Modern smartwatches are not just an accessory to a smartphone, as it was a few years ago, but a standalone devices. In some cases, the smartwatches are able to completely replace the smartphones. All the leading electronics manufacturers are relentlessly developing more and more smartwatches. They try to surpass not only their previous models, but also the latest versions of their competitors in terms of specifications and functionality.
Today it is already very easy to get confused in smartwatches, their functions and names. The purpose of our article is to help you simplify your choice. We have collected the most popular and best smartwatches for men from various price categories, which can be purchased in 2020.
Do not confuse smartwatches with modern smart bracelets and fitness trackers. They are an additional device to a mobile phone and perform a specific set of functions. Unlike fitness bracelets, smartwatches allow the user to install third-party applications, make calls, etc.
Today almost every fitness tacker can be called smartwath. Theline between smartwatches and fitness trackers is very blurred. Many manufacturers advertise their devices as smartwatches, but actually they are not. For example, Amazfit Bip is considered by many people to be a smartwatch, but, in fact, it is rather an advanced fitness bracelet with smartwatch design. Probably, it would be right to call it fitness watch, but not smartwatch.
In our opinion, it is not entirely correct to call smartwatches those that do not have their own operating system. Therefore, in this article we decided to collect only those devices that really correspond to the title of “smartwatch”.
Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 2020
Best smartwatch in terms of price and quality
Key features of Ticwatch Pro:
- Operating system: Wear OS.
- Compatibility: Android 4.3+ and iOS 8+.
- Screen: 1.4 inches OLED with a resolution of 400 x 400 pixels + LCD screen
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 2100.
- Built-in memory: 4 GB.
- RAM: 1 GB
- Protection against water: IP68.
- Battery Life: Up to 30 days.
- Price: From $260.
Mobvoi introduced the first version of TicWatch Pro in 2018, and almost two years after its release, the company introduced an updated version – TicWatch Pro 2020. The design of new smarwatch is not much different from its predecessor. All major changes have affected performance and protection.
The new smartwatch from Mobvoi is equipped with two displays – one on top of the other. The top screen is a monochrome LCD panel, which shows only the most necessary information, for example, heart rate, time, date, etc. The transparent LCD panel is under the main OLED screen with a diameter of 1.39 inches and a resolution of 400 x 400 pixels.
Two screens allows you to choose one of three options for use:
- Smart mode – all the functions of smartwatch are available. However, the battery life is only 1-2 days.
- Normal mode – most of smart functions are not available, but the battery is up to 30 days of use.
- Hybrid mode combines the two previous ones. You can switch between them by pressing a single button. It allows you to get up to 5 days of battery life, which is quite good for smartatch with Wear OS operating system.
TicWatch Pro is equipped with all the sensors necessary for users:
- GPS
- NFC (supports Google Pay);
- Bluetooth 4.2;
- Wi-Fi 802.11bgn;
- Accelerometer;
- Optical heart rate sensor;
- Gyroscope;
- Geomagnetic sensor;
- Ambient light sensor.
Pros:
- Dual screen.
- Great battery life.
- Protection according to MIL-STD-810G standard.
- Good price.
Cons:
- Outdated processor.
- IP68 protection is not suitable for swimming.
- No LTE connection.
Apple Watch Series 5
Best Smartwatch for iPhone Owners
Key features of Apple Watch Series 5:
- Operating System: watchOS 6.
- Compatibility: iOS.
- Display: OLED Retina Touch screen, 1.57 inches (40 mm) and 1.78 inches (44 mm)
- Processor: Apple S5.
- Built-in memory: 32 GB.
- Water protection: Up to 50 meters.
- Battery Life: 18 hours.
- Price: From $399.
Despite many smartwatches on the market, we cannot pass by Apple Watch Series 5. Each new smartwatch from Apple is invariably becoming one of the most popular and best-selling smartwatch around the world.
For example, in 2019, Apple Watch shipments reached 30.7 million units. At the same time, all Swiss manufacturers sold only 21.1 million watches. Even after the release of Apple Watch Series 5, the customers are still actively buying earlier models, including Series 1 and Series 3.
Apple Watch is not a smartwatch for only men. Both men and women wear them with equal pleasure, especially since they are available in two sizes: 40 and 44 mm. There are several options for colors and materials of the case: aluminum, stainless steel, titanium and ceramics.
