Theoriginal OnePlus Watchwas a disastrous product that should have never been launched. Its failure likely led the company to focus on budget-oriented Nord watches and retract from the premium wearable segment entirely. Rumors from the last few months indicated thatOnePlus was ready to return to the smartwatch marketwith a Wear OS wearable. OnePlus has now officially announced the OnePlus Watch 2, showcasing its design and selected features ahead of a full reveal at MWC 2024 next week.
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In itscommunity announcement, OnePlus President and COO Kinder Liu says the company is “more confident than ever about this product.” With the OnePlus Watch 2, the company aims to win the “Best Flagship Smartwatch” title of the year.
Ignoring all the marketing speak, the accompanying press renders of the watch reveal its stainless steel chassis with two hardware buttons on the right. OnePlus also confirms using a sapphire crystal to protect the circular display.
While OnePlus did not reveal the internals, it boasts the Watch 2 will deliver up to 100-hour battery life in Smart Mode, setting a “new industry standard.” Thebest Android smartwatchestypically last around 24–48 hours, with the battery saver mode extending runtime by a few more hours.
An extreme battery saver mode on Samsung’s Galaxy Watches can increase their battery by a few days. However, in this mode, all the watch’s smart functionality is disabled. OnePlus could have designed a special Smart Mode for its next smartwatch to extend its battery life to over 4 days without, hopefully, introducing major functionality compromises.
OnePlus' announcement does not address if the OnePlus Watch 2 features Wear OS. But allrecent leaks surrounding the watchindicate it will run Wear OS 4 out of the box. Given the resurgence of Wear OS as a wearable platform, the time is ripe for OnePlus to enter the segment with a premium offering. The market also needs healthy competition, as right now, offerings from Samsung and Google are the only decent choices.
The OnePlus Watch 2 will be available in Black Steel and Radiant Steel colors. It will launch on February 26 at MWC 2024, where we should get more details about its specs, price, and availability.
