Many individuals select a smartwatch with particular well being and health targets in thoughts. There are lots of smartwatches in the marketplace, however all of them supply a distinct set of options and performance. Whereas it is fairly simple to discover a smartwatch particularly designed for operating, it is a bit tougher to seek out one marketed for swimming. Simply because a device is waterproof, does not essentially imply that it is effectively fitted to monitoring laps within the pool and past.
I’ve taken a deep dive into the precise specs and water-related capabilities of dozens of smartwatches in the marketplace to seek out those that truly supply helpful options for swimming and diving. Some focus totally on swimming or athletic efficiency, whereas others mix spectacular sensible connectivity performance with strong swimming metrics. The precise look ahead to you’ll rely in your targets and preferences.
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Whether or not you are trying to document fundamental swimming stats, prepare for a triathlon, or go scuba diving, these are among the greatest smartwatches for swimming and different water sports activities, with the proof within the product particulars, and most of the time, our personal rigorous product critiques.
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Garmin Swim 2
Finest smartwatch general
The Garmin Swim 2 is designed solely with swimmers in thoughts and may measure your coronary heart fee as you progress within the water. Along with monitoring GPS and pool swimming distance, it will probably document tempo, stroke depend, distance per stroke, SWOLF (swim effectivity) and even sustain with rests, timed units, and log drills. The Swim 2 is waterproof as much as 50m, and incorporates a long-lasting battery. Plus, it will probably monitor your sleep. In case you do not want many further smartwatch options, this affords probably the most swimming metrics for the value.
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Garmin Forerunner 965
Finest triathlon smartwatch
Whereas costly, the Garmin Forerunner 965 is a worthwhile buy for critical triathletes and open-water swimmers. This premier performance-focused smartwatch boasts spectacular specs and superior well being, health, and connectivity options, together with blood oxygen and coronary heart fee. Report important swimming stats like distance, tempo, stroke depend, and SWOLF and maximize your coaching with distance alerts, pacing alerts, relaxation timers, and drill logging. Plus, there are devoted triathlon and operating/swimming modes.
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Samsung Galaxy Watch 6
Finest smartwatch for Android customers
Android customers will likely be onerous pressed to discover a extra succesful smartwatch than the Samsung Galaxy Watch 6. It comes outfitted with a complete suite of well being and health options in addition to connectivity options, together with help for third-party swim apps like swim.com. Along with being waterproof as much as 50m, it hits the MIL-STD-810 score to face up to excessive environmental circumstances and stressors. There’s additionally a useful water lock to maintain the touchscreen from activating throughout swimming.
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Polar Ignite 3
Finest smartwatch for teaching
The Polar Ignite 3 affords dependable swim monitoring. For each pool and open water swimming, you may monitor tempo and distance, strokes per minute or pool size, and SWOLF rating, in addition to your GPS route for open water. Outdoors of swimming, notable options embody superior sleep monitoring and customized on-demand exercise steerage by means of the Polar Circulate app, in addition to a formidable 30-hour battery life. It is also extra reasonably priced than a few of its opponents with related options.
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Apple Watch Extremely 2
Finest smartwatch for iOS
The Apple Watch Ultra 2 boasts a beefed-up design greatest fitted to out of doors adventures. It has a stronger waterproof score to a depth of 100m as a substitute of 50m, that means you should use it for leisure scuba diving and for high-speed water sports activities. The Extremely 2 can document swim distance, tempo, stroke splits, and coronary heart fee within the pool, lakes, or oceans. It additionally affords probably the most complete smartwatch expertise for iOS customers, providing seamless integration with Apple companies.
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Kospet Tank X1 Health Tracker
Finest finances smartwatch
The Kospet Tank X1 is hard and constructed to final. It incorporates a light-weight physique product of titanium and zinc alloy, whereas its vivid AMOLED show is strengthened with Corning Gorilla Glass. The Tank X1 can face up to water stress as much as depth of 100m, making it protected for diving 30m under the floor. It could actually monitor over 70 sports activities, coronary heart fee, blood oxygen, and extra, however most impressively, has a battery life of fifty days in standby mode.
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Apple Watch SE (2nd Gen)
Second greatest smartwatch for iOS
The Apple Watch SE affords most of the similar options because the Series 9 however for a considerably cheaper price. It is one of the best worth by way of performance and efficiency given the value, nevertheless it does require an iPhone. Whereas it is missing among the extra superior metrics like ECG and physique temperature, the swim monitoring is comparable. For each pool and open water swimming, it will monitor distance, tempo, splits, and coronary heart fee in depths as much as 50 meters.
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Garmin Descent G1
Finest smartwatch for scuba diving
The Garmin Descent G1 is mainly a troublesome, sturdy dive laptop in your wrist. It options a number of customizable dive modes, together with technical and free diving, in addition to GPS monitoring, floor multi-GNSS, tide, wave, and surf knowledge, and a built-in 3-axis dive compass. Plus, you may select from over 30 different varieties of exercises and obtain real-time coaching standing alerts (undertraining, overtraining, or optimum coaching) and calculated restoration time suggestions.
One of the widespread considerations with regards to swimming along with your smartwatch is that if long-term use within the water will slowly harm the smartwatch and shorten its lifespan. To keep away from such points, it is necessary to put money into a high quality wearable and know precisely what its limitations are. As long as you solely put on the watch at applicable depths and do not maintain it underwater for longer than the really useful time restrict, the {hardware} and software program of your watch ought to stay comparatively unaffected.
If you wish to be additional cautious, you may rinse your watch underneath clear water after swimming in a chlorinated pool or ocean. It is extra necessary to watch out while you’re washing your palms to ensure cleaning soap or soapy water does not are available contact along with your gadget. In any other case, your smartwatch ought to be simply nice, even for those who handle to squeeze in a swimming exercise on daily basis of the week.
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How a lot do different smartwatch options matter?
This actually comes all the way down to choice. In case you’re on the lookout for a smartwatch that is nice for swimming but additionally simply as helpful for on a regular basis productiveness, then you definitely’ll wish to think about extra versatile fashions just like the Apple Watch Extremely 2, Apple Watch SE, or the Samsung Galaxy 6. However, in case your essential purpose is boosting athletic efficiency, the fitness-forward Garmin Swim 2, Garmin Forerunner 965, or Polar Ignite 3 is likely to be a greater choice. In fact, there are much more area of interest smartwatches, just like the Garmin Descent G1 or Kospet Tank X1, for these with actually particular targets within the water. On the subject of swimming, although, all of the smartwatches on our checklist will serve you effectively.
