Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Hey, good lookin’

At a glance

Expert’s Rating

Pros

Beautiful design
Two sizes to suit different wrists
Impressive manual tracking
Decent battery life

Cons

Poor app experience
No Google-supported software
No contactless payment in UK

Our Verdict

The Huawei Watch GT 4 is one of the best-looking smartwatches I’ve used, and also offers solid fitness tracking and good battery life. However, like other Huawei products, it is let down by its software.

For the latest iteration of the Watch GT line, Huawei has released two sizes: a chunkier 46mm one for larger wrists, and 41mm one for smaller wearers such as myself. This is the wearable I’ve been testing, and other than a shorter battery life and not as impressive GPS capabilities, this watch has all the same features as its big brother.

Both wearables put style at the forefront, with classic round watch faces and a range of straps to choose from. If you’re considering getting the Huawei Watch GT 4 as your next smartwatch, here is what you need to know.

Design & Build

46- and 41mm builds
Rubber, leather and metal strap options
5ATM water resistance

I’ll admit it, the Huawei Watch GT 4 has my favourite design of any smartwatch I’ve tested so far. Rather than being another Apple Watch clone, it has a ‘floating’ round face that could easily be mistaken for a standard premium watch.

If you go for the 46mm version, the design is more similar to previous GT watches, with connected lugs and a more rugged and masculine look overall. Meanwhile, the 41mm is more delicate and feminine.

Hannah Cowton / Foundry

There are three strap options for the 41mm device: light gold milanese, silver stainless steel and white leather. I tested the latter, which is comfortable to wear over long periods of time and doesn’t pick up sweat marks as easily as silicone straps do. It also perfectly compliments the gold stainless steel case.

My unit weighs just 37g without the strap, which means I can wear it for long periods (including overnight) without it feeling heavy or uncomfortable. This has been an ongoing issue with other Huawei wearables such as the Watch 4 Pro and Watch Buds, so I’m glad to see the Chinese brand catering to users with smaller frames.

The device comes with 5ATM water resistance. I used it just fine during pool swimming, though the screen wasn’t quite as responsive before being fully dried.

…the Huawei Watch GT 4 has my favourite design of any smartwatch I’ve tested so far

Screen & Audio

AMOLED display
Speaker and microphone included

The 1.32in AMOLED display on the 41mm version may be 0.1in smaller than its big brother, but it’s still big, bright and bold. It has a resolution of 466 x 466, and 352ppi (this is 326ppi on the 46mm).

In testing, I was easily able to see the watch under bright sunlight. You can enable the screen to light up when you raise your wrist. This feature also works when swimming if you want a quick glance at your heart rate or distance travelled.

Like other Huawei devices, swipes and taps are swift and responsive. I didn’t encounter any lagging or stuttering during my testing.

Huawei Watch GT 4 watch face and white leather strap

Hannah Cowton / Foundry

The Watch GT 4 has both a microphone and speaker integrated into the device. You can play music on it, though I can’t see many people making use of this feature. You’ll most likely use it for calls, and thankfully the microphone is nice and clear. In quiet areas, I could hear my partner just fine, but in busier environments, I wouldn’t recommend using it.

Voice logs after each workout are enabled automatically, so if you’re in a zen yoga class I recommend disabling this. If enabled, the Watch GT 4 also has a voice coach during runs that provides tips throughout. I found this annoying, and wish it wouldn’t come enabled as standard.

Software & Features

Harmony OS
No eSIM slot

The Huawei Watch GT 4 runs on the latest version of Harmony OS, Huawei’s own software not Google’s Wear OS. You can download the app on iOS and Android phones, though you’ll need to do it directly via Huawei’s website rather than the Google Play Store or Apple App Store.

Huawei has made some tweaks to the home screen, enabling custom cards which allows you to quickly access features with one swipe, rather than scrolling through the main grid or list, depending on your preferred layout.

As it doesn’t run on Wear OS, you won’t be able to get certain apps such as Spotify or Google Maps. Huawei’s own version, Petal Maps, has improved over the years as has navigation during some workouts.

Hannah Cowton / Foundry

There are several daily use apps, including a stopwatch, a calendar, an alarm and more. There are settings to enable notifications for your apps (SMS and Google Calendar are enabled by default), but my phone, a Xiaomi 13, restricted adding any additional notifications from the likes of WhatsApp. I have used previous Huawei wearables without this issue, so something may have changed with the app or with my phone.

This wearable doesn’t have an eSIM slot, so you’ll still need your phone on hand for navigation and for taking calls. Bluetooth and NFC support is included, but if you’re in the UK you won’t make use of this as Huawei Wallet doesn’t yet support credit/debit cards in this country.

