Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro review – now synced with Strava, kind of like

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I reviewed 42mm Huawei Watch GT 3 As early as November 2021, in May of this year, Huawei launched the Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro.

Like previous iterations, the Pro model is basically the same as the GT 3, but you now get premium materials in the form of a titanium body and sapphire glass.

Specifications/Key Features

Komoot / Runtastic / Strava / Third Party Support

I emphasize this first because it is one of the most important aspects of the watch (to me).

The official press release for the watch indicates the presence of third-party app sync:

Over 100 workout modes including Smart Running Planner. It helps develop a personal running plan based on an individual’s physical and running history and their performance goals. It evaluates data such as pace, heart rate, distance and professional advice developed with runners; and syncs this data with other compatible devices, Includes over 60 workout apps from around the world, such as Runtastic and Komoot. This makes it the perfect training companion.

For me it’s huge and the inability to sync with Strava has been one of the main reasons why I wouldn’t wear a Huawei watch for my personal use.

However, the only two services I was able to connect to were Adidas and Komoot, not Strava.

The best explanation I can find is that I didn’t set my Huawei ID to a Strava-enabled country. I’ve seen at least one review with Strava screenshots under service settings, so it must be there for some.

I hope/expect a 3rd party service coming soon as this will make the watch more appealing to the fitness crowd.

Design and Build Quality

I reviewed the 42mm Huawei Watch GT 3 before, so the overall design of the 46mm GT 3 Pro is quite different.

However, as far as a smartwatch goes, this looks and feels great. This watch can nicely look like a traditional automatic watch if you choose the right dial.

The titanium case and sapphire glass mean this should easily resist the scratches that many wearables are prone to.

This watch uses a 22mm quick release strap, and there are a variety of straps available for purchase. All straps fit the 46mm Watch 3, GT2 & 3, GT2e and GT2 Pro.

I think any 22mm quick release strap should work with this watch, there are plenty of options on amazon or amazon Etsy is a great option If you want something more premium or unique.

Compared to the standard GT 3, the 42mm model gets a more dramatic makeover. It now has an attractive white case and finish, using ceramic instead of titanium, with gold or silver trim.

HarmonyOS – Features and Apps

GT 3 series in lite version Hongmeng OSwhich is a significant improvement over LiteOS (the old GT model used).

There are still very few useful apps in the AppGallery, but the number has grown to about 32 apps compared to the 24 apps I had when I looked at the GT3 in November.

Petal Maps is probably the most useful app. There is also the Hue Essentials app for controlling Philips Hue devices.

Huawei Wallet/Pay

There’s an NFC chip inside, and it supports Huawei Wallet, so you could theoretically use it for contactless payments. However, in my case it shows that my current wearable does not support this service.

I think it’s another regional issue.

Outdoor Fitness / Strava Sync

Since I couldn’t get native third-party sync to work, I had to resort to the Health Sync app. As always, this is a less than ideal solution.In my case I had difficulty connecting the Huawei Health app properly when using Health Sync Honor Magic 4 Pro. I had to dig out my old Huawei P30 Pro and sync through it.

And, as usual, report distance under the Health Sync app. Apparently this is due to the way Stava calculates distances when you import GPS data. I’m not sure how it manages to consistently underreport distance, but it does, and you should factor that into any match or PB attempt you might be doing.

There are two new activities, but you are unlikely to use them. Golf is unique to the Chinese market, the other is free diving.

Import routes using Komoot

Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro supports routing, which can be imported manually through the mobile phone or imported through Komoot. The process is very simple:

• Go to the “Me” tab
• choose my route
• Import from Kommot
• linked account
• Choose a route

After importing routes, you can:

• Choose a route
• Press the four dots in the upper right corner
• send to wearable

On the watch:

• Go to the start event page
• Scroll to the activity you want and press the gear
• Scroll down to Routes and select the route you want to take

How to connect with third-party services, including Adidas and Strava

It took me a long time to figure out where the third-party settings were, and when I found them, I couldn’t connect to the 60 workout apps the press release stated. I only have two choices, Adidas and Komoot.

