Huawei has always focused on stylish looks, ease of use, fitness features, and battery life in its smartwatches. The new Huawei Watch GT 4 fully meets all these requirements. The model has a stylish IP68-protected stainless steel case with a classic design that looks very much like a mechanical watch and a bright large AMOLED display. Watch GT 4 has a good set of health tracking features, has many training programmes, can count steps, calories, distance, record routes using the built-in GPS, track sleep phases, heart rate, receive notifications and calls using the built-in microphone and speaker. At the same time, even with very active use, a single charge lasts for more than 4 days of battery life. The watch runs on the proprietary HarmonyOS 4.0 operating system. It is very easy to use and undemanding to the device's performance. But there are still a minimum of third-party applications (especially useful ones) for it. And, unfortunately, the watch does not support contactless payment. The closest competitors are the Amazfit Balance: they look sportier, have a few more fitness features (such as body composition), and are equipped with Wi-Fi. But they also have a higher price. And Xiaomi Watch 2 Pro with a similar price. They run on Wear OS, so they are more functional, have many third-party apps, and support Google Pay. But their battery life is several times shorter.
5 reasons to buy Huawei Watch GT 4:
- Stylish stainless steel case with IP68 protection
- Gorgeous AMOLED display with high brightness
- Excellent battery life
- Many body tracking functions and a variety of workout programmes
- Clear and easy-to-use HarmonyOS 4.0
2 reasons not to buy Huawei Watch GT 4:
- Few third-party apps in the App Gallery
- You need contactless payment support
- What's in the Huawei Watch GT 4 box?
- What does Huawei Watch GT 4 look like?
- What about the screen, hardware, and controls of Huawei Watch GT 4?
- How user-friendly is the interface and what features does Huawei Watch GT 4 have?
- How long does Huawei Watch GT 4 last on a single battery charge?
- In dry balance
What's in the Huawei Watch GT 4 box?
Huawei Watch GT 4 is packaged in a black cardboard box. There is a glossy image of the device, the model name and the Huawei logo on the front. Inside, the watch rests on a special stand, and everything else is below it. Namely, a quick user guide and a charger. It is round in shape and has a non-removable cable that is approximately 80 cm long. The version with a metal strap comes with a few extra links in the box to adjust the length.
What does Huawei Watch GT 4 look like?
Huawei decided to release the Watch GT 4 in two sizes and several colour options so that every user can choose the right one for themselves. The case is made of stainless steel, and the screen is protected by tempered glass. the 46mm model has a more brutal, typically masculine design. Huawei calls it an octagon. Although, in fact, only the sides have two corners of the imaginary octagon, the rest of the case has a streamlined shape. In any case, the Watch GT 4 looks very good and resembles the classic model.
Huawei Watch GT 4 41 mm not only differs in size and display diagonal. It has a more elegant round shape and is very clearly aimed at a female audience. The case of the smaller model is golden.
In general, the Watch GT 4 64 mm is available in black, silver and grey with different straps. Brown leather, black fluorocarbon rubber, stainless steel grey and a combination green that has a silicone base and recycled ocean debris inserts that look like nylon. The Watch GT 4 41 mm is available with a white leather strap, a silver metal strap and a gold Milanese loop.
A black version of the Watch GT 4 46 mm has arrived at gg . In addition to the strap, the watch has a black decorative bezel with minute markers in increments of 5. Inside, there is another scale of subdivisions, this time located under the glass around the display. The protective glass and the display are recessed just slightly below the bezel. This should partially protect the screen from accidental bumps. And this is quite important: accidental bumps to the watch are common during sports or just outdoor activities. The bezel itself is not rotatable.
There are two available controls on the side: a lower elongated button and a rotary head that works both for pressing and turning. It has small teeth and engraving on the outside. It looks stylish and expensive. When rotated, the watch's vibration motor responds with a pleasant vibration.
The back of Huawei Watch GT 4 is made of glossy plastic. In the middle are all the sensors used to track health status (optical heart rate monitor and skin temperature sensor).
On one of the side faces there is a small hole for the built-in microphone, which is designed for voice calls and interaction with the Celia voice assistant, which is available only in China.
On the other side there are two slots under which there is a speaker. It can be used during training for voice prompts as well as for voice calls.
The strap attachment is standard, 22 mm, so it can easily be replaced with any other strap if you wish, or if the supplied one breaks. A pin-and-spring mechanism allows for quick removal and reattachment.
