Best Smartwatches of 2023 for Your iPhone and Android Smartphones

2023 has been a great year for smartwatches. We have seen significant improvement in every category, whether budget, WearOS, or rugged or sporty smartwatches. Each one of them has a great variety of excellent hardware and software. I have tested almost all the smartwatches this year, so here are the 6 best smartwatches of 2023 that I have personally tested for an extended period of time.

This is an important disclaimer: I am not including Apple Watch on the list because everybody has a good idea of which is the best smartwatch for your iPhone.

So, let’s find out the best smartwatches of 2023.

	Redmi Watch 2	Google Pixel 2	Amazfit Cheetah Pro	Amazfit Balance	Galaxy Watch 6 Pro	Xiaomi S1 Pro
Price	$70	$350	$299	$249	$429	$270
Chipset	N/A	Snapdragon Qualcomm 5100	N/A	N/A	Dual Core Exynos W9930
Screen	1.6-inch AMOLED	1.2-inch AMOLED	1.45-inch AMOLED	1.5-inch AMOLED	1.5-inch AMOLED	1.47-inch AMOLED
RAM+ROM	N/A	2GB + 32GB	N/A	N/A	2GB + 16GB	N/A
Battery	225mAh	306mAh	440mAh	475mAh	425mAh	500mAh
Speaker & Mic	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
NFC	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
LTE	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	No
Sensors	Accelerometer, Heart Rate Sensor, Compass, SpO2	Accelerometer, Gyro, HR sensor, Altimeter, Compass, SpO2, Thermometer	BioTracker PPH HR sensor, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Geomagnetic sensor, Altimeter, Ambient Light Sensor	BioTracker 5.0, BIA Bioelectric Impedance Sensor, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Geomagnetic Sensor, Air Pressure Sensor, Ambient Light Sensor, Temperature Sensor.	Accelerometer, Proximity Sensor, Gyroscope, Compass, Heart Rate Sensor, Barometer and Thermometer	Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer, Heart Rate Sensor, SpO2, Thermometer
Weight	31 grams	31 grams	34 grams	35 grams	33 grams	48.5 grams

 

Best Budget Smartwatch – Redmi Watch 3

Redmi Watch 3 is the best budget smartwatch of 2023. Priced at just $70, it has a GPS, a large 1.75-inch AMOLED display, the ability to receive phone calls, close to two weeks of battery life per charge, and numerous sports modes at a fantastic price tag. It can be considered a hybrid of a fitness tracker and a decent smartwatch.

The smartwatch looks fine from the software side as well. Xiaomi continues to push regular updates, which is a good sign of the longevity of the smartwatch.

Yes, some corners have been cut, like no NFC, and the watch does not allow you to access internal storage. Overall, the Redmi Watch 3 has a great design, and given the price tag and features, it’s almost impossible to be disappointed.

Best Premium Smartwatch – Google Pixel Watch 2

The most premium smartwatch on our list is the Google Pixel Watch 2. It looks almost the same as Pixel 1. It is mostly glass and might be a little small for some people. Google Pixel Watch 2 is a bittersweet symphony for hardcore Android users.

The bitter side can be the software-related challenges, where the smartwatch can take hours to set up due to an error. Moreover, the massive price tag is another disappointing thing. But if we look at the sweet side, there are a number of improvements, like the refined software experience, improved smartphone apps, a really good chipset, a bigger battery, and best-in-class software support.

So, there is plenty to appreciate. Moreover, future updates and AI enhancements might make it an even better smartwatch.

Best Sporty Smartwatch – Amazfit Cheetah Pro

Amazfit has had an amazing year. They have kind of revamped their ecosystem and changed the names, which I really like. Amazfit Cheetah Pro is a successor to the GTR series, and one thing that I really liked is the ability to be entirely controlled via buttons. It has everything that an athlete would want in a smartwatch. It has an extremely accurate GPS that quickly captures the signals. You can add some apps from the Zepp store. Moreover, you can integrate apps like Strava and Google Fit, which are essential for athletes.

The health tracking is incredible and covers everything you might need. In addition, Amazfit has also added many productivity tools to enhance the user experience. The price of Cheetah Pro is also very balanced; it undercuts most of its competitors, including Garmin, Suunto, and Coros.

Best Battery Life – Amazfit Balance

Amazfit Balance has one of the biggest batteries in the smartwatch realm. Its 500mAh battery can last 14 days with normal usage and about half as long with the display always on and strenuous use.

Yes, the battery has played a big role in making it a great device but another contributor to its incredible endurance is the Zepp OS and the hardware. Both of them are significantly less demanding which makes Amazfit Balance the best smartwatch in terms of battery life.

Best WearOS Smartwatch – Galaxy Watch 6 Pro

Samsung has designed an exceptional smartwatch. You probably won’t like the price tag or the battery life, but besides these two, Galaxy Watch 6 Pro is a convincingly good smartwatch. It has Google Assistant, and you can switch to Bixby if you want. Other than that, it has all the modern amenities like a fitness screen, a solid chipset, a beautiful AMOLED screen, and much more.

One of the greatest features is the rotating bezel, which allows you to easily control the smartwatch. Moreover, Samsung UI’s special treatment over WearOS makes it even better. One thing that needs to be improved is the smartphone ecosystem. It is fragmented into five apps, which makes it quite complicated.

Best Feature Watch – Xiaomi S1 Pro

Xiaomi S1 Pro is an underrated device. It was launched at $300, but now you can get it for even $200. S1 Pro has a tempting price and a great-looking fitness tracker with many smartwatch features and a pretty awesome design. It is great for health tracking and sports tracking and comes with a lot of productivity tools. It can even make phone calls.

But sadly, there is no LTE version, and the 46mm dial is a little too big for my wrists. Other than that, the Xiaomi S1 Pro is an excellent combination of unique features, extraordinary battery life, and a reliable smartphone app. Moreover, the reduced price makes it even more tempting.

Conclusion

2023 has been a great year for smartwatches not only the 6 mentioned shown improvement, other devices from Garmin and Coros had made advancements in the right direction. A significant upgrade for me this year is the WearOS and new Snapdragon chipset. The brand with biggest upgrade for me was Amazfit, they have revamped their smartwatch line up and made Zepp OS significantly better and useful.

For a better assessment, watch my YouTube videos to learn more about these amazing devices.