Huawei Watch 5 review: a health and fitness powerhouse
Huawei's new flagship watch impresses with top-tier build quality, robust battery life and an innovative X-TAP health check feature. Can it overshadow the ecosystem-rich Samsung and Apple watches?
The Huawei Watch 5 is Huawei's most advanced smartwatch to date, introducing significant improvements in health monitoring, build quality, and user interface. It continues the legacy of blending futuristic technology with style, and this time around, it adds some industry-first features that elevate the smartwatch experience even further.
What’s New:
- X-TAP multi-sensing technology - Combines ECG, fingertip PPG (photoplethysmography), and pressure sensors for advanced health readings and interaction.
- Real-time fingertip SpO2 - Industry-first continuous oxygen monitoring via fingertip for improved precision.
- Health glance & HRV - One-tap mini health check now includes Heart Rate Variability and emotional stress tracking.
- Gesture control - Perform actions like answering calls with simple hand gestures.
- Aerospace-grade titanium model - Stronger, lighter materials with rare color options like Chromatic Purple.
Huawei Watch 5 Specs, Models, and Prices
Huawei Watch 5 - image by PhoneArena
For the first time ever, the Huawei Watch 5 comes in distinct male and female designs (which come in fitting 46mm and 42mm sizes, respectively) and various finishes, including aerospace-grade titanium and 904L stainless steel. As usual for Huawei's high-end watch, it has eSIM support built in. Of course, it is compatible with both Android and iOS, but this time it comes with Huawei's latest Harmony OS Next platform (launching with version 5.1). Depending on the model, it offers up to 11 days of battery life (in battery saver mode).
Huawei Watch 5 models
For this review, I’m testing the 46mm version in black stainless steel case, coupled with the black silicone strap, which is very convenient. I briefly tried the silver titanium model, which, to me, is the ultimate looker, but the band immediately started pulling on my wrist hairs (painful stuff!), so I decided to switch to the black silicone model instead.
| Huawei Watch 5 | Specs |
|---|---|
| Display | 1.5" LTPO AMOLED | 3000 nits peak brightness |
| Battery Life | Up to 11 days (power saver) | up to 4.5 days in standard mode (46mm) Up to 7 days (power saver) | up to 3 days in standard mode (42mm) |
| Water Resistance | 5 ATM |
| GPS | Huawei Sunflower Positioning + Offline Maps |
| Operating System | Harmony OS Next 5.1 |
Pricing varies by model, with the base stainless steel editions starting around £399 (around $530) and titanium versions climbing higher. This positions it close to the Apple Watch Series 10, but with way longer battery life and and minus the apps
Huawei Watch 5 Design, Sizes, and Bands
Huawei Watch 5 - image by PhoneArena
The Huawei Watch 5 stands out with its aerospace-grade titanium body and refined, seamless design that wraps ergonomically around the wrist. It’s lightweight, durable, and available in elegant colorways like silver and purple. I'm personally using the black, 316L stainless steel case model, and I can find nothing wrong with it. The female options at 42mm are also dramatically stylish. While the Watch GT5 goes for a more mainstream (yet bad-ass) look, the Watch 5 differentiates itself with a decidedly futuristic style.
The improved 1.5-inch LTPO AMOLED display is brighter than before and with even thinner bezels, reaching the impressive 3000 nits. It remains readable in direct sunlight and, it moves mostly smoothly, thanks to its adaptive refresh rate. I say "mostly," because I do have a small performance consideration, but more on that in a bit.
The Huawei Watch 5's bands are made of different materials, ranging from fluoroelastomer to leather, metal, and woven hybrids. They’re easily swappable, and strap quality feels high-end across the board. The bands that come with the Watch 5 have a special design that makes them look as a seamless whole with the case, but you can replace them with standard 22mm bands as well, which is always an enormous benefit.
Huawei Watch 5 Software & Features
Powered by the latest Harmony OS Next platform, the Huawei Watch 5 includes all the standard smart features like call notifications, music controls, calendar alerts, weather, camera remote control, etc. It also supports app downloads, though the current library seems very limited.
A big highlight is the addition of gesture controls. With simple finger gestures like double tap and slide, users can answer calls or dismiss alarms without touching the screen. This sounds like a useful feature, but it's only available with a handful of apps right now, so it doesn't feel like an enormous quality-of-life enhancer. Maybe if Huawei can integrate it more widely across the system, then it could have a real impact.
Unfortunately, contactless payments still don't work outside of China. While Huawei has set up a bit of a workaround for its phones, where users outside China can make NFC paymants using Curve (as long as they have internet access), this solution still doesn't work with its watches.
The Harmony OS Next software running on the Huawei Watch 5 is Beautiful (capital B on purpose). All graphics and animations are extremely rich, detailed and eye-pleasing. I'm sure the wonderful display quality has a lot to do with it. However, when running in standard mode (not battery saver), I can see a few frames being dropped here and there.
