OnePlus Nord Watch review: Not perfect, yet makes a good budget smartwatch

The One Nord Watch is not perfect, yet it makes a good purchase at Rs 4,999 because the smartwatch covers the fundamentals right in terms of design and features

OnePlus made its debut in the smartwatch category last year with the launch of the OnePlus Watch. Expanding the line further, the Chinese electronic maker recently launched its second smartwatch in India. Named the Nord Watch, the smartwatch is supported by the N Health smartphone app, which is available on both Android and iOS platforms. At Rs 4,999, the Nord Watch boasts rectangular design, big AMOLED touchscreen, 100+ customisable watch faces, and more. On paper, the Nord Watch seems to be a good value proposition in the budget segment. Is it? Let’s find out:

Design

Unlike the OnePlus Watch, which has a circular dial, the Nord Watch has a rectangular dial with curved corners. It sports a 1.78-inch AMOLED screen of 60Hz refresh rate and 500nits peak brightness level.  The smartwatch has a side-mounted button for navigation, which can be rotated too, but doing so does precisely nothing. The watch looks a bit bulky because of the extended strap rings, although the straps are easily detachable. The body of the watch is made up of zinc alloy and plastic, while the bands are made of flexible and breathable silicone material. It is IP68 rated for protection against dust and water damages.

Performance

The first-generation Nord Watch boots a Real Time operating system (RTOS), which means no third-party apps can be downloaded on the watch. It lacks an always-on display, but the rise-to-wake works fine. The watch has over 100+ customisable Watch Faces, but only five can be stored on the watch at a time. For more options, users can use the N Health app.

One can see the incoming calls and message notification on the watch. The watch allows the user to reject the call, but there is no provision to attend the call on the watch. Similarly, users cannot respond to the messages from the watch. On a positive side, the Watch lets users control their phone’s camera and music.

As for health and fitness features, the Watch has over 105 sports modes built-in and supports automatic workout detection for walking and running. However, it was often unable to detect when running workout during the review process. The watch has built-in sensors to track sleep, steps, stress, women’s cycle, SpO2, and more. Surprisingly, the measurements on most of these metrics were reasonably accurate. Besides, it is capable of tracking heart rate.

The Watch sends reminders to take a walk or rest. However, there is no provision for alerts for any abnormal activity. The watch does not have built-in GPS, so it cannot be used to track outdoor workouts.

Other features include do not disturb, theatre mode, calendar, focus timer, phone finder, weather forecasting, Bluetooth 5.2 for wireless connectivity, and more. Powered by a 230mAh battery, the watch can be fully charged in an hour and lasts up to almost 10 days.

Verdict

The OnePlus Nord Watch makes a good purchase for those with tight budgets. It is not perfect; lacks GPS, always-on display, and struggles to auto-detect workout. Yet, it makes a good purchase because of its price. Moreover, it covers the fundamentals right and ticks all the right boxes in terms of design and features.