Good watches from 130 euros
These are the best smartwatches and fitness trackers
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Stiftung Warentest is testing 17 new smartwatches and fitness trackers. Two good newcomers cost only around 130 euros, and you only have to shell out 40 euros for the best value for money.
They are also called watches, but smartwatches and fitness trackers can do much more than just show the time. They serve as heart rate and altimeters, measure blood pressure or create an ECG, count steps, calculate distances traveled and calories burned. If you want, you can use them to analyze your sleeping habits. Some can also play music, make phone calls or send and receive messages.
Stiftung Warentest has tested 17 new smartwatches and fitness trackers and now has a total of 138 available devices in its database. The best smartwatches still come from Apple, Garmin and Google, but a cheaper newcomer is almost as good. When it comes to fitness trackers, a newcomer costing 25 euros was not convincing.
Apple Watch 8 defends its lead
With smartwatches, the Apple Watch 8 (GPS) with a quality rating of 1.6. It offers very good fitness functions, including heart rate monitoring, pedometer and distance measurement. It also performed very well in terms of communication and other functions such as music features or sleep monitoring. The same applies to handling, stability and workmanship. The testers, however, rated the mileage as only satisfactory. The Apple Watch 8 costs an average of around 470 euros in online stores.
With an overall score of 1.7, the successor Apple Watch 9 (GPS) only came in second place. The watch, which costs around 475 euros, performed slightly worse in some categories such as communication. Its biggest slip-up was in endurance, which Stiftung Warentest found to be only adequate.
The Apple Watch Series 6 (2022), which can be purchased from around 305 euros. Nevertheless, it achieved the same quality rating. It does not measure the pulse quite as accurately as the 9, but it is better at measuring distance and also has a satisfactory mileage.
The enormous surcharge for the 890 Euro expensive Apple Watch Series 2 You can also save yourself the trouble of reviewing it, as it only received an overall score of 1.7. Surprisingly, the reviewers did not find it to be any more stable than Apple's normal phones. But at least the battery of the Ultra 2 is satisfactory.
New top 10 smartwatch for only 130 euros
The best non-Apple smartwatch is the Garmin Venu 2 Pluswhich is offered online for an average of 365 euros. It also achieved an overall score of 1.7. In terms of fitness functions, it received three very good ratings for pulse and distance measurement and pedometer. The testers also considered handling, stability and workmanship to be very good. Communication and other functions were rated as good, as was endurance.
The newer, 450 Euro expensive Garmin Vivoactive 3 can't quite keep up. It is one of nine smartwatches that achieved a quality rating of 1.8. The weaker result is due, among other things, to a pulse measurement that is only good.
A similar fate is shared by the Google Pixel Watch 2which, like its predecessor, also received an overall score of 1.8. The new version is a less accurate pedometer, which is why it only received a good rating for its fitness functions. However, it is more durable than the first generation. The average online price of the Pixel Watch 2 is 355 euros.
The newcomer did almost as well Xiaomi Mi Band 2 which managed to take 8th place with a quality rating of 2.0. With a price of around 130, it is also the cheapest top 10 smartwatch. Its fitness functions are good, which is mainly thanks to the very accurate pedometer. In terms of communication, the watch is even as strong as the Apple Watch 9 with a partial rating of 1.4. It is easy to handle and very stable. The Xiaomi Watch Pro only missed out on an even better ranking because of its only satisfactory battery performance.
If the demands are not too high, you can use the new Xiaomi Redmi Watch 3 a bargain. It costs just under 40 euros, but still achieved a respectable overall result of 2.7. The testers found the fitness functions and communication satisfactory, handling and endurance good, and stability very good.
New top 10 smartwatch for only 130 euros
When it comes to fitness trackers, the Fitbit Charge 6 (134 euros) with an overall score of 2.3. Fitness functions, handling and battery received good marks, stability and workmanship were rated very good by the product testers. Communication and other functions were rated as satisfactory.
Second place is still occupied by the Garmin Vivosmart 5 (2.4/ 140 euros). It is not as robust as the test winner, but is very good as a heart rate monitor and pedometer. However, because it only records the distance covered adequately, it only achieved a good result in the fitness category overall.
The only newcomer in this category, the 25 Euro cheap Xiaomi Smart Band 8 Active was unable to convince the testers despite an overall satisfactory performance (3.3). Not only are its communication features merely adequate, but also its fitness functions – and that is unacceptable for a fitness tracker.
