose the watch that suits you near - and for your pocket.

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