realme Watch S

The realme Watch S is a sports focused smartwatch released in November 2020. realme is a popular smartphone manufacturer and is a subsidiary of BBK Electronics. BBK  also owns the Oppo, OnePlus and Vivo brands.

The realme Watch S is using the Ambiq AMA3B processor, also known as the Apollo3 Blue. While the watch responsiveness is OK, it is not the fastest we have seen and sometimes lags.

The watch is using a proprietary operating system. There are only a limited number of apps on the watch and no app store is available to add any additional apps. What you see, is what you get for apps on this smartwatch.

Design

The Watch S has a circular watch face design with a aluminum case.  The watch is only available in black and while it won’t win any design competitions, it has an attractive overall look and feel. This smartwatch is on the larger size at 47.0 x 47.0 x 12.0 mm and weighs 48g. The 12.0 mm thickness is on the larger size and could be uncomfortable for some to wear while sleeping.

The Watch S comes with a 22mm silicone interchangeable strap. The strap is comfortable and quality is acceptable for this low price point.

You can interact with the watch using the touchscreen and 2 physical buttons. The touchscreen works very well and typically does not lag, but occasionally does. The user interface is simple to navigate and fonts are easy to read.

The Watch S has a IP68 water resistance rating which allows you to get it wet but swimming is not advised. While hand washing should be OK, caution should be taken in showers.

Screen

The screen of the Watch S does an acceptable job but it is not as good as an AMOLED screen. The 1.3″ IPS Touchscreen comes with 320 x 320 pixels and 278 ppi pixel density. Indoors the display is good while outdoors it is not the greatest.

The Watch S uses Corning Gorilla Glass to protect the screen. Since it is not a rugged watch, we expect protection to be limited. That being said given the low price, build quality appears to be good.

Unfortunately, the watch does not have an always on screen option. The watch allows for custom watchfaces which is a nice feature.

Battery

The Watch S comes with a 390 mAh battery. realme claims that typical usage battery life is 15 days. Real world battery life is a bit under this claim but it is quite good when compared to other smartwatches.

Connectivity Features

From a connectivity perspective, the Watch S has limited functionality when compared to full featured smartwatches. The watch can only receive notifications and there is no ability to respond to notifications from the watch. Note that emojis are not supported in the notifications.

The Watch S also lacks many connectivity features:

• Does not have a speaker or microphone hence cannot answer or place calls via Bluetooth
• Does not have a camera
• Does not have cellular connectivity
• Does not have GPS
• Does not have Near Field Communication (NFC) for payments

Health and Fitness Features

The Watch S comes with 5 sensors: Accelerometer, Ambient light, Gyroscope, Heart Rate Monitor (HRM), Pulse Oximeter (SpO2). These only cover a few fitness and health areas. These sensors allow you to track the following 7 metrics: Blood Oxygen Level, Calories, Distance, Fitness Level, Heart Rate, Sleep, Steps. Unfortunately heart rate tracking, step counting and sleep tracking are not that accurate.

Also included are 16 different sports modes. When compared to more fitness or health focused watches, the Watch S is quite limited. If fitness and health monitoring are key features you are interested in, this watch is not ideal.

realme Link App

The realme Watch S uses the realme Link app, which is actually pretty good. The app is not cluttered, easy to navigate and works quite well. The inaccurate sensor data from the watch, detract from the good app experience. You can see how the realme Link app ranks on our Smartwatch Apps Page.

Internal Photos

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Known Issues

As this watch has just recently been released, there are no common known issues.

Verdict

More of a fitness band in a smartwatch format given the limited connectivity features and poor tracking accuracy. Build quality, battery life and app are decent. Price is expensive considering it is a glorified fitness band.

Specifications

Published: December 30, 2020