Smartwatches have come on a long way since they first arrived on the scene, with some fabulous options now available that really push these wrist-worn gadgets to their limits.
Apple released three models this year alone, Samsung produced two models and Google finally joined the smartwatch party after years of rumours. It’s a category with some serious competition in the EE Pocket-lint Awards, and one that has seriously developed over the years.
We’ve seen some great features introduced, improvements to battery life, faster charging and fabulous and premium designs.
Smartwatch of the year: Apple Watch Series 8
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The Apple Watch Series 8 is an exceptional smartwatch and 2022’s very worthy winner of best smartwatch. The design hasn’t changed since the Series 7, but it adds some great new features and capabilities, including a body temperature sensor.
Only iPhone users can take advantage of this device, but it offers a fabulous build quality, a rich and plentiful feature set and it works in perfect harmony with your phone, which is exactly what a smartwatch should do.
Read the Apple Watch Series 8 review
Highly Commended: Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro
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The Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro might have been beaten to the top spot by Apple for 2022’s best smartwatch, but this is still a fantastic option, especially when you consider its sterling battery life.
This time it’s only Android users that can take advantage of it, but it delivers an excellent design, it’s durable and there’s a very strong feature set with some fabulous fitness tracking options.
Read the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro review
The best of the rest
While Apple may have taken the top prize with the Series 8, and Samsung may have come a close second with the Watch 5 Pro, let’s not forget about the rest of the shortlisted nominees, all of whom were truly excellent this year. The Apple Watch SE (2022) deserves a shout out for offering a great entry point into the Apple Watch, while the Google Pixel Watch is a stellar smartwatch overall with a great offering and software experience. The standard Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 also deserves a mention for its lovely design and battery life, while the Garmin Epix 2 finds the right balance between offering a bright, colourful display and maintaining strong battery life.
What are the Pocket-lint Awards?
The EE Pocket-lint Awards take place annually to celebrate the best of tech from the previous 12 months. Products need to be fully reviewed by the Pocket-lint team to be considered for the Awards, with judging taking place towards the end of the year. Through a process of longlisting and shortlisting, the panel of expert judges scores the devices to result in the overall winner and a Highly Commended runner-up.
The Pocket-lint Awards was run for 19th time in 2022.