Huawei Watch GT5 Pro review: Just a stylish sports watch?
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro review: One-minute review
this best smartwatch are those products that successfully combine smart features, exercise tracking, and health indicators. In my experience, smartwatches excel in one or two of these areas, but rarely in all three. indeed Apple Watch Series 10 and the recently released Huawei Watch D2. Can GT5 Pro buck the trend?
You guessed it, the Watch GT5 Pro is the premium or “pro” version of the Watch GT5 Pro. Huawei Watch GT5a more expensive watch aimed at serious fitness enthusiasts. Enhancements include dedicated golf and dive modes and the ability to measure electrocardiogram and arterial stiffness. The build quality of the titanium case and sapphire glass is also excellent.
The watch has similar dimensions to the GT5, with 42mm and 46mm options available. Finishes are more limited, though, with the 46mm size available in black and gray titanium, and the 46mm size in white or ceramic white. After wearing the GT5 and GT5 watches for over a month, I can tell you that the GT5 Pro is technically better than its more affordable alternatives.
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro review: Specs
| price | 42mm = £329.99 46mm = £399.99 / AU$599 |
| aspect | 42.49mm×42.49mm×9.6mm/46.3mm×46.3mm×10.9mm |
| weight | 44g/53g |
| Frame/baffle | Nanocrystalline ceramic/titanium alloy |
| exhibit | 1.32/1.43-inch AMOLED color screen |
| GPS | GPS+GLONASS+Galileo+Beidou+QZSS |
| battery life | Up to 7 / 14 days |
| connect | Bluetooth |
| water resistance | 5ATM/IP69K |
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro: price and availability
- 42mm £329.99 / 46mm £399 (UK)
- Not available in the US, 46mm Not available in Australia
- Also available in China
The Huawei Watch GT5 Pro 42mm costs £329.99 ($599 / AU$745), while the 46mm alternative costs £399.99. Case and strap finishes include black, gray titanium, and white. If you want the more premium white ceramic case and band, then you’ll need to spend £499.99. Please note that this model is only available in 42mm size.
The GT5 Pro is only available in the UK and China, with a distinct lack of presence in the US due to Huawei’s ongoing ban in the country. We also found the 46mm Pro in Australia for $599, but not the 42mm version.
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro: Design
- Stylish design, highlighting quality
- 1.32/1.43-inch AMOLED display
- Strong and waterproof
I rarely wear such an expensive watch. That’s not to say I haven’t worn a lot of smartwatches over the years, but they tend to be less expensive and look more modern than traditional. I have lost count of the number of comments and comments I received from friends and strangers who were surprised that I was wearing such a high-quality watch. It can be said that this is an evocative design.
The model I tested came with a case and band made of aerospace-grade titanium, and the display is covered by a sapphire crystal. Everything from the octagonal surface to the connecting straps conveys class and style – which is obviously what you’d expect at this price. If you want to look more elegant, you can choose more expensive white crystal.
The AMOLED color display is 1.43 inches, the same size as the GT5. I would have expected a slightly larger screen, even if it meant reducing the thickness of the octagonal bezels. Still, the display itself performs very well, and it works well underwater thanks to its 5ATM/IP69K water resistance rating, so it’s fine for swimming and even diving.
As with most smartwatches, the physical controls are on the right side. These include the rotating crown and secondary function buttons. They’re positioned and operate as expected, although there’s plenty of room for Huawei to add an extra button, as seen on the Mibro GS Explorer, which would speed up navigation options.
I love Huawei’s new charging cable. The magnetic round design easily clips onto the back of your watch without aligning any pins. Just clip it on and start charging.
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro: Features
- Professional grade sports features
- ECG analysis
- Huawei TruSense
The GT5 Pro can track a variety of sports, but Huawei has made a special effort to provide specific features for diving, trail running and, most broadly, golf. In golf course mode, you can view over 15,000 course maps around the world, including 3,000 in the UK alone.
Maps are obviously small even on a 1.43-inch display, but Huawei has managed to fit a lot of data into that space. This includes a 3D course map with greens, fairways, bunkers and water hazards. Additionally, if you use the Huawei app, you can track your scores and see your trajectory.
I love all of these features and data, but you have to consider whether wearing a watch like this while golfing will hinder your swing. Due to the design of the strap, it may be difficult to get a tight fit. As a result, I experienced some watch movement during the swing.
Huawei’s health tracking features keep getting better, especially now that Huawei’s TruSense is fully up and running. TruSense is the collective name for all of Huawei’s health and fitness metrics.
With built-in electrode technology, GT5 Pro provides beat-to-beat ECG analysis for heart health. It can be a bit fiddly, but the measurement can be taken by holding your finger on the side button for 30 seconds.
I’m not a fan of wearing a large metal smartwatch all night long, but if it doesn’t bother you then you can take advantage of Huawei’s comprehensive sleep tracking features. The GT5 Pro can track heart rate, SpO2, respiratory rate and any abnormal breathing, and provide data and charts through the iOS/Android Huawei Health app.
In addition to heart measurement and sleep tracking, the GT5 Pro is able to estimate periods, ovulation and conception times based on advanced physiological data and deep learning algorithms.