The supplied strap has a standard clasp and two additional loops for securing. It is made of very pleasant to the touch and elastic froth rubber. It is comfortable to wear the watch both in everyday use and during sports.
Huawei Watch GT 4 is made of high-quality materials, and weighing only 48 g, it does not feel heavy on the wrist. There is IP68 protection, and it is also claimed that the watch will withstand pressure up to 5 ATM. So you can go swimming, too. Moreover, there are appropriate training programmes.
What about the screen, hardware platform and controls of the Huawei Watch GT 4?
Huawei Watch GT 4 46 mm has a 1.43-inch round AMOLED screen with a resolution of 466x466, with a pixel density of 326 PPI. There is support for Always on Display. Huawei doesn't specify the brightness, but it was more than enough during use. There is an automatic adjustment that works quickly and adequately. The picture is clear, with rich colours.
The Watch GT 4 41 mm model has a smaller diagonal of 1.32 inches. At the same time, the resolution is the same, 466x466, so the pixel density is slightly higher: 352 PPI.
Huawei Watch GT 4 runs on HarmonyOS 4.0 and formally supports third-party applications. But, unlike the more functional and heavyweight WearOS, which is used on a large number of models from different manufacturers, HarmonyOS 4.0 is installed only on Huawei models. Therefore, the manufacturer decided not to provide information about the processor and memory. All you need to know is that you can download music for sports to the built-in memory. It is promised that you can download up to 500 tracks. The set of sensors includes an accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, optical pulse oximeter, barometer and temperature sensor. Wireless interfaces include Bluetooth 5.2 and NFC. Unfortunately, the latter works only with Huawei Pay, so wireless payment with the watch is not available here. Huawei Watch GT 4 has its own positioning module, supporting GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Beidou, and QZSS global positioning systems.
The watch is controlled by a touchscreen display, a mechanical bottom button, and a rotary crown. The button can be used to configure one of the available functions of Huawei Watch GT 4. By default, it is the training function. Pressing the rotary crown brings up the main menu. It can be displayed in the form of a matrix of icons or a list. In the first case, the rotary head is responsible for zooming in or out. In the second case, they are used to scroll through the list. The second display option seemed more appropriate to me. The only thing missing is the ability to move between widgets using the same rotary head. It would be very convenient and logical. Instead, the main watchface scrolls up or down as you scroll. Perhaps this will change with updates.
How user-friendly is the Huawei Watch GT 4 interface and what are the features?
Huawei Watch GT 4 runs on HarmonyOS 4.0, which is generally used for Huawei IoT devices. The capabilities and set of applications are more modest than in Wear OS. But it is very lightweight, does not require powerful hardware, is energy efficient, and works very quickly. The interface logic is typical for smartwatches. The home screen is the selected watch face. There are many different options, including classic, sports-oriented, and simply decorative ones. They are customisable: not only the colour scheme, but also the set of functional elements. To the left of the dial is a screen that for some reason is called "Interactive Assistance". It has an up-to-date weather forecast and buttons for controlling music playback. To view notifications, swipe from bottom to top on the main screen. Notifications are displayed in text only, and pictures from messengers are not supported. You can reply from the watch only with ready-made templates that are configured on your smartphone. An on-screen keyboard or voice dialling may be available in the future. The curtain with quick settings and switches for wireless interfaces is made similarly to smartphones and is displayed after moving across the screen from top to bottom. To the right of the main screen are widgets, which can be installed up to 6 pieces. There are widgets for activity, heart rate, sleep, and even moon phases.
The list of all installed applications is opened by clicking on the wheel. As mentioned above, they can be displayed either in a grid or in a list. By default, there are a large number of health and training apps, as well as a call log, a list of important contacts, notifications, music, weather, calendar, alarm clock, timer, stopwatch, flashlight, compass, barometer, and smartphone search. When working with Huawei smartphones, it is still possible to remotely shoot with the smartphone camera (without a viewfinder, only the shutter button and timer). It is likely to work with all Android smartphones with updates. Next up are the settings and pre-installed applications. They are installed exclusively via the smartphone. And there are very few of them, especially useful ones. I have only installed a calculator on Petal Maps. Everything else is simple games, compasses, radio, a few sports apps, and a third-party Spotify client.
There is no full-fledged navigation (with map display), but you can enable interactive navigation using the Petal Maps app. You select a route on your smartphone, and then the watch displays the distance and necessary turns.
