The quest to remain fit never goes out of fashion. The fact that fitness centres and gyms have become an integral part of our lifestyles underlines the same.
This is precisely the reason smartwatches and fitness trackers, which keep a tab on our health, have come under focus. These are no longer fashion accessories and have become a vital part of our personal gadget ecosystem.
While there has been a lot of spotlight on affordable smartwatches priced under Rs. 5,000 and Rs.10,000 - the segment of smartwatches priced around Rs. 15,000 has also seen some traction catering to people who don't mind spending extra for smart features.
Brands are making some good-looking as well as feature-rich smartwatches in this price segment. Our list of smartwatches in this price segment may include products that were launched last year. For now, our updated list consists of wearables from Samsung, Amazfit, Fitbit and Honor. Smartwatches from brands like OnePlus, Oppo and Realme have been excluded from this list as they’ve either been discontinued or are no longer available in the market.
All the wearables in this segment here come with an AMOLED screen and most of them also come with internal storage, a SpO2 monitor, fast charging, and multi-day battery life. A good smartwatch is always an extension of a smartphone and these watches confirm that.
The Gen 5 is a decent Fossil smartwatch but not a patch on the Fossil Sport sitting at number one in this ranking. The Gen 5 cost is more expensive without bringing too much else, but you might prefer its classic watch looks to the Sport’s more active design.
The Gen 5 comes in a larger Carlyle version or a smaller Julianna, but both have the same premium features like bright vibrant displays, GPS, a heart rate sensor, 1GB RAM and the latest Snapdragon Wear 3100 chipset, meaning it’s very fast and responsive.
Its battery saver modes are genuinely useful and it has water resistance up to 30m, but it’s more expensive than other Wear OS watches and the speaker is poor.
Read the full Fossil Gen 5 review
Although launched last year, the Galaxy Watch 4 is a great purchase at the price that it retails now. Samsung has been clubbing the smartwatch with the Galaxy S22 Ultra at discounted rates since the smartphone's launch. This has helped the company gain a larger share in the smartwatch wearable market.
The Galaxy Watch 4 runs on Google's Wear OS platform, a departure from the TizenOS. This means that more Android apps will be supported on the smartwatch. It also features the Exynos W920 chipset and comes with 16GB of onboard storage.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 has been launched and it's still a premium product. You can opt for last year's model until then to enter Samsung's ecosystem of products.
Read our Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 review
The Amazfit GTR 3 is a good-looking mid-range sport watch that delivers impressive performance for its modest price tag – but doesn't quite live up to all of Amazfit's lofty claims.
The GTR 3 comes with a 1.39-inch AMOLED display with 454 x 454 resolution. There’s a built-in GPS to track outdoor activities like running, cycling and open water swimming. There's also BioTracker 3.0 PPG optical sensor, which delivers continuous heart rate monitoring, and heart rate during exercise and opens up more detailed insights. It also brings the ability to take blood-oxygen measurements.
Further, these smartwatches are also capable of tracking your sleep and 150+ sports mode which includes outdoor running, walking, indoor cycling, open water swimming, pool swimming, climbing, free training, outdoor cycling, and more.
It doesn't have inbuilt storage which is a bummer. You also get an Alexa voice assistant. You can also make calls over Bluetooth with the speaker offering decent clarity.
Read our Amazfit GTS 3 review
The Fitbit Versa 2 was the company's first true smartwatch in the segment. Even with the successor, Versa 3 in the market, the second-gen wearable is still one of the best Fitbit in the market. The Versa 2 is squarely aimed at users keen on fitness rather than those seeking productivity from a wearable.
While health and activity tracking take centre stage, the Versa 2 bridges the gap between phone and wrist by offering message and calendar notifications, ways to control your smart home setup and play music from your phone while on a run or workout session. However, it misses out on the built-in GPS feature.
Read our Fitbit Versa 2 review
If you’re after a rugged smartwatch to accurately track and map your exercise while measuring your heart-rate, and also your sleep, the Amazfit T-Rex Pro is a great value option. The Amazfit T-Rex Pro brings a few improvements by bringing in over the T-Rex from 2020 with over 100 sports modes compared to 14 on the T-Rex. It also brings a SpO2 monitor, 10ATM rating, three additional military standards, and more.
T-Rex Pro comes with a 1.3-inch colour AMOLED display with 360x360 resolution with Always-on Display. As for the sensors, the smartwatch packs in BioTracker 2 PPG optical sensor to measure heart rate, 3-axis acceleration and gyroscope sensor, Geomagnetic sensor, Ambient light sensor, Barometric altimeter, and also SpO2 monitor to get blood-oxygen level.
The watch also comes with a built-in GPS so that you can take it outdoors independently of your phone. In terms of battery life, the Amazfit T-Rex Pro comes with a 390mAh which is rated to last up to 9 days of heavy usage and 18 days of typical usage. The T-Rex Pro also uses the Firstbeat algorithm which offers an in-depth analysis of your fitness level, training load and recovery. It also helps you better plan your training sessions and train in a better way.
Read our Amazfit T-Rex Pro review
Huawei and their sub-brand Honor launched the Magic Watch 2 last year. The smartwatch is priced close to Rs. 12,000 and runs on its custom software.
The smartwatch tends to handle better as a fitness tracking wearable device than an extension of your smartphone. You get detailed metrics about your health vitals and a summary of your run or walk in the morning. It does allow you to take calls and listen to music, but the experience isn't as smooth as competing products in the market.
Nonetheless, the affordable price tag makes it a good choice for anyone looking to get their hands on a more premium brand for fitness and health-tracking wearables.
Read our Honor Magic Watch 2 review