Compared to its predecessor, Apple Watch Series 5 received few significant updates. The main improvement is Always On Display. Now you do not need to raise your hand or press a button to see the time. All the information necessary for the owner is always displayed on a darkened screen.
Apple Watch Series 5 is a versatile and powerful device that combines smartwatch, fitness bracelet, sports watch and the functions of serious medical devices. The main functions includ ECG sensor, heart rate monitor, accelerometer, GPS and much more. We will not list all the features of Apple Watch, because there are really a lot of them.
Pros:
- Great screen.
- Always-On Display Mode.
- Water resistant up to 50 meters.
- Many available applications.
- Huge selection of straps and accessories.
- Wide functionality.
- A large amount of internal memory.
Cons:
- High price.
- Short battery life.
- No sleep monitoring.
- Only compatible with iPhone.
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2
Best Smartwatch for Active Users
Key features of Galaxy Watch Active 2:
- Operating System: Tizen OS.
- Compatibility: Android, iOS.
- Screen: 1.2-inch or 1.4-inch Super AMOLED.
- Processor: Dual core Exynos 9110 with a frequency of 1.15 GHz.
- RAM: 768 MB (1.5 GB for the version with LTE).
- Built-in memory: 4 GB.
- Water protection: Up to 50 meters.
- Battery life: From 2 to 4 days, depending on the model.
- Price: $280-300.
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2, like Apple Watch, are universal smartwatch for both men and women. It is also available in two sizes: 40 mm and 44 mm. Depending on size, the diameter of Super AMOLED screen is 1.2-inches or 1.4-inches. It was the first smartwatch in the series with a touch frame, instead of a mechanical one, like in earlier models.
The main purpose of Galaxy Watch Active 2 is already hidden in the name itself. It is lightweight, compact and perfect smartwatch for active use, as well as for tracking exercises. The smartwatch can track 39 different types of workouts, and some of them are able to automatically determine.
We can talk a lot about the functions of Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2, but we will single out the most basic of them:
- Phone calls via Bluetooth or from the watch itself for LTE version.
- Receive and send messages. Keyboard input, voice input or quick reply.
- 24-hour heart rate monitoring.
- Sleep monitor with phase recognition.
- Monitoring steps taken, calories burned and distance.
- Determination of stress level.
- Contactless payment (Samsung Pay).
- ECG, blood pressure measurement and fall detection.
- Control the consumption of water, food and caffeine.
- Function “Trainer on the run”.
Unlike Apple, Samsung smartwatch is compatible not only with Samsung smartphones, but also with smartphones on iOS, as well as all Android devices. Samsung Galaxu Active 2 costs from $280 for 40mm version and from $300 for 44mm.
Pros:
- Great design.
- Many sensors.
- Touch frame.
- Lightweighta nd compact body.
- Always on Display mode.
- Compatible with iOS and Android phones.
Cons:
- Not enough internal memory.
- Some third-party apps.
- Short battery life of ECG and blood pressure measurement are not active.
Fossil Gen 5 Carlyle HR
Best Smartwatch for American men
Key Features:
- Operating system: Wear OS.
- Compatibility: Android and iOS.
- Screen: 1.28 inches AMOLED with a resolution of 390 x 390 pixels
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 3100.
- Built-in memory: 8 GB. NFC (Google Pay).
- Water protection: 3 ATM.
- Battery Life: Up to 24 hours.
- Price: From $295.
Carlyle HR is a flagship smartwatch from American brand Fossil. Not everyone knows that Fossil Group company produces smartwatches not only under its own brand, but also for a number of other well-known companies and fashion designers.
The appearance of the new Fossil Gen 5 is quite familiar for smartwatches from this manufacturer. This is a classic stainless steel case with a diameter of 44 mm, a round screen, several design options and 22 mm straps of various styles and materials. Case thickness is 12 mm.
In terms of technical specifications, Carlyle HR is almost perfect. Even compared to the fourth generation, the new smartwatch has received a number of significant improvements.
It is equipped with 1.28-inch AMOLED touch screen with PPI of 328, 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal memory. There are NFC and GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, a heart rate sensor and others are needed to monitor activity sensors.