Huawei Watch GT 4 has almost the entire set of modern body tracking capabilities (except for ECG and blood pressure) and training. The watch can track your heart rate (including automatic measurement), blood oxygen saturation, stress level, sleep quality, breathing during sleep, skin temperature (lower than body temperature, normal values are in the range of 32-34°), count steps, record speed and route using the built-in GPS, and more. The accuracy of the steps, distance, route, sleep and heart rate measurements is quite high (the readings are easy to check without additional equipment). The error in heart rate measurement is usually no more than 1-3%. The watch has many programmes for training of all types: several types of running, table tennis, strength training, snowboarding, skiing, swimming, hiking, triathlon, yoga, Pilates, boxing, dancing, football, etc. There are even exotic activities like eSports, darts, lasers, and fishing. You can turn on voice prompts during workouts, track your current body indicators, turn on background music or a metronome.
The Huawei Watch GT 4 uses the Huawei Health app. It is not available on Google Play (there is an app with the same name, but it's fake), so you need to download it from of the official website. The app is divided into several tabs. The first one contains all the indicators of health, sleep, training, steps, etc. in the form of cards. You can view more detailed information on each indicator, record additional blood pressure and calories (food) consumed during the day. The second tab is responsible for training courses, of which there are many available. In the third tab, you can link your Strava and Komoot accounts. The fourth tab is actually responsible for setting up the watch. Most of the settings duplicate those on the watch (including watch faces, health tracking, and more). Additionally, there is an App Gallery with applications, the ability to upload your own music to the watch and create playlists, edit and add templates for replying to messages, add your favourite contacts:
How long does Huawei Watch GT 4 last on a single battery charge?
Huawei does not specify the battery capacity of the Watch GT 4, but promises 14 days of operation with minimal use, 8 days of typical use, and 4 days of operation with Always On Display enabled. The official website has more detailed information about each of the scenarios. In real life, the battery life was very impressive. This is generally one of the significant advantages of Huawei smartwatches. With very active use, the gg editorial team got a result of 5-6 days. This is with all the functions of constant health monitoring enabled (constant monitoring of heart rate, blood oxygen, skin temperature, sleep, breathing during sleep, etc.), Always on Display, 6-8 workouts (half with GPS route recording) and many notifications. But almost no voice calls and no music playback. They can slightly reduce the operating time. On the other hand, by turning off Always on Display, you can add 2-3 more days of operation. So the figure varies greatly depending on the usage scenario. But in any case, battery life is a strong point of the watch.
As for the Huawei Watch GT 4 41 mm, the battery life will be more modest. Smaller dimensions mean a smaller battery. They promise 7 days of operation at most, 4 days on average, and 2 days with Always On Display. Huawei Watch GT 4 supports standard wireless charging, you can charge it not only from the bundled device, but also from any wireless charger or smartphone with the appropriate function.
- Stylish stainless steel case with IP68 protection
- Gorgeous AMOLED display with high brightness
- Excellent battery life
- Many body tracking functions and a variety of workout programmes
- Clear and easy-to-use HarmonyOS 4.0
Five things you need to know about Huawei Watch GT 4:
- Huawei Watch GT 4 is a smartwatch with a classic stylish design and stainless steel case.
- It has maximum functionality: dozens of applications and more than 90 different types of workouts.
- The watch has IP68 protection and can withstand water pressure up to 5 ATM.
- Under heavy load, it works for 5-6 days.
- Does not support contactless payment.
| Huawei Watch GT 4 features | |
|---|---|
| Display | 1.43 inches, 466x466 326 PPI / 1.32 inches 466x466 352 PPI AMOLED, tempered glass |
| Dimensions | 46 mm: 46x46x10.9 mm, 41 mm: 46.5x46.5x10.9 mm |
| Weight | 46 mm: 48 g, 41 mm: 37 g |
| Operating system | HarmonyOS 4.0 |
| Processor | no data |
| RAM | no data |
| Internal memory | no data |
| Heart rate monitor | optical |
| Communications | Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Beidou, QZSS |
| Protection | IP 68, 5 ATM |
| Optional | Always On Display, microphone, speaker |
| Battery | 46 mm: 8 days, 41 mm: 4 days with typical use |
Go Deeper:
- Best AKASO Projectors: Review and Comparison
- Samsung Galaxy Watch4 Classic review: finally with Google Pay!
Editor of gagadget.com since 2012, engaged in technology reviews. Specialization — smartphones, laptops, monitors, headphones, peripheral devices, games. During his work, he made more than 300 reviews. Connoisseur of quality sound, musician with 15+ years of experience. Gamer since Intel 486.
