Smartwatch Buying Guide: 5 Thing You Need to Know

From big names such as Apple and Samsung, dozens of companies are creating smartwatches to deliver notifications, apps and more to your wrist.

Although features and designs vary, the main appeal of a smartwatch is that it can save you time. Whether you want to quickly check incoming messages or control your music, you'll be able to glance down at your wrist instead of having to whip out and unlock your phone.

So, if you’ve thought about getting one of these devices for yourself you should consider a few key things before going to that store.

1. OS and Device Compatibility

Because most smartwatches are designed to serve as companions to your smartphone, device compatibility is very important. For instance, both the Pebble and Pebble Steel use a proprietary OS but work with Android and iOS devices. The same thing goes for the Alcatel OneTouch watch.

Android Wear watches — available from Samsung, LG, Sony and others — work with Android 4.3 and higher smartphones. Google makes it easy to check whether your smartphone is compatible by going to g.co/WearCheck from your smartphone browser.

Bottom line: Don't buy a smartwatch unless you know that it will work with your smartphone. There are some high-tech timepieces that double as phones, but those are less common.

2. Which functions do you want?

Smart watches range from basic to very sophisticated. For example, the $150 Pebble Watch has a monochrome display that’s not a touch screen (you navigate its menus using buttons). It channels e-mails, texts, and other notifications from your smart phone or tablet, and runs a fairly large variety of apps.

The Samsung Gear Live ($200) does those things too, but it also has Google Now (which you can use with voice commands), a heart-rate monitor, and a vivid color touch screen. And you can make phone calls using the watch even if you’re nowhere near your phone.

3. Display: E Ink or Color?

There's something that feels anachronistic (pardon the pun) about a monochrome E Ink or e-paper display on a smartwatch. But such displays provide a couple of very important benefits. First, they make it possible to read the screen outdoors without worrying about glare. Second, an E Ink screen helps save serious battery life. We're talking about the difference between one and two days for color and five days or more for e-paper.

On the other hand, smartwatches such as the Apple Watch and Samsung Gear Live let you view photos, apps and other content in full color. And while E Ink watches have a built-in backlight, color displays tend to be brighter. The trade-off is shorter battery life, though smartwatch makers are improving the devices' efficiency.

Color displays use so much power that many watches turn off their screens while they're asleep, so you can't even see the time without waking the device. Look for a smartwatch that continues to show the time when it's not in use, usually at a dimmer brightness.

4. How comfortable will it be to wear all day?

For now, most of these watches are large, and most are rectangular. It's kind of like wearing a mini smart phone on a wristband. A few newer models, such as the Moto 360, are round, and feel a bit less bulky, so they may be more comfortable if you have small wrists. Of course, some small-wristed people are fine with big watches. It's a personal choice. But regardless of your wrist heft, if there is any way you can try a smart watch on before you buy it, do so.

5. Design and Personalization

The better smartwatches offer a choice of straps and/or the ability to swap them out for a third-party option. This is important if you want to personalize the look of your device. The Moto 360, for example, offers a standard 22-mm band.

The Pebble Steel comes with two straps (leather and steel), while the original Pebble supports all sorts of 22-mm bands. The Sony SmartWatch 3 is available with a sport or steel band. The Apple Watch offers the most design options yet. It comes in two sizes and three finishes (steel, aluminum and gold), and offers six band designs.

Keep in mind that comfort counts for a lot, as does the ease with which you can fasten the watch to your wrist. Though it's versatile, the Microsoft Band is so bulky that many wearers position the display on the inside of their wrists. We would definitely avoid any smartwatches with cumbersome clasps that require too much force to open and close. Samsung and Sony are guilty of this. The Moto 360 uses a traditional band.