If you’re after one of the latest and greatest smartwatches, the Apple Watch Series 10 and Huawei Watch GT 5 series will likely be on your shortlist.
But how do the two compare? That’s what we’ll be answering in this guide.
We rank Apple’s latest Series smartwatch as the best option for iOS users. It’s not perfect in every area, but it blows the competition (including Huawei) out of the water in the smart experience and tracking performance. We also favor its design over most, even if it’s not one that’s very conducive to long-lasting battery life.
The Huawei Watch GT 5 series is more affordable, and the build quality and design of this latest Watch GT range certainly hold their own against Apple. It’s not the best pick for most users, but, below, we’ll explain exactly where it fits in for those considering it.
Our in-depth reviews:
Price, versions, and availability
Availability is a key factor here, given that Huawei’s ongoing sales ban in the US makes the Watch GT 5 series trickier to obtain than Apple’s Series 10.
However, that complexity aside, there are many versions to pick from no matter what brand you favor.
As with older generations, the Apple Watch Series 10 has two options for the big three considerations: connectivity, case material, and case size. The combination you favor will greatly influence the price, but the range is available between $399-$799 / £399-£799. We’ve picked out a base model as an example in the widget below.
It’s a different story with the Watch GT 5 Series. There are no options for LTE connectivity like you get with Apple, but there are two versions – GT 5 and GT 5 Pro – at different price points. Each also has two versions, with a smaller styling for women and a larger one for men.
The GT 5 Pro is available for £229, while the upgraded GT 5 Pro will set you back £329.
Design and display
For the Series 10, Apple has followed its typical pattern of mildly refreshing the design every fourth generation. The pricier, more premium titanium version is also the thinnest and lightest iteration yet. It’s impressive, considering the 42mm and 46mm case sizes make it the biggest generation we’ve ever seen.
However, though a serious upgrade, even the standard aluminum version features excellent build quality. That’s also true of Huawei’s smartwatches – especially the titanium GT 5 Pro, with its sapphire glass display covering. We’re less in love with the weight of the standard GT 5 (as it’s a little less comfortable for sleep tracking and workouts), but these still feel like seriously well-built smartwatches.
We also don’t love the Huawei watch’s gendered case versions – available in 42mm and 46mm – compared to Apple’s unisex square-cased design, though that’s just personal preference.
There’s not much to split these watches in the hand, but the display gives Apple’s latest smartwatch the edge. The wide, always-on OLED panel is more responsive than Huawei’s efforts and is a superbly bright performer (reaching peak brightness of 2,000 nits vs. Huawei’s 1200 nits) in all light and weather conditions.
Winner: Apple Watch Series 10
Smart features
While both watch generations offer smart basics like notifications and other phone mirroring features like calendar syncing and weather reports, watchOS 11 running on the Series 10 is far more robust and feature-rich than Huawei’s HarmonyOS.
The Series 10 offers a smart experience that allows you to easily triage notifications, leave your phone behind with cellular support, and access a never-ending array of third-party apps (for offline music playback, for example).
Apple’s in-house tools are also superb, with unmatched integration with the iPhone. Neat touches like Double Tap gesture control, automatic unlocking and matching Focus modes across Apple devices, live complications, and the Tides app, are just a few off the top of our heads that make this feel like a ‘proper’ smartwatch.
Huawei’s GT 5 smartwatches can’t come close to any of that. There’s no third-party app store, contactless payment support, or the option to untether from your smartphone and remain in the loop. These are fitness trackers trapped in the body of smartwatches. They’re not serious options in this area unless you only require mirrored notifications, timers, and weather updates.
The only thing Huawei can do better than Apple is phone support. While the Series 10 (like all Apple Watch devices) can only pair with iPhones, the Watch GT 5 series can work with iOS and Android.
Winner: Apple Watch Series 10
Tracking performance: Activity, sleep, and health
While Huawei may lag behind Apple in smart features, it redeems itself in overall tracking performance. We still don’t rate it as a better option than the Series 10 in any core areas – daily activity, sports, health, or sleep tracking – but it’s not a million miles away.
Most of all, the features on offer and their accuracy are good enough for most people. So while our testing shows that something like GPS or heart rate accuracy isn’t as on the money, it’s within a very useable range.
In health, the GT 5 Pro range can deliver things like (patchy) arterial stiffness spot tests, ECG readings, and blood oxygen data. However, the presentation and insights aren’t quite as on point in Huawei Health as in Apple Health – or through summarisations like the Vitals app – and the Series 10 boasts exclusives like sleep apnea detection.
This is also true in sleep tracking, where the Apple smartwatch is a cut above most in stage analysis and asleep/wake accuracy. But, again, this is what you pay the extra cash for. If you’re new to tracking any of these areas and want a basic reference, the GT 5 series has proven good enough from our testing time.
Be aware of the significant differences between Huawei’s smartwatches in this area, which may sway you toward either watch. In addition to the titanium case and sapphire glass, the Pro also supports diving, golf, and trail modes (plus those two health features mentioned above).
- Winner: Apple Watch Series 10
Battery life
One of the standout features of the GT 5 range is the battery life. Considering the lack of power-intensive features, its extended longevity over the Series 10 makes sense. Yet, the fact remains that it’s an ideal setup for users who don’t want to constantly worry about charging their smartwatch.
Huawei promises 14 days of battery life with these watches. However, as we found in our testing, that drops to around 7 days once you turn on the 24/7 tracking features and the always-on display.
That’s still much longer than the Series 10 can last. Our testing of the larger, 46mm model showed it typically only lasts around 30 hours, which equates to charging it daily to avoid battery anxiety for things like sleep tracking.
Winner: Huawei Watch GT 5 series
Verdict: Which is best?
These are two very different watch generations, which means our recommendations are fairly straightforward for those seeking to pick between them.
The Huawei Watch GT 5 is the play for those who prioritize affordability above all else, but it’s comfortably the weakest of this bunch. The build quality is solid and we rate the octagonal design of the 46mm model. Still, the lack of true smart features and some quirks within Huawei’s health and sleep tracking means it’s only really recommended as a sports and activity tracker.
If you want a more premium and durable design, or perhaps some extra health tracking or sports profile powers, the GT 5 Pro is also a worthy upgrade.
Yet, for the strengths of this latest Watch GT generation, the Apple Watch Series 10 provides a far better experience in all areas besides battery life. You pay a bit of a premium for this, and it’s not always viable or fun to charge every day, but it’s still a compromise we believe most users would be better off stomaching.
Unless you don’t have an iPhone, of course, in which case you’re stuck with Huawei and other Android-compatible smartwatches.
