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The OnePlus Watch Lite is here with a sleek design, reasonable price, and dual-phone pairing

Unfortunately, it's not coming to the US.

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By Adrian Diaconescu

Published: Dec 18, 2025, 3:48 AM

You know what goes great with a (relatively) inexpensive high-end phone and an ultra-affordable new jumbo-sized tablet? That's right, a budget-friendly smartwatch, which is exactly what OnePlus has put up for pre-order alongside the 15R handset and the Pad Go 2 yesterday.

The reason the brand-new OnePlus Watch Lite got less attention than the other two just-unveiled products is fairly easy to guess, but I believe this low-cost alternative to the likes of the Apple Watch Series 11, Samsung Galaxy Watch 8, and yes, OnePlus Watch 3 does deserve a little recognition for a few other reasons.

No Wear OS - a curse or a blessing in disguise?

If you've become a fan of Google's wearable software platform in recent years, you'll probably not be thrilled to hear that the latest OnePlus timepiece uses the proprietary OxygenOS Watch instead of Wear OS.

This is a pretty neat feature that wouldn't have been possible on Wear OS. | Image Credit -- OnePlus

But while that's obviously guaranteed to give you access to far fewer useful and popular apps on your wrist, there are also a couple of key advantages you should consider before rejecting a potential OnePlus Watch Lite purchase. For one thing, the OnePlus-made operating system helps the wearable device squeeze up to 10 days (!!!) of battery life from a remarkably thin and lightweight design.

That probably wouldn't have been possible on Wear OS, especially with a large and sharp 1.46-inch AMOLED touchscreen equipped with a resolution of 464 x 464 pixels using energy like crazy.

Are you buying the OnePlus Watch Lite?

Absolutely I'm still thinking about it Probably not I'd buy it, but it's not available in my country It's not available near me, but I wouldn't get it anyway

Perhaps the even cooler thing made possible by OxygenOS is dual-phone pairing, which is... a pretty aptly named feature. The OnePlus Watch Lite can be connected simultaneously to two different handsets, one of which can be an iPhone and the other an Android, delivering notifications from both smartphones for folks who like to live a double life (I'm looking at you, James Bond).

And that's not all

Of course, the OnePlus Watch Lite also offers other impressive (or at least decent) features and tools for its affordable price, including both blood oxygen and wrist temperature sensors, as well as fall detection and in-depth sleep tracking. Compared to something like the aforementioned OnePlus Watch 3, a few key technologies are unsurprisingly missing (like ECG and vascular health monitoring), but all in all, I don't think you can complain about the bang for your buck (or pound, or euro) provided here.

OnePlus Watch Lite in Silver Steel color

The OnePlus Watch Lite is undeniably stylish in both silver and black colorways. | Image Credit -- OnePlus

Not when you consider the surprisingly robust stainless steel construction, the 8.9mm profile (the OnePlus Watch 3 is almost 3 millimeters thicker, in case you're wondering), dual-band GPS support guaranteeing ultra-accurate location tracking pretty much wherever the road might take you, or the top-notch IP68 and 5ATM ratings for water and dust resistance.

In short, you're looking at an undeniably handsome and remarkably feature-packed intelligent timepiece here... for its price point.

How much does it cost and is it worth it?

£159 in the UK, €159 in many other European territories, and yes, absolutely. Oh, you weren't expecting such a clear-cut, decisive answer? Well, I can't put on a diplomatic mask or play an ambiguous card when dealing with such an objectively amazing value proposition.

£159, mind you, converts to $212, while €159 is equal to $186 today, which puts the OnePlus Watch Lite roughly at the same level as the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE and well below the likes of the Galaxy Watch 8 or Google Pixel Watch 3.

The 10-day battery life is definitely a key selling point here. | Image Credit -- OnePlus

The modest app support remains by far the biggest weakness of this otherwise almost flawless low-cost smartwatch, so if you don't have a big problem with that (and if you live in a country where the OnePlus Watch Lite is up for pre-order ahead of a December 24 release), you should strongly consider pulling the trigger ASAP.

If you do, you can even score a complimentary pair of the surprisingly powerful OnePlus Nord Buds 3 Pro for a limited time, which is a pretty incredible launch promotion. Too bad there are no words on US availability.

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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.

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