The smartwatch is based on Qualcomm’s latest processor – Snapdragon 3100. It runs on Wear OS operating system. All the functions of Wear OS are supported:
- Receiving and making calls via Bluetooth (there is a speaker and microphone).
- Download additional apps and watch faces.
- Download and play music.
- Google Assistant Voice Assistant.
- Contactless payment via NFC.
- Tracking sports modes.
- Sleep monitoring.
- Heart rate measurement.
- Counting steps, calories and distance.
- Determination of location, speed, distance, etc. by GPS.
But, if there is nothing to complain about in technical part, there are questions to software. Fossil does not always succeed in connecting the software and the processor. Therefore, buyers are faced with a number of different disadvantages. Of course, with subsequent updates, they will fix everything, but so far the watch is slowing down for many owners.
Pros:
- Stylish design.
- High quality materials.
- Great hardware.
- Large set of NFC functions.
Cons:
- Short battery life.
- Raw software.
- Availability problems outside the US.
- Not the best speaker.
Samsung Galaxy Watch
Best Smartwatch for Samsung Fans
Samsung released Galaxy Watch back in 2018. In terms of specifications and functions, the old smartwatch from Samsung is not much inferior to other newer models. Samsung regularly release software updates to Galaxy Watch.
Galaxy Watch is a mixture of all the best ideas of the Korean company. It has a bright and clear AMOLED screen, a rotating frame, which has become a visiting card of Samsung, good battery life, as well as all the necessary sensors for comfortable use.
The smartwatch can monitor sleep quality, receive notifications about calls and messages, monitor the heart rate, track many sports modes, measure stress levels, play music, pay for purchases with NFC (Samsung Pay) and much more.
Key features of Galaxy Watch:
- Operating System: Tizen OS.
- Compatibility: Android, iOS.
- Screen: 1.2 inch or 1.3 inch Super AMOLED.
- Processor: Dual core Exynos 9110 with a frequency of 1.15 GHz.
- Built-in memory: 4 GB.
- Water protection: Up to 50 meters.
- Battery life: From 3 to 7 days, depending on the model.
- Price: $260 – $280 ($375 – $400 for LTE version).
Despite the huge number of functions, the smartwatch has good battery lufe. The battery of 46mm version with a capacity of 472 mAh provides from 3 to 7 days. The 42mm version has a smaller battery – 270 mAh. Its full battery charge is enough for 2 to 3 days of use.
Pros:
- Cool design.
- Many sensors.
- Fast and convenient operating system.
- Good battery life.
- Easy navigation thanks to a rotating bezel.
Cons:
- Few color options.
- Few third-party apps.
Garmin Fenix 6
Best Smarwatch For Athletes
Key Features:
- Compatibility: Android, iOS.
- Screen: 1.2 – 1.4 inch display.
- Water protection: Water resistant up to 100 meters (10 ATM).
- Battery Life: From 14 to 21 days in smartwatch mode.
- Sensors: Heart rate sensor, accelerometer, thermometer, barometric altimeter, digital compass,
- GPS NFC with Garmin Pay support. GPS (GPS, GLONASS and Galileo)
- Price: 600-1150 US dollars.
Fenix 6 is a specialized sports smartwatch with excellent battery life and many functions for tracking sports modes and indicators of the body.
Garmin didn’t stint on the number of models in Fenix 6 series. The series consists of as many as 19 smartwatches. They can be divided into three groups: Fenix 6, 6S and 6X. Each model is presented in different versions. There is even a Solar version of smartwatch with solar charging.
Depending on the model, the smartwatch is equipped with a color transflective screen with a diameter of 1.2 to 1.4 inches. In addition to the size of the display, the smartwatches also differ in case dimensions (diameter 42, 47 or 51 mm), battery life (from 14 to 21 days in smartwatch mode), as well as some technical features.
Regardless of the version, the watch case is made of reinforced polymer with a steel back case and a steel bezel with various coating options. The smartwatches are available with silicone, leather and nylon straps. There is also a titanium strap with QuickFit mount. The watch is waterproof up to 100 meters (10 ATM).
All Fenix 6 smartwatches are equipped with a standard set of functions for Garmin watches: Garmin ELEVATE heart rate sensors, built-in GPS (GPS, GLONASS and Galileo), NFC with Garmin Pay support, PulseOx oximeter, improved sleep monitoring, body temperature sensor, 3-axis compass, gyroscope, barometric altimeter and notifications from a smartphone.
