Huawei Watch GT Runner: Is it the watch that will help you run your first marathon?

Huawei Watch GT Runner is something that we’ve been waiting for. Many are talking about its AI-driven personalised coach for running and its high level of accuracy in location tracking. So, like always, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. Here’s a quick evaluation on what we learned from the unboxing:

• Great aesthetic with a replacement strap included, which is a welcome inclusion, in case of wear and tear during usage in the summer months.
• The watch face is 46mm with a sleek ceramic bezel, which might be large for some slim wrists. Depends on individual preferences. However, the watch is so light, that it does not weigh down at all.
• At the top right-hand side you'll find a raised crown, which can be pressed to open the main menu or return to the home screen, and rotated to toggle through options.
• On the same side of the bezel is the button to select settings and view performance data.
• It is easy to wear with a beautiful AMOLED display, that works really well when you use the responsive format of touching and swiping.
• Comes with the Huawei quick puck charger in the box, which you won’t use too much of. Why? Well, the battery life is seriously impressive – it is 14+ days. So you literally could get away with charging once a month.
• The watch comes pre-loaded with many useful tools, including SpO2 sensor for blood oxygen levels, very high accuracy sleep monitoring including naps, activity measure, music, ability to take and make calls on the watch as long as it is connected to your phone via Bluetooth and both devices are within range, connect to the phone’s camera, compass and heart rate monitor. In fact, the back of the watch is designed to ensure optimal contact, to be able to get high accuracy heart rate readings, which is really helpful when training and during recovery.
• Finally to the main function, the watch is geared towards tracking 100+ activities and offers the option of auto detection for some like running and walking. Personally, I found the watch to be a great help if you are a starting or mid-level runner. It really helps you with AI-based programs to get to that 5K, 10K or marathon goal with active feedback option.
• Additionally, the satellite sensors are almost near the bezel, so location tracking is very sensitive. I have, personally, found this to be highly wanting in many top brands, especially if there’s cloud cover. The Huawei Watch GT Runner gets past that hurdle with ease.
• Of course, you need the Huawei Health app to manage the watch, which is available on all Android and iOS platforms. Once connected, it will let you manage your watch, all its settings, including the watch faces in a seamless manner. It even shows you how to extend the battery life, for good measure.

Verdict: All in all, a good smartwatch for runners offering high value at an excellent price point in the UAE.