You can use the GT5 Pro as a smartphone extension, but admittedly the functionality is limited without a Huawei phone. You can receive notifications and reply to texts using the Celia Keyboard on your watch, or enter text by simply speaking into the watch’s microphone. Typing is doable, though cumbersome, but I guess that’s what to expect with a 1.43-inch screen. When answering calls, I did find that the watch didn’t always recognize the “name,” even though the number was in my phone book.
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro: Performance
- Not your typical sports watch design
- Accurate and reliable GPS
- Excellent battery life
One of the biggest selling points of GT5 Pro is the professional sports function. The ability to track specific sports, including golf, diving and trail running, is impressive. I wasn’t able to fully test every aspect of these features, but my experience with course viewing and swing tracking was positive. Golf enthusiasts will love the GT5 Pro’s capabilities, although I imagine some of the more outlandish features will only be used once.
I also use the GT5 Pro to track other types of workouts, including running, walking, and biking. GPS tracking is very reliable and the route is accurately plotted on the map. After various workouts, it was clear that the smartwatch not only charted my accurate route, but also tracked relevant health data.
The GT5 Pro has automatic motion detection which is perfect for me. I’m curious to see how effective this is, since I have a hard time remembering how to set up the watch, and I rarely want to cycle through the options and wait for GPS to kick in before starting a workout. Unfortunately, the GT5 Pro is no better than the standard GT5. Automatic detection is sketchy at best and certainly cannot be relied upon. When it works, you just press a button to receive a workout, but it doesn’t happen often enough.
Despite my overall positive opinion of this watch, I have a nagging feeling about it. My question has less to do with the functionality of the watch and more to do with whether the design helps or hinders participation in these sports. The bottom line for me is that I don’t think the watch is designed for the sport it’s intended to track. The case and band of the model I tested are made of titanium. Therefore, it’s not particularly comfortable, especially when you start to sweat. The chain-link strap design also doesn’t lend itself well to a tight fit, which is essential for a distraction-free workout. Don’t get me wrong, it looks great, but it doesn’t feel great to wear while exercising.
Tracking heart rate and SpO2 was quick and easy, although stress monitoring seemed a bit hit and miss, as the watch failed to respond multiple times when I was feeling particularly stressed. I don’t think this is a big issue because I think most people determine their stress levels based on how they feel rather than what their watch tells them.
The Huawei interface looks absolutely fantastic on the GT5 Pro’s round dial. As you cycle through menu items, the size of each menu item increases as it approaches the middle. You can choose an adaptable grid layout, but I often find that the icons themselves aren’t enough to understand what they represent. In my experience, icons and text are the right choices.
The touchscreen performance is excellent and I found myself using the display to operate the smartwatch most of the time. It’s not that the crown and secondary buttons don’t function well, it’s just that it’s easier to swipe and touch the screen.
The battery life of the GT5 Pro is impressive. Official data shows that the 46mm version takes 14 days and the 42mm version takes 7 days. These are the maximum numbers that decrease as intensity of use increases. With moderate use, I found the watch lasted five to seven days. This includes 24/7 monitoring and exercise tracking every two days. I was never down for long, though, and was able to go from empty to full in about an hour.
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro: Scorecard
| category | Comment | Fraction |
|---|---|---|
| value | The GT5 Pro isn’t cheap at all, but with these specs, it’s not hard to see why it’s priced so high | 4/5 |
| design | The titanium and ceramic finish with sharp edges and octagonal shape give this smartwatch a premium feel. | 4.5/5 |
| feature | Professional sports features and health tracking take this Huawei watch to the next level. | 4/5 |
| Performance | The excellent battery life and activity tracking are a plus, but I personally don’t think the design is suitable for a sports watch. | 4/5 |
| Comprehensive | A well-designed smartwatch comes with a comprehensive set of features and health tracking metrics. | 4.5/5 |
Should I buy the Huawei Watch GT5 Pro?
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro review: You can also consider it
| Header Cell – Column 0 | Huawei Watch GT5 Pro | Fitbit Deluxe | Suunto Race S |
|---|---|---|---|
| price | £329.9/AU$599 | US$199/£179/approximately AU$302 | US$349/£325/AU$599 |
| frame/border | Nanocrystalline ceramic/titanium alloy | Stainless steel | Fiber-reinforced polymer with metal back |
| exhibit | 1.32/1.43-inch AMOLED color screen | Active organic light emitting diodes | 466 x 466 pixel AMOLED |
| GPS | Yes | No | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, Beidou |
| battery life | Up to 7 / 14 days | Up to 5 days | Smartwatch mode: up to 9 days; GPS mode: up to 30 hours |
| connect | Bluetooth | Bluetooth | Bluetooth |
| water resistance | 5ATM/IP69K | WR50m | 50m |
Huawei Watch GT5 Pro: How I tested it
After wearing the GT5 for about a month, I switched directly to the Pro version. This helps me critically evaluate the differences between the two and determine whether a “professional” title is justified. After wearing the GT5 Pro for more than two months, I had enough time to test almost all available features. I also connected my smartwatch to Huawei Health to experience the full ecosystem.