The price of Fenix 6 smartwatches ranges from $600 to $1150, depending on the size and material of the strap. By the way, this is not the most expensive series of smartwatches from Garmin. For example, the smartwatches from MARQ series ask from $1500 to $2500.
Pros:
- Large selection of different options.
- Excellent battery life.
- Many sensors.
- High accuracy.
- Advanced sports monitoring.
- Water resistant up to 100 meters (10 ATM).
Cons:
- Expensive.
- Not everywhere Garmin Pay payment system is supported.
- Confusing application installation process.
Suunto 7
Men’s smartwatch with focus on sports
Key features of Suunto 7:
- Operating system: Wear OS.
- Compatibility: Android, iOS.
- Screen: 1.39 inches AMOLED with a resolution of 454 x 454 pixels
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 3100.
- RAM: 1 GB
- Built-in memory: 8 GB.
- Water protection: up to 50 meters (5 ATM)
- Battery life: Up to 48 hours.
- Price: From $499.
Until recently, the Finnish company Suunto, like Garmin, produced specialized sports smartwatches with in-depth monitoring of sports and fitness. But in early 2020, the company introduced its first smartwatch with an emphasis on sports.
In technical terms, Suunto 7 is not much different from the same Fossil Gen 5. It is equipped with 1.39-inch AMOLED touch screen with a resolution of 454 × 454 pixels and a brightness of up to 1000 nits.
The smartwatch has Qualcomm Snapdragon 3100 processor, 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of internal memory. The watch runs on Google Wear OS operating system.
In addition, Suunto 7 has many proprietary features and applications. There is a high-precision heart rate measurement with a Pixart sensor, and LifeQ algorithm, Sony GPS sensor. You can also use branded offline cards with thermal mode, 70 sports modes and full color Suunto Heatmaps cards.
Because of Snapdragon 3100 processor and Wear OS, the battery life is very good. The smartwatch lasts for 48 hours in smartwatch mode, or 12 hours with permanent using GPS.
The smartwatch is also not cheap – $499.
Pros:
- Large and bright screen.
- Many smart and sporty functions.
- High accuracy heart rate sensor and GPS.
Cons:
- Little battery life.
- Expensive.
Skagen Falster 3
Best smartwatch with a minimalist design
Key features of Skagen Falster 3:
- Operating system: Wear OS.
- Compatibility: Androida nd iOS.
- Screen: 1.19 inch OLED.
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 3100.
- Built-in memory: 8 GB.
- RAM: 1 GB.
- Water protection: 3 ATM.
- Battery life: 1 day
- Payment System: Google Pay
- Price: From $295.
If you want a smartwatch that looks like a mechanical watch, then Falster 3 from a well-known brand Skagen is good option.
Since Falster 3 is produced by Fossil Group, it is not surprising that specifications are not much different from Carlyle HR, which we wrote about above. However, Falster 3 has minimalist design and high-quality materials.
The smartwatch is equipped with 1.19-inch OLED touch screen and Snapdragon 3100 processor in combination with 1 GB of RAM and 8 GB of memory.
For easier navigation through Wear OS interface, the smartwatch has three physical buttons on the right side. There is a rotating head in the middle, and two other buttons on which you can assign any functions.
As for the functions, then Falster 3 is not the best smartwatch for sports. It can only count steps, track sports, sleep, measure heart rate, etc. You can receive notifications, use Google Assistant, pay for purchases using Google Pay payment system.
The price of Skagen Falster 3 is $295, while the previous version can be bought for only $150.
Pros:
- NFC with Google Pay support.
- Stylish design.
- High quality.
Cons:
- Low battery life.
- Expensive.
- Not suitable for tracking sports.
Kospet Prime
Best smartwatch with SIM card
Key Features:
- Operating system: Android 7.1.1.
- Compatibility: Android, iOS.
- Screen: 1.6 inch IPS.
- Resolution: 400 x 400 pixels.
- Processor: MTK6739 with a clock frequency of 1.25 GHz.
- RAM: 3 GB.
- Built-in memory: 32 GB.
- Protection against water: IP67.
- Battery capacity: 1260 mAh.
- Battery Life: up to 3 days.
- Price: From $140.