This looks like a region specific issue. However, to access third-party services, you will need:

• Go to the “Me” tab
• go to privacy management
• Go to Data Sharing and Authorization
• Choose the service you want and link your account.

Optical Heart Rate Accuracy During Exercise

The Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro uses the same optical wrist-mounted heart rate sensor as the GT 3, with similar accuracy.

I’ve been having issues with wrist heart rate due to my bony wrists, but both the Huawei Watch GT 3 and GT 3 performed better than average in my opinion.

On my 8-mile run, the GT 3 Pro matched my polar realism Until about 42 minutes, the readings started to drift off a bit. This coincided with my effort increasing to my threshold heart rate.

There were no significantly inaccurate readings, a difference of about 4bpm at worst, and an almost identical average HR.

GPS accuracy

I would say the GPS accuracy is about the same as my Garmin Fenix ​​6 Pro. Neither is perfect, but I can’t see any lines that are very far from my line. GPS lock times are also about the same as the Garmin.

health tracking

The same goes for health tracking, which is pretty good, arguably comparable to Garmin.

My sleep habits are weird, and Huawei is confused when I sleep before 8pm. I usually fell asleep around that time, but once, while using it, it tracked naps from 7:30pm to 8pm and then started tracking sleep normally. This is a bug that is unlikely to affect most people.

Huawei advertises it as being able to do EKGs, but it seems that’s another feature that isn’t available yet.

Battery

Huawei’s battery life is always great. Huawei claims 14 days of normal use. I have all settings enabled, including SPO2 and skin temperature, and I use GPS a lot. I got about a week of use out of it, and it easily outperformed my Garmin Fenix ​​6 Pro.

It charges wirelessly and is compatible with regular wireless chargers. However, it needs to lay flat, and I found it to be slow to charge using the random charger I had lying around. It’s still preferable to the proprietary charger Garmin uses.

price and competition

The Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro is priced at £379.99 on Amazon, while the grey leather strap is priced at just £299.99, and you can also get a 17% discount via the coupon on the page.

The attractive 43mm model costs £430. Then the 46mm titanium strap model is £429.99.

On the Huawei website, both the black and grey models are £299.99, and you can also get some free Huawei Freebuds Pro.

The Huawei Watch GT 2 Pro costs just £164, but lacks any form of installable apps or navigation.

The standard Huawei Watch GT 3 is currently £229 with a 22% off coupon available.

The Huawei Watch 3 (not the GT) is also £229.00, or £340 for the Pro model. This will have more smartwatch features, but only 5 days of battery in full smartwatch mode.

The Mi Watch S1 and S1 Active are priced around £180 and £200. They are good watches, but nowhere near the GT3 models.

At just £300, the Garmin Venu 2 is far superior for a sports watch, but I would say not as good as a smartwatch.

comprehensive

The Huawei Watch GT 3 feels like a major upgrade from the GT 2 series. It offers some of the improved smartwatch features of the Huawei Watch 3 without the price or reduced battery life.

The Huawei Watch GT 3 Pro doesn’t bring much new other than premium materials and a different aesthetic, but it doesn’t cost too much either. I think the titanium body and sapphire glass justify the cost, they make the watch more durable, and it’s one of the best looking smartwatches on the market.

Komoot classes are now available and sync up to 3^rd In terms of party services, the Huawei Watch GT 3 series is starting to be more attractive to fitness enthusiasts.

The main problem is AppGallery’s lack of various features and slow progress. Now that Huawei is finally allowing third-party syncing, some of those services seem to be region-dependent, which seems crazy. Since Huawei Wallet is not available in the UK (I assume anywhere but China), I don’t think the app should show any reference to it. As for the AppGallery, there are a bunch of random apps like Love Test, S7 Airlines, and two separate prayer apps, but very few really useful ones.

Last updated on June 17, 2022 / Affiliate Links / Image from Amazon Product Advertising API