Affordable IP68 Waterproof Smartwatch Review [Smartwatches for Swimming & More]
by Tim Bule on Sep 26, 2024
Smartwatches have come a long way. Since Apple brought to us the Apple Watch, a lot of other companies have jumped in and changed the landscape. Smartwatches are not your normal watches anymore. They are your health companion, they are the timekeeper, they are the notification sharer and they are basically an all-weather friend.
Here are the Best IP68 Waterproof Smartwatches that I've used and tested over the past year.
- LIGE IP68 Smartwatch
- Y68 / D20 Smartwatch
- Makibes
- Taihom Watch
- Cubitt - Amazon
- Mi Band 5 - Amazon
Are Cheap iP68 Waterproof Smartwatches from China, Safe?
Contrary to popular belief. IP68 smartwatches from China are quite decent. This is because Electronics export in China have very high quality standards. China has Industry standards for each part in electronics. Based on what I've purchased, the IP68 watches are legitimate. The Xiaomi Bip Lite I purchased from China, which was manufactured in China performed really well underwated. This was a $20 smartwatch. The standards are high.
Are they? There have been a lot of instances where a brilliant and awesome smartwatch has succumbed to the simplest of solutions - Water. Water damaging smartwatches has been a constant and if you are looking to buy a smartwatch, don’t stress yourself by getting a non-waterproof smartwatch.
Today we cover the best waterproof smartwatches!
IP68 Waterproof Android Smartwatches
Amazfit GTS
The Amazfit GTS is the best selling Xiaomi smartwatch in the past year and most importantly it's waterproof with a 5ATM rating which means it can be used under water for up to 50 metres.
The 341 AMOLED Display can be customized with editable widgets. It's semi-casual and is a perfect with formal attire as well.
The battery lasts about 14 days with ease. The 12 Sports Modes covers most of the top fitness activities. The strap can be changed and so does the look.
COLMI SKY
Colmi Sky 1 is one of the best waterproof smartwatches that are there. It has an IP68 waterproof rating. The screen size is 240 X 240 pixels.
Here are the features of this smartwatch.
Common sports modes: It has sports modes that track common activities such as Running, Riding, Mountaineering and more. It calculates the steps, distance and calories.
IP68 Rating: The IP68 rating ensures that smartwatch doesn’t corrode and does not stop working when it falls into the water.
LED Light Data: The real-time LED sensor ensures that heart rate and blood pressure information is recorded accurately. When you are working out, you can measure your heart rate and see how many calories you are burning.
The blood pressure information will tell you whether you are in a relaxed state or a tensed state.
Notifications: It gives you real-time notifications of Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Wechat and other apps. It also gives you information about the calls you receive in real time.
Other Assistance: It reminds you when you are too sedentary, you can use the alarm clock feature as well as stopwatch feature. You can find your phone with this watch and also monitor your sleep.
Battery: It has a capacity of 240 mAh and has a standby time of 20 to 30 days.
Colmi Land 1
The Colmi Land 1 is a beast of a smartwatch. This is a premium smartwatch that has an IP68 rating. The IP68 rating is an advanced version of the IP67. With this you can go swimming underwater, you can shower with it and be underwater for more than 30 minutes. What it can’t do is deep sea diving.
Here are the salient features of the Colmi Land 1.
- It has a 24/7 heart rate monitor
- It has Goal Based exercises which acts as your own digital personal trainer
- It is swim-proof, which means it’s perfect for tracking your swimming performance
- Up to 7 days of battery life
- It automatically tracks your sleep and gives you data on the COLMI dashboard
- There are 6 exercises that can be tracked - Walk, Run, Biking, Football, BAdminton and Basketball
- You can receive SMS, Call, Whatsapp and other messenger notifications
This is one of the best waterproof smartwatches out there.
Riversong
If you are looking for an IP68 smartwatch with amazing design, then look no further than Riversong. This smartwatch comes with uniquely coloured straps - Black, Grey and Pink that look super stylish. Here are its features
- It has a bunch of tracking options such as heart rate monitoring, blood pressure monitoring, blood oxygen monitoring, motion step mark and sleep monitoring.
