Huawei’s Watch Ultra is a long-lasting rugged smartwatch that looks the part
Huawei, despite being banned in the US, continues to produce innovative products for the rest of the world. Its latest release, the Watch Ultra, is a high-end wearable designed for extreme sports enthusiasts who want to make a statement with their wristwatch. The Ultimate’s design is reminiscent of the Submariner or Seamaster, featuring a rotating crown on the top right and two pushers – one on the top left and the other on the bottom right. The cases are available in blue and black, with an “innovative zirconium-based liquid metal material” coating that resembles the LiquidMetal alloy found in some Omega watches.
The strap you receive with your watch depends on which watch face you choose. The more premium blue option comes with a titanium alloy band, while the black version comes with both a standard length HNBR (rubber) band and a long-length band suitable for scuba diving. Huawei is marketing the Watch Ultra to scuba divers, claiming it can last up to 24 hours at depths of 110 meters and a regular dive depth of 100 meters. Although Huawei has added additional software features for technical divers, it’s uncertain how many professional divers will switch from their mechanical watches to a digital alternative.
Inside the Watch Ultra’s case is a 1.5-inch LTPO AMOLED display with a resolution of 466 x 466 and a maximum brightness of 1,000 nits beneath a 2.3mm sapphire glass crystal. It runs on Harmony OS and includes features similar to those found in the existing Watch GT series, with the addition of a China-exclusive Golf mode and diving-specific features.
One of the most talked-about features is the battery life, with Huawei promising up to 14 days if used sparingly. Realistically, users should expect to get around eight days with normal use. The company did not disclose the battery life if the watch was used for an extended period, such as during a long run with GPS enabled. However, it’s likely that the 530mAh cell would last long enough for most people to complete a marathon.
The Watch Ultra also includes integrations with Strava and Runtastic and Huawei-branded fitness tracking features. This includes TruSeen 5.0 heart-rate monitoring, TruSleep 3.0 sleep tracking, a built-in ECG, and continuous SpO2 monitoring. There’s also a new Expedition Mode that uses the dual-band GPS to help users find their way, no matter how far they wander off the beaten path. Huawei claims that the watch can charge from flat to full in 60 minutes and get a 25 percent charge in just 10 minutes.
Huawei has not announced pricing for the Watch Ultra yet, but it will become available in the UK and Europe on April 3rd. The watch will only be available in a Bluetooth version, with no LTE-enabled model or emergency calling options. As with any Huawei product, standard caveats apply.