OnePlus Watch Show Off Sleek Design In First Official Render Ahead Of March 23 Launch

by Brandon Hill — Friday, March 19, 2021, 10:46 AM EDT

Next week will see the arrival of the OnePlus 9 family of flagship Android smartphones, but OnePlus has another product that will launch at the same time. OnePlus has been dropping hints for weeks about its upcoming smartwatch, and today, the first official [full] render of the device was revealed.

The OnePlus Watch doesn't break any new ground when it comes to styling, as it features a circular display that is typical for just about every smartwatch that isn't an Apple Watch. In fact, the OnePlus Watch reminds us the most of the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active2 with its sleek, organic shape. There are two buttons on the right side of the casing, and its watchband reminds us of the fluoroelastomer Sport Band that comes standard with the Apple Watch.

OnePlus CEO Pete Lau recently indicated that the new smartwatch would provide "seamless connectivity between OnePlus smartphones, audio peripherals, smartwear devices, and even OnePlus TVs, making smart control over all these devices simple and intuitive." It also will hit an "affordable price point" and provide a "best-in-class user experience."

More importantly, Lau confirmed that the OnePlus Watch wouldn't be using Google's Wear OS. "We chose to go with a smart wear operating system developed based on RTOS because we believe it provides you a smooth and reliable experience while offering a great battery life, covering some of the biggest concerns we've been hearing from people looking to buy a smartwatch," added Lau on the OnePlus forums.

By going with a non-standard operating system, OnePlus will be limited with respect to third-party apps compared to Wear OS devices. However, as we've seen with Samsung's Tizen-based smartwatches, there is room for growth with apps and marketplaces on non-standard watch operating systems.

Lau went on to add that a smartwatch has been the most requested new product category from OnePlus customers. It will be interesting to see how the company advances the market segment and if its price point will make it a potent threat to established competition like the Galaxy Watch family of wearables.

Tags: SmartWatch, OnePlus, oneplus watch

Brandon Hill

Brandon received his first PC, an IBM Aptiva 310, in 1994 and hasn’t looked back since. He cut his teeth on computer building/repair working at a mom and pop computer shop as a plucky teen in the mid 90s and went on to join AnandTech as the Senior News Editor in 1999. Brandon would later help to form DailyTech where he served as Editor-in-Chief from 2008 until 2014. Brandon is a tech geek at heart, and family members always know where to turn when they need free tech support. When he isn’t writing about the tech hardware or studying up on the latest in mobile gadgets, you’ll find him browsing forums that cater to his long-running passion: automobiles.

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