- The 1.3-inch coloured touch screen can display up to 30 characters and shows notifications from Wechat, SMS and more
- The sports tracking features on this smartwatch are vast. It can track walking, running, skipping ropes, riding, swimming, badminton, basketball and football.
Makibes
Makibes is one of the best smartwatches out there. It’s known for its IP68 rating and also its 100 day standby time.
- The watch looks very similar to Amazfit Stratos
- It has 7 days of battery life
- It’s enclosed by a carbon fiber casing
- It has a torchlight
- One can adjust the dial design to show in various colours
- Battery capacity of 380 mAh that gives it a standby time of 100 days
- Heart rate monitor and 10+ sports modes to track sporting activities
Q9
The Q9 is another interesting smartwatch that resembles the Apple watch pretty closely. It’s a multi-functional smartwatch that has a lot of features with an IP67 waterproof rating. What an IP67 rating means is, you can dunk your smartwatch up to 30 minutes in water that is up to a metre. This means you can take it for some gentle swimming.
Apart from that, it has a huge feature list. Here are some of them
- Continuous heart rate monitoring
- It counts steps like most sports smartwatches
- You can read the message that you receive on your smartwatch itself
- It monitors your sleep and lets you know if you’ve had REM sleep or not
- It also reminds you when you are sitting for too long and also has a reminder for drinking water
- If your watch is away from your smartphone by about 10 metres, you get a notification
- It’s a super slim watch with only 9.6mm in thickness, which ensures you don’t bang your smartwatch against surfaces and tables
- Sports mode tracks running, jogging, cycling
- You can see notifications from messaging channels such as Facebook, Line and Whatsapp
- You can shake your smartwatch to enable selfie mode.
- The battery lasts for around 15 days
- You can also pick up calls directly from the smartwatch
Verifytek Q9
The Verifytek Q9 is a super awesome smartwatch that is budget friendly and has all the features one expects from a modern day smartwatch. Here are its salient functions.
- Primarily it’s a IP67 water resistant
- It comes in some amazing strap colours such as Purple, Blue, Brown, Black and Red
- It’s a 1.3-inch TFT screen with a thickness of 9.6mm making it one of the most suave and stylish smartwatches out there.
- The style of dial can be changed. From a digital to an analog, you can change the style.
- The watch face can also be changed to something of your choice
- It monitors sleep
- It tracks your heart rate and blood pressure as well
- The chip that runs the Verifytek is super advanced and ensures that the battery is optimized and lasts for a long time.
- The battery on standby can last for 15 days easily
- It weighs 30 grams and the battery is 180 mAh.
Smart Watch
One of the most affordable smartwatches out there is the Apple watch replica. It costs around $15 and has numerous features that rival the Apple watch.
- This watch has a 1.3-inch TFT screen
- It has a IP67 Rating
- It works with Bluetooth 4.0
- It measures basic information such as steps taken, distance covered, heart rate, blood pressure, and monitors sleep as well
- Apart from that it shows the weather update, it displays notifications from apps such as Whatsapp
- It also reminds you when you get a call
- It also has an alarm clock that can wake you up in the morning
- It comes with various strap colours that are catchy!
V8 Smartwatch
The V8 Smartwatch is a very unique looking smartwatch. Most smartwatches look like the Apple Watch and the V8 looks very different. For people who like the more traditional look, the V8 smartwatch will be a favourite.
- This smartwatch is IP67 rated
- This is a standard smartwatch with an incredible battery life of up to 450 mAh, which is pretty impressive
- It has detachable bands that are made of silica gel which is super sturdy
- It has a RAM of 128MB
- There is an option to add a SIM card to the smartwatch
- It has a 1.22-inch screen
- The battery can last for standby for more than a week
- The storage can be expanded up to 32GB
Can I swim with IP68?
IP68 watches are meant to be swum with. One can easily swim with an IP68 watch. But some IP68 watches have a time limit on how long the watch can be under water. Most IP68 watches, one can swim with for up to 30 minutes and up to 30 metres.
What smartwatch can you swim with?
One can swim with any IP68 Smartwatch. All you need is to find a smartwatch with a IP68 rating and you can swim with. It doesn't matter what the brand of the smartwatch is, as long it's IP68 rated, one can swim with it.