While Apple, Garmin and Fitbit are brands that first come to mind when you think about fitness watches, OnePlus is making a name for itself in the wearable tech space.
Already established in the high-performing smartphones arena thanks to top-of-the-range cameras and unbeatable battery life, OnePlus is now on a mission to rival major players like Apple and Samsung with its fitness watches.
OnePlus Watch 3, £269
The OnePlus Watch 3 is the Chinese tech brand’s latest release, which launched in April 2025.
It’s competitively priced at £269, which is less than half of the cost of the Apple Watch Series 10.
It offers premium features including exceptional battery life and advanced health metrics, with sleep tracking, heart rate variability, VO2 max and wrist-based temperature monitoring.
As an experienced fitness writer and someone who trains for half and full marathons, I was intrigued to see whether such an affordably priced fitness watch could offer me all the features I need to claim my next PB.
I’m interested in sleep tracking and recovery features to help me avoid injury, just as much as knowing my speed and cadence.
I couldn’t wait to see whether the OnePlus Watch 3 could offer this as well as a Garmin or Apple watch.
How I tested the OnePlus Watch 3
To provide an honest and comprehensive review of the OnePlus Watch 3, I tested the device over four weeks during research for a round-up of the best fitness watches.
This gave me time to evaluate its performance across various scenarios, including daily wear, workouts, and sleep tracking.
I paid close attention to the battery life, health monitoring accuracy, and ease of use.
After each activity, I synced the watch to the OHealth app to judge how easy it was to track my training progress and whether it provided any expert insights to help me improve performance.
Additionally, I compared its features and functionality to other smartwatches in the same price range to determine its overall value for money.
OnePlus Watch 3 Review
OnePlus Watch 3, £269
Pros:
- Affordably priced
- Bright 1.5in AMOLED display
- Easy to read while exercising
- OHealth app presents health stats clearly
- Comfortable silicone strap
Cons:
- Heavy, which is noticeable when sleeping
- Looks bulky on smaller wrists
- Not compatible with iPhones or other Apple devices
Rating: 4/5
First impressions
OnePlus Watch 3, £269
When I opened the box, I was quite surprised by how big the watch looked.
The OnePlus Watch 3 is a 46mm timepiece that fits 140-210mm wrists and weighs 81g with the strap attached.
As I picked it up, it did feel noticeably heavier than the Apple Watch Series 10, which weighs 36.4g in the 46mm size.
I was a little worried that it would feel heavy on my wrist throughout the day, but the weight spread out evenly across my forearm.
And even if it didn’t, I’d have happily taken a little extra weight because the positive is a stunningly clear 1.5in AMOLED display that is bright, sharp, and easy to read, even when I was out for a run in the sun.
I’ve never tested a watch with a 1.5-inch display before. The Google Pixel 3 has a 1.4-inch screen, and that 0.1-inch makes a massive difference.
The OnePlus Watch 3 is easily the brightest and clearest watch I’ve ever used.
The titanium bezel around the watch and rotating crown on the side give it a premium look and feel.
If you asked me to guess how much this watch cost, I’d have said it looked like it was at least £400.
OnePlus Watch 3, £269
I really liked being able to rotate the crown to access different menus, as opposed to touching and swiping on the screen, and I found this a distinct upgrade to the OnePlus Watch 2 (which doesn’t have a rotating button).
As I have a OnePlus tablet, I could easily sync the watch with the OHealth app via Bluetooth.
This app is clear to read, separates information into different sections and integrates with Strava to sync runs and workouts.
However, it’s important to point out that it can’t be synced to Apple phones or tablets, which might be a deal-breaker if you’re committed to the iOS ecosystem.
OnePlus Watch 3, £269
Battery life
One of the things I loved most about the OnePlus Watch 3 was its battery life.
Across its phones and wearables range, OnePlus has always prioritised battery life, and the OnePlus Watch 3 is no exception.
I’m someone who always forgets to charge my gadgets, so the fact that this watch lasted nearly five days on a single charge was a game-changer.
I charged it up on a Monday evening, wore it through a week of workouts, sleep tracking, and notifications, and didn’t need to plug it in again until Saturday.
Even with the always-on display turned on, it held up like a champ.
According to the specs, battery life is helped by a larger 631mAh cell, up from 500mAh on the previous model.
The OnePlus Watch 3 also has two different chips, using the Snapdragon W5 Gen 1 chipset in Smart mode and the basic BES2800BP chip while in Power Saver.
It can automatically detect when you sleep or when the watch is idle, and switch to the low-power chip to preserve battery life.
I was also impressed by this watch’s fast charging capability, with a 10-minute zap delivering enough power for a full day of use.
The only other watch that is equally impressive for battery life is the COROS Pace Pro, which also lasted five days on a single charge.
Health and fitness features
OnePlus Watch 3, £269
This watch is packed with features that can track activity and recovery, and one thing that I found most interesting was its sleep tracking functionality.
I’ve tested the sleep tracking features of several smartwatches, and while it’s important to take them all with a pinch of salt, I was impressed by how the OnePlus Watch 3 was able to record several different sleep metrics.