Most smartwatches can be used only when paired with smartphone, but there are also standalone smartwatches. Most of them have SIM card slot. Kospet Prime is one of the best smartwatches with SIM card.
The performance of Kospet Prime is similar to some budget smartphones. It is equipped with a powerful MTK6739 processor with a clock frequency of 1.25 GHz, 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal memory, two cameras with a resolution of 5MP and 8MP, SIM card slot, GPS, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and a huge 1260mAh battery.
The smartwatch runs on Android 7.1.1 operating system.
Kospet Prime has 1.6-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 400 x 400 pixels. It is touch-sensitive for convenient control of functions. In addition, the manufacturer has provided two physical buttons on the right side of the case.
As for the functions, the smartwatch make calls, send and receive messages, go online, make video calls, play audio and video, download additional apps and watch faces, measure heart rate, count steps, calories and distance, determine location and more.
Pros:
- Big screen.
- SIM card slot.
- Internal memory.
- Budget price.
Cons:
- LCD screen, not AMOLED.
- No NFC.
- Heavy and bulky.
Mobvoi TicWatch E2
Best Smartwatch in price-quality ratio
Key Features:
- Operating system: Wear OS.
- Compatibility: Android 4.3+, iOS 8+.
- Screen: 1.4 inches OLED with a resolution of 400 x 400 pixels.
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 2100.
- RAM: 512 MB.
- Built-in memory: 4 GB.
- Water protection: 5 ATM.
- Battery capacity: 415 mAh.
- Battery Life: Up to 2 days.
- Price: $16.
One of the main advantages of Mobvoi TicWatch E2 smartwatch is the price. It is one of the cheapest smartwatches on Wear OS operating system.
The smartwatch is available in only one color – black polycarbonate. The case is completely waterproof up to 50 meters (5 ATM). Case dimensions are 46 mm in diameter and 13 mm thick.
The weakest point of TicWatch E2 is outdated Snapdragon 2100 chipset and a small amount of memory: 512 MB of RAM and 4 GB of internal memory.
However, thanks to good optimization, the smartwatch copes with almost any task. TicMotion’s proprietary software can automatically recognize various types of workouts, including swimming. There is also support for third-party apps such as Strava, Runkeeper and others.
TicWatch E2 has a large 1.4-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 400 x 400 pixels, a microphone for using voice assistant, an optical heart rate sensor, an accelerometer and GPS to detemine location, speed, pace and distance while playing sports and other activity.
Pros:
- Inexpensive.
- Great screen.
- Good tracking swimming.
- Well optimized software.
Cons:
- No NFC.
- No speaker.
- Outdated processor.
- Not enough memory.
Xiaomi Mi Watch
Best smartwatch for men, but not right now
Key Features:
- Operating system: Wear OS.
- Compatibility: Android, iOS.
- Screen: 1.78-inch 326 PPI AMOLED display
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 3100.
- RAM: 1 GB
- Built-in memory: 8 GB.
- Battery lfe: Up to 36 hours.
- Price: From $185.
Xiaomi is known for its Xiaomi Mi Band series of fitness trackers and Amazfit watches. But, neither one nor the other, the Chinese manufacturer itself produces. All these devices are manufactured by Huami. However, Xiaomi is a partner of Huami.
Xiaomi Mi Watch is the first smartwatch that Xiaomi released under its own brand.
As you can see, Mi Watch has very similar design to Apple Watch, but has a slightly larger size. From other side, Xiaomi Mi Watch is much cheaper than Apple Watch. In addition, Xiaomi smartwatch has some impressive functions.
However, you should not buy Xiaomi Mi Watch right now. It is not officially sold outside of China, so many functions work only in China.
Main functions:
- Notifications of calls and messages.
- eSIM support.
- Contactless payment via NFC (rumored by Google Pay).
- Automatic detection of 10 types of workouts.
- Sleep monitoring.
- Heart rate measurement.
- Definition of VO2MAX.
- Internet connection.
- Download apps from its own store.
- Smart Home ecosystem control.
- FM radio.
- Music player.
Xiaomi Mi Watch is sold at the price of $185 for the standard version and $285 for the special version. Nothing is known about the price and availability outside of China.
Pros:
- Great screen.
- Many functions.
- Affordable price.
Cons:
- Not original design.
- Not sold outside of China.
- Raw software.
- Low battery life.
