I tested the OnePlus Watch 2R. Here’s why you should buy this $230 smartwatch

OnePlus Watch 2R

MSRP $230.00

Score Details

“If you want a smartwatch with outstanding battery life and a great price, the OnePlus Watch 2R is it.”

Pros

• Rugged, durable design
• Easily replaceable watch bands
• Fluid interface with Wear OS
• Exceptional battery life and charging
• No features locked to OnePlus phones

Cons

• Average looks
• Unimpressive health features
• No backup and restore via cloud

The $500 OnePlus 12R is a prime example of the exceptional value that the company’s R-series offers. The letter “R” loosely refers to a reduced version stripped off the luxury features while retaining most of the essential stuff — more in line with OnePlus’ original products. The OnePlus Watch 2, which OnePlus launched only a few months ago, is now getting the R treatment.

I used the OnePlus Watch 2R for five days before writing this review and have worn the original OnePlus Watch 2 since its launch in February. Here’s what I have to say about the newcomer and the shadow that the older one casts on it.

OnePlus Watch 2R: design

The OnePlus Watch 2R has a circular design like the regular Watch 2, but the two have vastly varying designs. While the OnePlus Watch 2 looks more elegant in its stainless steel cladding, the Watch 2R has a simpler design that resembles the first-gen OnePlus Watch. The OnePlus Watch 2R uses aluminum for its construction, which leads to a lighter chassis but also diminishes the premium impression of the Watch 2.

The curved bezel on the OnePlus Watch 2 is replaced by a flat one on the OnePlus Watch 2R. The new bezel has a 24-hour marking and a silver semicircular ring along the bottom half of the bezel. OnePlus says it is aiming for a retro appearance with that design and managed to achieve it better with the green color variant. Perhaps a brass-like, dusky golden shell with a green dial would have helped achieve that look, but OnePlus chose to go with silver instead.

Despite its underwhelming appearance, OnePlus doesn’t skimp on its essential durability features. The Watch 2R comes with an IP68 rating, which leaves you with some peace of mind while going for a swim or using the watch in the rain. OnePlus does not use the same sapphire glass over the display that it does on the Watch 2. Instead, doing the job here is Panda Glass, which is less resistant than sapphire and Gorilla Glass. Interestingly, OnePlus also claimed the Watch 2 is certified with MIL-810H standards but does not mention them regarding the 2R.

The company now includes a silicone band with the OnePlus Watch 2R, while the Watch 2 uses one made of fluoro rubber. The silicone band feels slimmer, lighter, and more flexible. While the material of choice adds to comfort if you, like me, wear the watch round the clock, it feels less durable and far less tasteful than the previous version. Thankfully, it uses the standard 22mm lugs and can be swapped out by any band of that size.

Another change is the new set of buttons on the side of the OnePlus Watch 2R. Unlike the raised portion on the side of the OnePlus Watch 2, the Watch 2R has a plain design with identical buttons. Their looks aside, the functions of the buttons remain unchanged. The one on the top serves as the Home button, which you can press to open the app list, long-press to activate Google Assistant, or double-press to open the most recent app by default. The one on the bottom invokes a workout with a single-press, double-press to open Google Wallet, or long-press to open the power menu.

You can customize the functions of the buttons (except actions for the Home and Power menus) — but with certain limitations. For instance, if you have been using a Galaxy Watch, you may struggle with muscle memory, compelling you to press the lower button to go back, but that feature doesn’t work here. So, if you wish to set one of the buttons to work as a back button, that’s not possible. You can set them to open any app on the watch.

The OnePlus Watch 2’s aesthetics were one of its redeeming features (the other, of course, was the supreme battery life), and that’s where the new Watch 2R lags. However, if you don’t look at them side by side — or have experience using the Watch 2 — you may not be as irked as me right now.

OnePlus Watch 2R: hardware

The OnePlus Watch 2R shares the same internals as the older Watch 2. It is driven by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Wear W5 platform. The W5 platform is better than the Exynos W930 inside the Galaxy Watch 6 but lags behind the newest W1000 chip found on the Galaxy Watch 7 and the new Galaxy Watch Ultra. Even with the older W5 chip, the OnePlus Watch 2 and 2R run extremely smoothly, and I have never witnessed any stutter, even while running third-party watch faces.

The OnePlus Watch 2R — like the Watch 2 — features a second BES2700 chipset to sport a low-power mode. This mode basically cuts out all the Wear OS features and exclusively runs apps and features inherent to OnePlus. It automatically activates when you are sleeping or not wearing the Watch 2R, allowing it to conserve battery significantly. The low-power mode can also be activated manually from the Settings app if you are running low on power or looking to save battery while being away from a power outlet for a few days.

In addition to the dual chipset setup, the OnePlus Watch 2R features 2GB RAM and 32GB of onboard storage. You can use this to download playlists in music apps such as Spotify and YouTube Music, store thousands of watch faces, install hundreds of apps and games, or store millions of screenshots from the watch itself. Using the charging puck, the OnePlus Watch 2R can also be connected to a PC as an external storage or to transfer music files for offline playback.