The Watch 5 doesn't seem to run perfectly smoothly all the time. Don't get me wrong – it's not slow or irritating, it's just that you can see it could use a bit more horsepower to move all the pixels perfectly smoothly. If you switch over to the power saver mode (which disables some advanced features – most notably eSIM, X-TAP and Wi-Fi, but keeps most standard smart features), the watch flies. The user interface isn't all that simplified in power saver mode, except for some translucency effects and maybe one or two other eye-candies, so the slight hiccups in standard mode are probably solvable through some optimization. But boy, does that UI look gorgeous: the watchfaces, the widgets, menu items... everything!
Health & Fitness Tracking
The Watch 5 offers over 100 sport modes, enhanced GPS with offline maps, and continuous health tracking. The headline feature is the X-TAP system, which unlocks fingertip-based SpO2 monitoring, ECG, and even a mini health check (Health Glance) that evaluates 11 body metrics in about a minute. It's a really cool feature with great user experience. You just need to slightly press on the X-TAP sensor, which sits between the two buttons on the right hand side of the case, and your mini health check initiates in a couple seconds.
For about 60 seconds, you'll be required to keep your finger on the X-TAP sensor, then let go of it for a few seconds, and finally cough 2-3 times into the watch. After a brief second, you get a convincing health report that encompasses 9 key metrics:
- Heart rate
- HRV
- SpO2
- Skin temperature
- Stress level
- ECG
- Arterial stiffness
- Respiratory check
- Sleep breathing awareness (obviously, aquired via sleep tracking and not part of the 60-second check-up)
Speaking of sleep tracking, it includes loads of useful data, such as respiratory evaluation, stress levels, resting heart rate, and detailed sleep stage reporting. The new HRV (Heart Rate Variability) and emotion monitoring offer a deeper look into your overall wellness.
From my walks and running session with the Huawei Watch 5, GPS accuracy appears to be spot-on, thanks to Huawei's Sunflower system.
Huawei Watch 5 Battery and Charging
Huawei Watch 5 - image by PhoneArena
Battery life ranges from 3 to 11 days depending on model and usage. With the 46mm Watch 5 in standard mode, you can officially get up to 4.5 days. Even though I didn't have an eSIM set up, I think just having this funcitonality there still took its toll on the battery. After enabling airplane mode (which still allowed my to keep Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on), I think I managed to extend the Watch 5's battery by another 2 days or so, which makes for a much more respectable longevity. The power saver mode is a legitimate option if you want an 11-day smartwatch that still acts like a smartwatch, but you'll sacrifice eSIM and X-TAP, among other, less important features.
The 42mm Watch 5 model holds up a bit less charge. It can go for about 3 days (or maybe up to about 5 days if you enable airplane mode), or up to about 7 days in battery saver.
While the Watch 5 can’t quite match the GT 5 for sheer longevity, it still balances power and advanced features better than nearly every other flagship smartwatch on the market.
Huawei Watch 5 Voice Calls and Haptics
The built-in eSIM support allows for truly standalone calling and navigation with the Huawei Watch 5. There are two eSIM modes you can take advantage of: one is to use the same number on both your phone and the watch, or use a standalone number on the watch. Be sure to confirm if your carrier supports the eSIM service before you make a purchase decision.
The Watch 5 is a perfectly legitimate device to make and receive calls on – the speaker is loud enough and clear enough, while callers didn't report any issues hearing me, as long as I didn't keep the watch at too much of a distance.
Notifications, alarms, and haptic feedback on the Watch 5 are pretty good. You have granular control on what notifications come through to the Watch 5, which is a must.
Huawei Watch 5 Competitors
The Watch 5's biggest rivals include the Apple Watch Series 10 and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7. Both offer real app ecosystems, but fall way short in battery life. On the other hand, the Huawei Watch 5 stands out with its thorough health and fitness tracking, good data presentation, unique, premium design, beautiful UI, and its built-in ability to function fully without a paired phone.
Should You Buy the Huawei Watch 5?
Huawei Watch 5 - image by PhoneArena
The Huawei Watch 5 is one of the most health-focused and premium smartwatches on the market. It doesn’t match Apple or Wear OS watches in app richness, but it surpasses both in battery life, design variety, and unique wellness tools. The fingertip blood oxygen readings and HRV data are especially helpful for those with health concerns or athletes training at elevation.
The price? The Watch 5 starts at about £399 (translates roughly to $530), which isn't exactly cheap, but this is meant to be a feature-rich, top-tier smartwatch, and for the most part, I think it manages to clear that bar. If you're looking for an advanced smartwatch that goes beyond notifications and steps – one that genuinely aims to help you understand and manage your health – the Huawei Watch 5 is absolutely worth a look.
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