But the Apple Watch isn't the only premium watch on the market - the new Huawei Watch is also bringing the expensive. So how do these two compare then?
Design
Apple has fitted the smartwatch with a 1.32-inch display (272x340) for the smaller model and a 1.5-inch display (312x390) for the larger version. Both models feature a square screen and design, however.
By comparison, the Huawei Watch is a round design, with a 1.4-inch circular display, featuring a resolution of 400x400.
Both watches are water-resistant and support swappable wristbands.
Operating system
Apple makes use of its own WatchOS platform, while the Huawei Watch uses Android Wear - and they share a ton of functions/features.
Both platforms support notification mirroring from your phone, controlling your phone's music (and playing music locally with Bluetooth headphones), hands-free voice activation ("Okay Google" for Android Wear and "Hey Siri" for WatchOS), customisable watchfaces with additional information overlays, contextual information during the day and health-related apps.
Apple's watch does have the edge with several apps though, such as Uber (Android Wear users only have Lyft), ApplePay (swipe your watch to pay for stuff) and Passbook for storing boarding passes and stuff (this feature is largely dependent on third-party apps on Android Weear).
The Apple Watch also lets you send "heartbeats" to contacts, which are essentially vibrations to simulate your heartbeat. Additionally, the platform lets you send sketches and taps to friends.
But the Apple Watch stands out for its connectivity with the iPhone too, allowing you to transfer messages and calls to the iPhone to pick up where you left off.
Android Wear prides itself on its Google Now support, delivering contextual notifications throughout the day such as traffic conditions and weather. Apple does offer something similar in the form of Glances (for weather, calendar entries, traffic and your location), but Android Wear takes this a step further by tracking flights and packages, serving up timely reminders, delivering sport results and more.
User interface
The Apple Watch makes use of taps and long-presses for many functions, but it also has an old-school crown/jogwheel for zooming in, scrolling and other features. The device also has a button for quick-access to frequent contacts etc.
Google makes use of a Google Now-type interface for Android Wear, delivering information/app cards.
Users simply swipe up and down to go through these cards, while a left-to-right swipe dismisses a card and a right-to-left swipe displays more app-specific options.
The Huawei Watch in particular also has a little button on the side, used for waking/locking the device and quick access to settings.
Voice
The Apple Watch utilises Siri for voice commands, with the aforementioned "Hey Siri" booting the voice assistant up.
Users can dictate messages, make/receive calls when tethered to the phone, record audio notes, inquire about directions,search the web and get recommendations for places/restaurants.
Being an Android Wear watch, the Huawei Watch makes use of Google Now, with a simple "Okay Google" kicking things off.
Users can then search the web and make general queries (such as the time in another country, calorie counts, translations, word definitions and maths problems), create location- and time-based reminders, dictate messages, open apps, get directions and more.
Unlike the Apple Watch though, it seems like the Huawei Watch doesn't allow you to make and receive calls on the watch via a tethered phone. Nor do you get recommendations for places and restaurants natively, which seems like a no-brainer for Google Now.
Fitness/health
Speaking of health-related apps, the Apple Watch keeps track of your fitness progress (running, standing, moving in general), allowing you to set goals, and reminding you to stand.
Android Wear also keeps track of your fitness, showing you your step-count, reminding you to stand as well and allowing you to set goals too.
Both the Huawei Watch and Apple Watch feature support for heart-rate measurements via their sensors - and both devices have support for third-party fitness apps.
Sensors/protocols
When it comes to sensors and connectivity, both devices have Bluetooth 4.0, a heart-rate sensor and a barometer.
The Apple Watch also has WiFi, for some standalone functionality. Additionally, the watch also has NFC, enabling those all-important mobile payments.
New reports claim that the latest Android Wear update will turn on WiFi functionality in most Android smartwatches, bringing some standalone functionality too.
Compatibility
Unfortunately, the Apple Watch is only compatible with the iPhone, so those with Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phone handsets are left out of the fun.
Additionally, the Apple Watch works with the iPhone 5 and up, so those with the iPhone 4S or iPhone 4 won't be joining the party.
The Huawei Watch is only compatible with smartphones running Android 4.3 and above, but there are loads of Android devices on the market. So if you must have the Huawei Watch, you can buy a cheapie smartphone as a companion device.
Then again, there are reports that Google is looking at making an Android Wear app for iOS...
Battery
The Apple Watch is slated to have an 18 hour battery life according to the Cupertino company's own tests, involving 90 time checks, 90 notifications, 45 minutes of app use and a 30 minute workout while playing music.
Call time on the watch is limited to around three hours while music playback is limited to 6.5 hours.
Apple also claims that using the watch for time checks only (five times an hour) would see the device last for 48 hours. Additionally, Apple has introduced a power-saving mode, which sees the device last for "up to" 72 hours.
Huawei hasn't revealed any information about the battery life of its watch, with the only nugget being that it has a 300mAh battery.
This battery is 110mAh smaller than the LG G Watch R (review), which had a decent two day battery life when using the watch pretty solidly - time checks every hour or so and interacting with apps for about an hour or so, with the screen being dimmed (still displaying the time) when not in use.
But the Huawei Watch battery is also 20mAh smaller than the Moto360 smartwatch, which has a terrible battery life to begin with.
So if the Huawei battery is worse off than the Moto360, I'm betting that the Apple Watch will be the winner by a handy margin here.
Price
Huawei hasn't revealed pricing details just yet, although a gold model has reportedly been spotted online for $1000. A spokesperson told 9to5Google that the $1000 price point is "definitely out of range of what the base model will cost".
The cheapest Apple Watch, the small Sport model, will retail for $349, going all the way to $10 000+ for a gold model.
Are you set on a smartwatch at all? If so, will it be Android Wear, the Apple Watch or another brand?
- But the Apple Watch isn't the only premium watch on the market - the new Huawei Watch is also bringing the expensive. So how do these two ... huaweiwatch.blogspot.de
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