Affordable and Top-Tier: Stiftung Warentest's Picked Smartwatches and Fitness Trackers
Premier smartwatches and fitness bands lead the market in quality.
If you're in the market for a new smartwatch, Stiftung Warentest's recent tests on 40 devices reveal a wide selection of quality options. Although the Apple Watch continues to lead, there's no shortage of worthy competitors, including some budget-friendly models.
Smartwatches
Stiftung Warentest placed five devices in the top spot, all scoring a rating of 1.6. These include:
- Apple Watch 10 (GPS) - At an average price of around 460 euros, it boasts excellent fitness functions such as heart rate measurement, step counting, and distance tracking. Communication and features like music and sleep tracking also scored well. However, the battery life could be better.
- Apple Watch 8 (GPS) - Priced between 420 and 450 euros, this Oldie but Goodie also earned a rating of 1.6. Similar to the Apple Watch 10, it performs well across various categories, though it, too, has satisfactory battery life.
- Google Pixel Watch 3 (45 mm/Bluetooth/WLAN) - Priced around 400 euros, this smartwatch shares the top spot with the Apple series. Like its competitors, it received high ratings for fitness functions, communication, handling, stability, and processing. The battery life is once again only satisfactory.
- Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra - With a price tag of around 440 euros, this device features the same strong points as its counterparts but wasn't rated as highly for its somewhat weak battery life.
- Samsung Galaxy Watch FE - This price-performance winner among smartwatches retails for an average of around 175 euros. In spite of its lower cost, it boasts a strong quality rating of 1.7, thanks to consistently strong ratings across all other categories.
The least expensive good smartwatch on the list is the Xiaomi Redmi Watch 5 Lite, available for under 50 euros. Despite its budget-friendly price, it scored well for battery life, stability, and processing. Fitness functions, handling, and communication were all rated good.
A device like the Huawei Watch Fit 2 Active Edition, priced around 70 euros, offers good fitness functions and satisfactory battery life.
Fitness Trackers
The sole top performer among fitness trackers is the Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Pro, offered online for around 70 euros, with a quality rating of 2.2. Battery life, stability, and processing were rated very good, while fitness functions just missed the mark, receiving a rating of good. Communication capabilities were only satisfactory.
For those who value communication more and are willing to spend around 45 euros, the Samsung Galaxy Fit3 could be the right choice. This device earned an overall quality rating of 2.4, with strong features in other categories, including handling, stability, and processing. Fitness functions and battery life were good.
- Tech Tests
- Smartwatch
- Stiftung Warentest
- Fitness
- Apple Watch
- Google Pixel
- Samsung Galaxy
According to Stiftung Warentest's latest findings, there are high-performing smartwatches and fitness trackers across a variety of price points, ranging from budget-friendly to premium offerings. Among the top smartwatches are the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE, providing good value for a reasonable price, and the Xiaomi models, ideal for budget-conscious users. The Apple and Garmin ranges lead the premium segment, showcasing advanced fitness and health tracking capabilities [1][3][5].
The Commission has also proposed a directive on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the protection of employees against risks related to exposure to chemical substances in a smart-home environment, where gadgets such as smartwatches and fitness trackers, like the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE, Xiaomi Redmi Watch 5 Lite, Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Pro, and others, are increasingly prevalent due to advancements in technology. These devices, while offering a wide range of fitness and communication features, may pose potential chemical risks, thus the need for stricter regulations.
