10 Best Budget Smartwatches in the Philippines 2023 | Huawei, realme, and More

When choosing a budget-friendly smartwatch, it’s essential to consider which features you need and which ones you can let go of. Since more features often equate to a higher price, we’ve listed down the most important ones below.

For more seamless syncing, it’s essential to choose a smartwatch that’s compatible with your other gadgets. And for this reason, we recommend selecting one that comes from the same brand. This makes it easier to connect, monitor, and customize your smartwatch through your smartphone or tablet and vice versa.  

In terms of connectivity, select a Bluetooth-compatible smartwatch so that it can easily sync with your smartphone or headset. Some smartwatches also come with Wi-Fi and cellular connections, which is recommended if you plan to use them to make calls, texts, payments, and use other applications on your device.

When choosing a smartwatch, it's best to go for a durable and lightweight model that you can wear for a long time. It must be at least water-resistant to keep it safe against sweat or light splashes, as indicated by its IP rating. For this, go for a smartwatch that has an IP67 rating or higher.

However, if you plan to use it for swimming, diving, or other extreme sports, opt for one that's waterproof, as measured by its ATM rating. It should also be dustproof and shockproof, especially for those who live an active lifestyle. Hence, select a model that has a 5 ATM rating and above.

Also, check if the smartwatch is made from durable materials such as aluminum alloy for the body and TPU or silicone for the straps. And to prevent straining your wrist, we recommend selecting one that weighs less than 50 grams. These features allow you to wear your watch comfortably for a long time.

Since you’ll most probably use your smartwatch the whole day, it should last between 12 to 24 hours when fully charged. Some can even last for a few days without charging! However, this may depend on your usage. For instance, heavy applications such as GPS could drain the battery fast. 

Alert notifications could also take a toll on the battery. To conserve your battery, it’s best to turn on only the important notification and turn off the rest. Nonetheless, your smartwatch should be fast-charging, especially when you’re always on the go.

Despite its lower price tag, it’s still important to select a smartwatch that has a high-resolution display. LCD or AMOLED screens are often used for budget-friendly smartwatches, yet they still give you clear and crisp images. 

OLED is also utilized for affordable smartwatches; however, it's more common in high-end models. Besides that, you need to take note of the pixel ratio of the device to get a high-quality display. Essentially, the higher the resolution, the higher the price.

Smartwatches either have touchless or touchscreen displays. For the latter, you need to use your finger to navigate the watch. But if you find it difficult to navigate through the small display, go for a touchless one that has a knob on the side. Some smartwatches are a mix of both to give the users more options.

Nowadays, smartwatches come in different designs, which you can choose depending on your style. Whether you select one with a rectangular, square, or circular watch face or a silicone or leather strap, make sure to go for a smartwatch that you can pair with most of your outfits.