Fitness & Tracking

Over 100 different workouts
New modes for sleep breathing and calorie counting
Huawei Health app woes continue

Like other smartwatches from Huawei, the Watch GT 4 supports over 100 different workout modes. These include your standard options such as walking, running, cycling and swimming, to more obscure options such as pilates, fencing and plaza dancing (also known as square dancing in China – I learned something today).

The Watch GT 4 provides a comprehensive breakdown of workouts. All sessions have sections for heart rate zones and the calories burnt, while certain sports have more granular data such as my average speed and elevation gain during cycling. The swimming logs also accurately logged my laps and swimming stroke correctly, something that rivals such as Amazfit have struggled with.

…the Huawei Health App is by no means the best fitness tracking app out there

Once again, Huawei has running courses on this device, with various paces and lengths to suit your level of difficulty. As a notorious hater of running, I found the beginner’s option a great way to ease into the sport… though I have no current plans to continue until my next wearable review.

Heart rate, SpO2 (blood oxygen) levels and skin temperature monitoring all seemed in line with the scores I’ve got on other devices. However, I went to enable continuous stress monitoring and had to undergo a very weird and inappropriate questionnaire in the Huawei app (provided by the Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences) to ‘calibrate my stress levels’.

Having agree/disagree options on statements such as ‘Sometimes I feel I am useless’ could be triggering for some users, especially with no warning that intense language such as this will be displayed. Huawei should consider addressing this feature and copy.

Hannah Cowton / Foundry

Sleep tracking was in line with the times I slept, and there is now a new feature for sleep breathing awareness, which should detect any symptoms of sleep apnea. The skin temperature sensor can also be used for menstrual cycle tracking.

I only tried testing auto workouts during walks, and the watch was slow to activate – I was around 15 minutes into my stroll before it kicked in. Hopefully, this is something that can be patched in a software update.

One main new feature on Harmony OS 4 is the food log section. This works similarly to apps such as MyFitnessPal, where you manually add in the number of calories you’ve consumed for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You can also add in the name of the meal/snack, the number of servings you had and the weight of the item.

There is a photo option, but I was not able to upload or take an image with this feature. That aside, food tracking is far too much of a faff for me but may be useful for anyone who likes granular tracking and logging.

Hannah Cowton / Foundry

As you may have noticed, the Huawei Health App is by no means the best fitness tracking app out there. There are some bugs (which may be due to it not being available through app stores), and there are lots of ads that take up space. Some features on the watch are also buried in the settings, which may be confusing for new users.

It’s a shame, as the fitness and health tracking logs (bizarre questionnaire aside) are comprehensive and detailed. There are just much smoother and easier options out there. Of course, you can also sync your data to apps such as Strava and Adidas, but you’ll still need the Huawei Health App for this.

Battery Life & Charging

Bigger watch offers bigger battery life
Reasonably fast charging

If you’re flip-flopping between the two sizes of the Watch GT 4, then the battery life may be a deciding factor. The 46mm naturally has room for a bigger battery, which means that it has a typical battery life of eight days, which can be extended up to 14 if used conservatively.

The 41mm is half of these numbers, at four days for typical usage and seven days at a stretch.

These numbers are still pretty good considering the tracking features available on this watch. I was able to use it to track an hour-long workout class even when it dropped below 10%, putting it steps ahead of some other devices like the Pixel Watch which is rated for one day.

Charging wise, it took just over an hour and a half to juice from flat to full.

Hannah Cowton / Foundry

Price & Availability

Both sizes of the Huawei GT 4 retail for a base price of £229 – this is for the black silicone version of the 46mm model, or the white leather version of the 42mm. At the top end, the watch will set you back up to £349 for the stainless steel silver and gold version.

You can buy both watches directly from , or from . Note that the Huawei Watch GT 4 is not available in the US.

If you don’t plan on using your smartwatch with an eSIM, then this is much better value than the premium Watch 4 Pro, which I reviewed earlier this year. Otherwise, some other options to consider are the Apple Watch SE and the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic.

You can find more options in our chart of the best smartwatches.

Hannah Cowton / Foundry

Should you buy the Huawei Watch GT 4?

The Huawei Watch GT 4 (41mm tested here) has one of the best designs of any wearable on the market so far. It is light, durable, and the battery life is also excellent compared to some rivals. Manual tracking is also solid on this watch.

However, this is another device that is hindered by the accompanying app experience, which limits some features and makes it not as easy to use as others I’ve tested. The lack of contactless payments and voice assistants means that it doesn’t quite match the standard of some rivals at similar price points.

If these things don’t bother you, then this is a seriously good-looking smartwatch. I personally prefer the slimmer 41mm version, and would recommend it if you have a small build. If you prefer a more rugged look, and want that extra battery life, then go for the 46mm.