Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Further refined

Huawei Watch GT 4 review in a nutshell: Huawei doubles down on fashion without compromising on smart functionality. The Watch GT 4 is the first watch from the brand that looks recognisable and builds on its predecessors instead of completely reimagining the concept. Battery life is on point, too, which is refreshing to see from an AMOLED wearable.

I've been testing Huawei watches for years, and although I generally liked them, it always felt like the brand was moving in a different direction every time it launched a wearable. It's like Huawei hasn't quite figured out who they are, and they were trialling a new look at every launch. Looking at the Huawei Watch GT 4, it seems they finally figured out the design language that looks a little different but isn't a complete departure from what we've seen from the brand before.

There is a lot to unpack here, so I won't waste anyone's time by going into the history of Huawei watches in the intro of this Huawei Watch GT 4 review. Read on to find out more about the watch and to see if it's, in fact, the best smartwatch for you or not.

[First reviewed September 2023]

Huawei Watch GT 4 review

Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Price and availability

The Huawei Watch GT 4 goes on sale in the UK and Europe on 4 October 2023 at the Huawei Store and selected retailers, including Amazon, Argos, Boots and Currys. Pre-orders will be available from 14 September. It comes in two sizes and seven different versions. I tested the 46mm Black Rubber version. US and AU prices and availability TBC. The recommended retail prices for the different editions are as follows:

• HUAWEI WATCH GT 4 (46mm)
• Black Rubber: £229.99/ €249
• Brown Leather:  £249.99/ €269
• Rainforest Green GMT: £249.99/ €269
• Steel:  GBP 299.99/ €349
• HUAWEI WATCH GT 4 (41mm)
• White Leather: £229.99/ €249
• Milanese: £249.99/ €299
• Two-Tone Piano Key: £349.99/ €399

Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Specifications

• Weight: 48g (46mm, excluding the strap); 37g (41mm, excluding the strap)
• Material: metal bezel and stainless steel body with a polymer fibre composite back
• Screen size
• 46mm: 1.43-inch AMOLED screen, 466 x 466, PPI 326
• 41mm: 1.32-inch AMOLED screen, 466 x 466, PPI 352
• Battery life
• 46mm: 14 days 
• 41mm: 7 days
• Charging time: approx. 100 minutes
• Connectivity: BT5.2, BLE/BR/EDR supported
• GPS: built-in, 'Sunflower' technology (see below)
• Microphone: built-in
• Speaker: built-in
• Water rating: 5 ATM, IP68

Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Design and build quality

Huawei placed a huge emphasis on the physical design of the Watch GT 4. The wearable comes in seven significantly different-looking versions, which is not quite as elaborate as the Garmin Fenix (there are over 30 different options to choose from), but more than what you usually get with smartwatches.

Not only that, but all of these Huawei Watch GT 4 versions are very different from each other. The larger 46mm watch has an octagonal-shaped case that comes in four very distinct versions. It's not just the strap that's different; the actual watch comes in unique colourways that look different while also feeling distinctively Huawei.

The smaller 41mm watch has more of a pendant shape and comes in three versions. However, unlike the large watch option, the smaller options have the same case, and it's only the strap that's different. It sounds way too elaborate, but it makes sense when you have the full set in front of you.

My favourite version is the Rainforest Green GMT colourway that has a two-tone bezel. I know other testers picked that as their favourite. Sadly, I've been sent the almost plain vanilla Black Rubber, which is a very decent watch, don't get me wrong, but the one with the least personality.

The button layout is the same as previous Huawei Watch GT iterations: You get a fully functional digital crown and a push button below it.

The display on the new watch actually has the same specs as the previous iteration (or, more like, the Watch GT 3 Pro). The 46mm version features a 1.43-inch AMOLED touchscreen with 326 PPI density. The 41mm option is equipped with a 1.32-inch AMOLED touchscreen with a 352 PPI density. Both have a 466 x 466-pixel resolution. It's bright enough in most situations, and the touch interactions are smooth.

Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Health tracking

The Huawei Watch GT 4 has all the features of its predecessor, with improvements in certain areas, especially health tracking. One of the new and improved features is the improved menstrual cycle management. This feature doesn't rely on manual input. Instead, it keeps track of menstruation cycles and estimates ovulation dates by analysing your physiological indicators, such as heart rate during sleep, body temperature, breathing rate, and more, to predict menstrual periods.

Using this data, the Watch GT 4 can predict ovulation times and send reminders. Pretty cool! Full disclosure, I couldn't test the accuracy of this feature as I don't ovulate myself, but I like that Huawei is working on making cycle tracking automatically. There is nothing wrong with manually tracking your cycle, but sensors are always getting better, so it makes sense that smartwatches should be able to track menstruation cycles automatically.