Lastly, there’s a single speaker grille on one side and a microphone hole on the other. The call quality through the mic is admissible, but I wish the speaker was a bit louder. While it suffices for calls indoors, it may not be enough for loud environments outdoors.

OnePlus Watch 2R: connectivity

The OnePlus Watch 2R supports Bluetooth 5 and dual-band Wi-Fi. The earlier Watch 2 lacked any cellular capabilities, which drew significant criticism. Its successor was supposed to remedy that — and it did, too, but only in China.

The OnePlus Watch 2R was launched in June in China as the Watch 2 eSIM edition. However, the global variant lacks eSIM, and the exact reason for this grave omission seems unclear — though it probably has to do with certifications from bodies such as the FCC.

For location tracking, the OnePlus Watch 2R uses dual-frequency positioning, which means it is accurate down to 5 meters. I had no trouble connecting it to GPS even from within my house, which makes its case quite convincing.

OnePlus Watch 2R: display

Looks aside, the OnePlus Watch 2R is pretty similar to its sibling. It uses the same 1.43-inch circular display with a resolution of 466 by 466 pixels. It is fairly detailed, and the colors are vibrant enough not to leave you yearning in any sense.

The display is also plenty bright and easily visible in daylight, even with the bright sun shining on top. OnePlus also claims 1,000 nits of brightness in the High Brightness Mode, which should keep you covered for most indoor and outdoor scenarios. The brightness of the always-on display (AOD) may sometimes not match up, especially outdoors, but it depends largely on the watch faces you are using.

You can either set the brightness manually or leave it to work automatically, and I prefer the latter option. However, you can’t use both options simultaneously; when automatic brightness is toggled on, the manual slider disappears. More importantly, while Samsung offers a longer slider to adjust the brightness on its watches, OnePlus offers a step-wise increase that can feel a bit limiting if you prefer accuracy.

Thankfully, the automatic adjustment has been on point for me so far, and I never felt the need to adjust the brightness manually. It even gets very dim in low light, so you’re not hurting your eyes. It’s easy to go back to sleep if you wake up in the middle of the night to check if there are still a few years left before the alarm goes off.

In terms of usability, the display is appreciably responsive. Besides navigating through the interface and typing, I also find it pretty convenient to play minigames on the OnePlus Watch 2R’s display without a hassle. While there’s no native YouTube app, videos also play acceptably well on the tiny screen, although the controls can feel a bit jarring — YouTube’s web interface is unforgiving toward devices without a native app.

Overall, the display on the OnePlus Watch 2R is pretty satisfying and lives up to one’s expectations from a smartwatch — especially at this price.

OnePlus Watch 2R: health features and sleep tracking

OnePlus has vast support for fitness activities and can be used to track over 100 different forms of workouts, including sports, yoga, and even dancing. Besides a host of indoor and outdoor activities, the OnePlus Watch 2R can automatically detect simpler forms of workouts, such as walking, running, swimming, and cycling, alongside movements on equipment such as elliptical and rowing machines.

It’s a bit annoying that these features are turned off by default and may leave you wondering why they won’t record your workouts automatically. However, once you enable automatic tracking for each workout separately (Settings > Workout & health), you’re good to go.

OnePlus offers comprehensive data from your workout, much beyond the basics. For instance, while running, the reporting on the Watch 2R (and even the Watch 2) surpasses basic vitals such as heart rate, distance, calories burnt, cadence, etc., and will list stats such as vertical oscillation — or the vertical distance your feet travel while running. You also see ground contact time and even a VO2 max reading.

However, that may not necessarily translate to accuracy. When used alongside a Galaxy Watch 6, Samsung’s watch often recorded very different results. It’s difficult to say which one is more accurate, but I highly doubt it’s OnePlus, considering Samsung’s longer legacy in the smartwatch segment. OnePlus’ watch also doesn’t auto-detect workouts as quickly, which can become mighty annoying.

On the other hand, the OnePlus Watch 2R performed very well while tracking sleep, which was accurate to the minute. It measures your total duration of sleep and segments it into sections such as light, deep, and REM sleep cycles. These lined up with what the Galaxy Watch recorded. It will also measure your SpO2 levels and can even detect your snoring (with the help of your connected phone).

Besides workout and sleep tracking abilities, the OnePlus Watch 2R’s suite of fitness features feels limited. Unlike the Galaxy Watch, it lacks the ability to measure body composition or perform an ECG. Furthermore, it cannot detect your skin temperature and lacks any sophisticated features to track menstrual cycles.

OnePlus also adds a stress-tracking feature. However, I find it odd that my levels have never soared past 55 (on a scale of 100), and I find that highly unconvincing. The OnePlus Watch 2R compensates by offering various guided breathing exercises using vibrations as cues to inhale or exhale to help you calm down, which may be useful to some folks.

