Withings Steel HR Sport Smartwatch

Hybrid smartwatches are the new hit. If you join the self-optimization hype of recent years and still want to be stylish on the go, you can no longer avoid this combination of watch and fitness tracker. However, the smartwatch market is pretty flooded. They are available in all shapes and colors and of course in all price ranges. I had the chance to review the new Withings Steel HR Sport that the French manufacturer Withings recently introduced. As a smartwatch novice, I was pleasantly surprised!

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Design: A smartwatch that stands out visually

My very first impression was: something big. In terms of design, I was initially a bit skeptical about my rather delicate women’s wrist. But to be honest, I got used to the new accessory on my arm within 18 hours and found that it looks pretty good with a sweater or coat.

In general, the watch is very well made and kept simple. I particularly like the bracelet, which is made of silicone. It is breathable, so I had no problem with perspiration even when doing sports or wearing it for a long time. In addition, the fabric of the bracelet feels very comfortable. Also positive: the watch is not heavy. It is comfortable to wear all day long.

Withings is based on the design of the dial Previous models the watch, which has since been further developed under the umbrella of Nokia. The OLED screen of the smartwatch above is a bit small, but it is always sufficient to see the functions of the smartwatch. But more on that in a moment.

Otherwise, it should be noted on the positive side that you don’t immediately notice that you are wearing a smartwatch. That’s probably why it goes so well with most outfits. What I like best on the dial is the second small display below the screen. This always shows the status of the daily step goal. So you can see at a glance how much you should move without activating the screen. And of course you will be reminded of the step goal every time you just want to take a quick look at the clock.

The watch charges incredibly quickly – it was fully charged within an hour and a half. And it lasts for a pleasantly long time: after a week of normal use (around 10 activations a day) I still had 58 percent battery left.

Features: Great for the gym and jogging

The features of the Withings Steel HR Sport are very versatile. Setting up the clock is also very easy. All you have to do is download the Withings Health Mate app, connect the watch to the mobile phone via Bluetooth and you will be automatically guided through a guide to individually set up the watch. In addition to the general tracking of heart rate, number of steps and the distance run, I personally find the integrated calorie counter very good. This calculates how many calories you have already consumed from weight, height and movement in real time. I was able to do that really well with my calorie counting app “Yazio” combine.

Furthermore, the Withings Steel HR Sport offers tracking options for over 30 different sports. Personally, I mainly used the watch to track my gym visits. Pre-installed on the display of the smartwatch, which can be activated with a push of a button, are: running, swimming, cycling, walking and others. In the app you can add individual sports, as in my case “fitness”.

Tracking with weaknesses

As soon as you start sports tracking, the watch records calories burned, duration of activity and heart rate. These can then be viewed in the app. I noticed that the tracking does not always work smoothly during the sporting activity. According to the watch, I only burned 16 calories after 45 minutes of fitness. At the end of the workout, however, the app showed 291 calories burned, which overlapped with my data from other fitness apps.

Tracking activities such as simple running only works if you are really outdoors. When I tried to Review the watch on the treadmill, it showed me completely different values ​​for the distance and speed than the treadmill itself.

Another minor point of criticism with the clock is that the integrated “intelligent alarm” didn’t really work for me. I usually get up at 5:40 a.m. In order for the clock to select the perfect time for a gentle wake-up call, it needs a window of half an hour. So I set 5:10 am to 5:40 am. Now, without exception, I was woken up at 5:11 a.m. every morning, which was just too early for me. If I did get up at 5:11 a.m., the app would tell me that I wasn’t sleeping long enough. Well

The watch also recognized activities in some places where there was none. But overall, the tracking was mostly precise and helped me keep track of my daily goals.

How good is your own sleep quality?

I think the detailed sleep analysis is particularly successful. If you also wear the watch at night, it records how long you have slept. In addition, the pulse, the interruptions during sleep and the deep and light sleep phases are monitored. From this a sleep index is determined that goes from 0 to 100. Overall, I find the watch to be very self-explanatory, clear and easy to use.

Practical notifications

I also find it practical that the notifications of many apps are transferred from the smartphone directly to the watch as a preview. I myself never would have thought that it could be so pleasant not to have to constantly have the cell phone in hand to get the most important notifications. There is one caveat here, however. Namely, only names and messages that do not have emojis are displayed, as the watch cannot display them. But in a pinch you can quickly check your cell phone again anyway.

There is a daily overview for each day and a weekly overview at the end of the week.

Withings fitness classes

In addition, you can choose between various fitness courses in the app. These accompany you either for a few days or for several weeks. They are intended to help promote individual fitness areas, such as sleeping or heart health. I had decided on the sleep program and received an evaluation of my sleep behavior every week.

I find this function very helpful because it puts even more emphasis on what you should pay attention to and how you can improve your personal fitness. Of course, you shouldn’t forget that the watch not only records all data, but also forwards them to Withings. At the moment this is only being done for internal purposes, to improve the clock and to troubleshoot.

Conclusion: Withings Steel HR Sport scores as an inconspicuous motivator

Admittedly, I never really thought about getting a smartwatch myself. It’s all too cumbersome, I thought, and too much work. But I was really pleasantly surprised. Thanks to the watch with the support of the app, I can see in detail my sleep rhythm, my number of steps, my weight and my general fitness at a glance.

I personally think that the app still gives a little extra motivation with its clear design. So I can recommend the watch to everyone who can use the spark for additional motivation. Or simply everyone who finally wants to structure and organize their fitness plans.

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