Realme Watch 3 Review: Feature-rich affordable smartwatch
Realme Watch 3 Its price in India is Rs 3,499. This is the latest affordable smartwatch from the company. Through this, the company is trying to compete with the products of Noise, Fire-Boltt and Boat in the same price range. With a big display, Bluetooth calling, and fitness tracking features, is the Realme Watch 3 the best affordable smartwatch you can buy right now? Let’s find out in this review.
Design and specifications of Realme Watch 3
Priced at Rs 3,499, the Realme Watch 3 directly competes with the recently launched Noise ColorFit Pro 4 which offers similar features and specifications. Here the Realme Watch 3 has a 1.8-inch TFT LCD display which is slightly larger than the Xiaomi smartwatch. But it is not as sharp as Noise and it has a resolution of 240×286 pixels. It comes with a maximum brightness of 500 nits.
Realme Watch 3 comes in two color options which include black and grey. The company sent its gray model to me. The strap is gray but the sides of the smartwatch are quite glossy and I think the shiny shade of silver looks great. The front and back of the watch are black in color and its 22mm strap can also be changed with aftermarket options.
Thick borders have been given around the screen of the watch due to which its look looks a bit old. You can hide this flaw a bit by using black background. A microphone is provided on the right side which is along with the primary button. The primary button comes with power controls and some navigation options. Speakers are provided on the left side which are useful while receiving calls. Contact points for charging are provided at the bottom of the device and there are also optical sensors for heart rate and blood oxygen readings.
Realme Watch 3 is rated IP68 for dust and water resistance. Its weight is 40 grams with its strap. It uses Bluetooth 5.3 for connectivity. You also get a magnetic charging cable in the sales package.
Realme Watch 3 software and apps
The user interface of Realme Watch 3 is quite simple with some fixed apps provided. You can neither install any other app in it nor uninstall its apps. It uses Bluetooth for connectivity with the smartphone, through which it syncs fitness data and shows notifications.
Swiping the cycle right or left on the watch reveals main apps which include activity tracking, sleep tracking, heart rate tracking, weather and music control. Notifications appear when you swipe up from the bottom. Swiping from top to bottom provides toggles for brightness, power saving mode, settings and other options. On pressing the side button, the entire app menu appears in grid or list format.
For the main functions you’d expect in a smartwatch, it comes with apps including stopwatch, timer, alarm, camera shutter control, heart rate and blood oxygen tracking, workouts and workout records, settings, and more. It is quite easy to access and use.
With the help of Realme Link app, watch and smartphone are connected to each other. This app is available for both Android and iOS. Fitness data can be viewed in a detailed and organized manner in the app. With its help, you can also customize settings and other functions in the watch.
You can choose a watchface from Realme’s growing list of watchfaces and quickly change to any of the four watchfaces saved on the watch. Here you can also choose which of its apps should send you notifications or not. Pressing the button and lifting the wrist puts the watch into active mode. Tapping the screen in standby makes no difference.
If you have other Realme products like earphones or IoT devices then this app becomes very convenient and works as a common hub for all. The connection with the smartwatch remained stable and notification delivery was also reliable during the review period.
Performance and battery life of Realme Watch 3
There are many features to be mentioned in affordable smartwatches but the actual experience turns out to be quite different. This is seen a lot especially in this price segment. But, as far as showing time and notifications, changing watchfaces is concerned, this watch of Realme does a good job here.
Bluetooth calling is useful and I used it for short calls in quiet places like my home and office. Receiving calls on this is quite easy and works without any hassle. Talking about health and fitness tracking, I found it lacking. But at this price there are not many options which provide accurate tracking. This watch counted 1072 of the 1000 steps I took. The same figure was seen in Noise ColorFit Pro 4 also. For longer distances this difference became 85 extra steps per 1000 steps.
It measured less distance when compared to the Apple Watch. Whereas the measurement of calories showed more. The heart rate reading was also not accurate when recorded while walking but it was showing fine when standing or sitting. Blood oxygen levels were shown to be accurate. It also did sleep tracking well.
Its battery life matches what the company has claimed and lasts up to 7 days. I did a lot of activity on it, did health tracking, used it occasionally for calls and also checked notifications.
our decision
For a price of Rs 3,499, Realme Watch 3 offers a lot. It looks good, is reliable for connectivity, has good battery life and comes with Bluetooth calling. Its fitness and activity tracking is not affected. But considering the price, there is no dearth of features in it. If your budget is very low then you can think of buying this.
Noise ColorFit Pro 4 also cannot be ignored here as it has more watchfaces and a sharper display. Here it also comes down to brand and personal preference. But it can definitely be said that for Realme Watch 3, you are giving a lot more than what you spend.