Sleep tracking has also been improved. The updated TruSleepTM 3.0 is said to monitor your slumber more accurately, although it's hard to tell how much more accurate it is. Huawei watches have already been pretty good at tracking sleep, but I guess it's possible to track the different segments more accurately.

Does it change the user experience from an average person's point of view? Not really, but it's good to know that the watch is more capable than before in analysing your slumber.

Interestingly, I found the sleep scoring system slightly flawed, so to speak. During testing, I slept in a hotel for a couple of nights, and I simply can't sleep in hotel rooms. I had eight hours of sleep, but the deep sleep (too little), light sleep (too much) and sleep continuity (too low) were all over the place. Yet, the app gave my sleep the same score as when I slept in my bed at home, with all those categories being in the right zones. A mystery.

The Huawei Watch GT 4 also tracks your breathing during sleep and can detect stuff like sleep apnea. I don't suffer from it, so I can't say how accurately it's being tracked, but if you're unsure, then the Watch GT 4's new feature might be able to help you confirm your suspicion. 

Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Fitness tracking

One of the most exciting new features on the Huawei Watch GT 4, at least in my opinion, is the new GPS setup. The brand calls it Sunflower GPS, and it's essentially a directional satellite tracking technology. Huawei claims it improves the positioning accuracy by 30% and boosts the GNSS signals of the built-in dual-band five-system GNSS positioning system. 

Similarly to the different cases, it's hard to explain this in words, but the best way to imagine this is to think that the watch takes into account the orientation of the watch when acquiring signals from satellites. If the watch face is pointing up, the Huawei Watch GT 4 tries to detect satellites through the display, or at least in that direction. If you drop your arm next to your body, let's say, the watch will focus on the antenna that's pointing upwards.

I don't live in an area with tons of skyscrapers (there aren't any, actually), but I noticed that the Watch GT 4 beat the Apple Watch Ultra when acquiring a GPS signal, which is quite something, as in my experience, the AWU is one of the fastest watches to do it. Position tracking also seems on point, although I'm yet to take the watch for a fully off-road session.

The watch comes equipped with a newly upgraded TruSeenTM 5.5+ heart rate monitoring algorithm, which is said to bring better precision and efficiency for analysing workout performance and daily health monitoring.

Using machine learning, the Huawei Watch GT 4 enhances data coming from the optical readings and incorporates a "multi-channel signal enhancement" algorithm rooted in proprietary deep AI machine learning. This approach enhances the data accuracy even under less-than-optimal reading conditions.

The new system should provide more accurate heart rate estimations – as they always are estimations with every smartwatch, let's not forget –  during dynamic activities such as running or rope skipping. It also brings the benefit of improved accuracy in low-temperature environments, as well as faster blood oxygen readings and enhanced sleep reading accuracy.

Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Verdict

The Huawei Watch GT 4 is a really good smartwatch. The battery life is nothing short of amazing, and the user experience has also been refined (although it's still not perfect). The Huawei Health app could use a bit of tender loving care, but it's not impossible to navigate and generally does what it's supposed to do.

I'm glad to see that Huawei is finding its stride and building upon what it's already done instead of starting from scratch every time. Say what you might about Apple, but it does a really good job of creating recognisable products and iterating them in a way that doesn't alienate people who are already invested in its ecosystem.

With the new design language, Huawei can finally start work on refining the finer details, improving user experience, and generally breaking away from following trends. Some of the trend following is still present (e.g. the 'all-new' activity rings look suspiciously similar to Apple's rings), but we are generally on the right path here.

The price is on point, which might help entice more people to use Huawei watches. From what I've been told, the company will focus its attention more on wearables going forward, so I'm expecting to see even more innovation coming to Huawei watches. Watch this space!

Huawei Watch GT 4 review: Also consider

The Fitbit Sense 2 is an excellent alternative to the Huawei Watch GT 4 and a brilliant health smartwatch. It tracks stress and sleep and exercise and... the list goes on. Fitbit's community feature has always been famous for keeping people motivated, which isn't dissimilar to Huawei's Health Community feature. Read my full Fitbit Sense 2 review.

The Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 5 is an exciting wearable, the first smartwatch to use the Qualcomm Snapdragon W5+ Gen 1 chip. It's fast and responsive, especially for a Wear OS watch. It doesn't look as classy as the Huawei Watch GT 4, but if you don't mind that, you'll like this wearable. Read my full Mobvoi TicWatch Pro 5 review.