OnePlus Watch 2R: software and experience

The OnePlus Watch 2R’s interface is based on Google’s Wear OS 4 with minimal customizations. The overall interface is very clean and fluid, and I really like the honeycomb-shaped app grid view, similar to the Apple Watch.

The interface supports tiles from first-party and third-party apps — including Google and WhatsApp. Wear OS’s biggest benefit is its unimaginably vast ability to customize the watch and install innumerable apps, games, and watch faces.

The OnePlus Watch 2R comes pre-installed with roughly 20 watch faces, and you can download up to a total of 100 using the OHealth app. There are some decent watch faces, but only two of them actually utilize the 24-hour markings on the bezels. Nonetheless, you can download from a host of other free and paid third-party watch faces from the Google Play Store — or use an app such as Facer, which I highly recommend, to dress up the Watch 2R to your liking.

The Watch 2R also runs a secondary OS called RTOS and falls back to it in the low-power mode I mentioned above. This restricts all the Wear OS functionality — app notifications may be hindered, SpO2 tracking stops, and third-party watch faces don’t work. But all of this extends the battery life multifold, giving the OnePlus Watch 2R the bragging rights for its multiple-day backup.

OnePlus’ companion app for the Watch 2R is called OHealth. It lets you sync all your data from the Watch 2R and view it on the phone. It can also be used to access some of the settings but lacks the same refinement as Samsung’s Galaxy Wearables app.

The app also has poor support for data backup. You must transfer data directly between the old and the new device, which means you can’t back it up on the cloud and restore later. Overall, the OHealth app feels underpowered, and its ravishing visuals don’t make up for its limited functionality.

OnePlus Watch 2R: charging and battery life

The OnePlus Watch 2’s battery life is its biggest highlight. Although OnePlus claims a backup of 100 hours in the Smart Mode (where the Watch 2R’s Wear OS bits automatically hibernate at night), that is an extreme yardstick. The actual backup will only measure up if you don’t use the always-on display (AOD), turn off GPS, keep constant heart rate monitoring and SpO2 tracking off, and do not delve into the luxuries of enjoying other features like raise-to-wake or tap-to-wake.

During the five days I used the Watch 2R, I had to charge it once. The first charge lasted a little under two days. While it’s less than half of OnePlus’ claimed backup, I constantly used AOD and automatic outdoor workout tracking with GPS for half-hour runs or walks. Additionally, I was using a third-party watch face from Facer, kept blood-oxygen tracking on while sleeping, and used tap-to-wake (though raise-to-wake was still off).

Another way the OnePlus Watch 2R impresses is its charging speed. The OnePlus Watch 2R takes about an hour to charge fully at its 7.5W speed. When you consider that it also features a significantly larger battery than the non-Ultra versions of the Galaxy Watch or Apple Watch, this feat becomes even more impressive. More than that, I enjoy the fact that if I’m traveling, I can carry the tiny puck with me because it can be hooked to any USB-C cable. The downside, however, is that this makes it easier to lose, and the fact that OnePlus does not sell spare chargers online worsens it.

Nonetheless, the OnePlus Watch 2R has phenomenal battery life and charging capabilities. These outpace the competition by a large margin, especially in this price range.

OnePlus Watch 2R: price and availability

The OnePlus Watch 2R costs $230 in the U.S. It can be purchased immediately on OnePlus’ website and will be available on Amazon in early August.

If you buy the OnePlus Watch 2R between now and July 28, you can get $30 off your purchase, bringing it down to just $200. $230 is already a very solid price for this caliber of smartwatch, and $200 is even more compelling.

OnePlus Watch 2R: verdict

The OnePlus Watch 2 has severe shortcomings in terms of health tracking features. But it stood as one of the most convincing Wear OS smartwatches because of two primary factors: its enticing looks and its exceptional battery life. The OnePlus Watch 2R stands out only in the latter of those attributes.

While it seems less alluring, the OnePlus Watch 2R makes perfect sense for anyone who wants a lag-free Wear OS experience, plenty of storage to dump music or watch faces, and the convenience of super-fast charging to complement the long battery life. The long battery life can be a lifesaver if you are out on an outdoor adventure (or happen to be unfortunate to witness a long power outage).

In contrast, the lack of eSIM connectivity makes the Watch 2R less convincing, given that a previous-generation Galaxy Watch with additional benefits such as ECG, blood pressure monitoring, wrist temperature sensing, and body composition data is available for about the same price.

Thankfully, the OnePlus Watch 2R does not restrict features based on the phone’s brand, but it does so because it has fewer of them. The Watch 2R is a mixed bag of excitement and disappointment, and makes little sense if you can splurge extra and get yourself a more feature-rich smartwatch. However, if you want Wear OS on a device with excellent battery life and a price that’s easy on the wallet, the OnePlus Watch 2R is fantastic.

Note: The review was edited on 7/17/2024 to reflect that the OnePlus Watch 2R does not have sapphire glass as on the Watch 2. Instead, it uses a less durable Panda Glass.