For example, I’ve never worn a watch that could analyse snoring to assess your breathing overnight.
It uses wrist-based sensors and the companion OHealth app’s microphone to assess snoring patterns and breathing risk during sleep.
Ultimately, I was relieved to find out that I don’t have any issues, but if I did, I’d like to know so that I could seek help and improve sleep quality.
Another massively helpful, unique feature was how the OHealth app presented my running data.
With Google’s Fitbit app, Apple Health and Garmin Connect, there’s usually a basic map showing where the run took place.
But OHealth shows a proper satellite view and is animated similarly to a hiking map generated through AllTrails.
On top of that, you can select from two of eight data points to display on this map, such as speed for different parts of the route.
I find it very helpful, performance-wise, to know when I’d slowed down to ensure that I paced myself better during the next run.
It also tracks other activities, including swimming, yoga and strength training – all of which seemed to perform just as well as other Garmin and Apple watches that I’ve used.
When walking and running, it automatically detects when you’ve stopped, such as waiting for traffic to cross a road, and pauses and restarts seamlessly so it doesn’t affect your stats.
Other features
The OnePlus Watch 3 is an impressive piece of kit with an eight-channel optical heart rate sensor and a 16-channel blood oxygen (SpO2) sensor.
In addition to an accelerometer, barometer, geomagnetic sensor, gyroscope, light sensor, and wrist temperature sensor.
This helps with accuracy when it’s tracking over 100 different sports modes, as well as more details in six “Pro” sports.
For running, tennis, cycling, and skiing, the watch provides pro-level tracking with precision measurements that record every step, hill climb, swing speed and total strokes.
Another useful feature is a 60-second health check-in.
Simply hold your finger on the lower button for 60 seconds, and the scan will assess various health metrics, including heart rate, blood oxygen levels, mental wellness, wrist temperature to estimate your heart health, arterial stiffness and potential breathing problems.
Being quite an anxious person, I didn’t like to use this feature too much as I knew I’d panic if it brought up something I didn’t want to know about.
I also figured that I’d be in pain or feeling dizzy if I had any heart or breathing problems, which would alert me to consult a medical professional rather than look at my watch.
Another feature that needed improvement, in my opinion, was its Wellness scores.
These are based on resting heart rate, heart rate variability and completing workouts and shown to the wearer of the watch as an emoji.
I seemed to get more moderately straight-faced and poor sad emojis than happy emojis, even if I was having a good day and felt fit.
OnePlus Watch 3 Verdict
The OnePlus Watch 3 left me seriously impressed.
It’s packed with features, has a premium feel thanks to the titanium bezel and rotating crown, and that massive 1.5-inch AMOLED display is just gorgeous – bright, sharp, and easy to read, even in full sunlight.
Yes, it’s heavier than some rivals like the Samsung Galaxy Watch and the Apple Watch, but the weight feels well-balanced, and honestly, I didn’t mind it, especially with the excellent battery life and massive display size.
Before I tested this watch, I thought the Google Pixel Watch 3 offered the clearest and brightest display, but now I have a new favourite – the OnePlus Watch 3 is hands down the easiest watch to read when exercising.
It’s brilliant for all-round fitness tracking, with snoring analysis, detailed running maps, and pro-level tracking for sports like skiing and tennis.
At £269, the OnePlus Watch 3 feels like a steal compared to pricier options that don’t offer as much.
The reason that I’m not scoring it a perfect five out of five is that it doesn’t work with Apple devices, which might be a deal-breaker for iOS fans, and the Wellness scores felt a bit off.
OnePlus Watch 3 FAQs
- Is the OnePlus Watch 3 compatible with iPhone?
- Is the OnePlus Watch 3 waterproof?
- Is the OnePlus Watch 3 good value for money?
Is the OnePlus Watch 3 compatible with iPhone?
No, the OnePlus Watch 3 is not compatible with iPhones or other Apple devices.
It syncs seamlessly with Android devices, particularly those in the OnePlus ecosystem, via the OHealth app.
This limitation might be a deal-breaker for users committed to Apple’s iOS ecosystem.
Is the OnePlus Watch 3 waterproof?
Yes, the OnePlus Watch 3 is waterproof and designed to handle various water-based activities like swimming.
It features a 5ATM water resistance rating, making it suitable for submersion in water up to 50 metres.
It also supports swim tracking, so you can monitor performance in the pool and in open water.
Is the OnePlus Watch 3 good value for money?
In terms of value for money, the OnePlus Watch 3 is exceptional, as long as you’re an Android user.
Priced at £269, it offers a premium design, advanced health and fitness tracking, impressive battery life, and a stunning AMOLED display that rivals much more expensive smartwatches.
I was blown away by the map data that I received after running, which was genuinely helpful in terms of performance.
Seeing where I’d slowed down made me more conscious to push speed on the tricky parts of the route, and this meant I notched up several PBs during the testing period.
If you like Android tech, this is definitely one of the best Android watches you can buy, if not the very best.
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