OnePlus’ first foray into the smartwatch segment was considered a mess. Its first OnePlus Watch faced many users’ complaints which were pinned down mostly on the poor implementation of the device’s proprietary operating system. OnePlus is looking to correct its mistakes with the Watch 2, which it has also started teasing ahead of the rumored launch.
OnePlus Watch 2 design and OS
In a photo posted on OnePlus’ community, the Chinese company has revealed the looks of its upcoming and unnamed smartwatch, which is likely going to carry the OnePlus Watch 2 moniker. While the photo only shows the silhouette of the watch, it does mostly confirm that it carries a circular form factor similar to the original Watch and inspired by the camera ring on the OnePlus 12 (review).
Despite the similarities in shape, it does reveal that the Watch 2 comes with a few design touches to distinguish it from the Watch 1. Primarily, we can see the right section getting an island with the physical button and dial housed on it. This corroborates with the render shared by On Leaks earlier.
There is also a tag line that says of “It’s time, to do it right!” that could suggest that it is going to ditch its custom OS in favor of Wear OS on the Watch 2. With that in mind, OnePlus could likely offer more third-party apps and customizations to the Watch 2, which are some of the biggest shortcomings of the predecessor.
However, it’s not confirmed if we will see it boot on Wear OS 3.5 or the newer Wear OS 4 that powers the likes of Google Pixel Watch 2 (review), Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 (review), and some Android-based smartwatches.
OnePlus Watch 2 launch date and price
OnePlus is also hinting that the OnePlus Watch 2 could be made official on February 26 as it was described in the teaser that they are holding a contest that will run until the said day. This timing is aligned with the opening of MWC in Barcelona, which will kick off next week.
Leaker Max Jambor has also previously stated that the OnePlus Watch 2 will be announced at the annual tech show. It added that the smartwatch features a 1.43-inch circular OLED screen and equipped with a Snapdragon W5 Gen 1 processor. Unfortunately, there’s no word how much the Watch 2 will cost, though it should likely undercut most of the alternatives in the market.
Which features would you wish to see most on the OnePlus Watch 2? Should OnePlus add safety features like fall detection to its watch as well? Hit us up with your answers in the comments.
