The HUAWEI Watch GT 6 Pro might be the best-looking fitness tracker in my smartwatch box

I spend a lot of time swapping watches in and out, so it’s rare when one actually turns the heads of my loved ones. The HUAWEI Watch GT 6 Pro, though, immediately did. It’s polished enough to dress up yet built tough enough to keep pace on the trails. More importantly, it promises to outlast my patience for charging cables with a battery life that stretches weeks, not days. At first blush, it feels like a watch equally concerned with looks (hence the blushing), longevity, and functionality. Fortunately, that’s a combination HUAWEI pulls off.

The HUAWEI Watch GT 6 Pro doesn’t reinvent its wardrobe, but it still makes a striking first impression. With a 46mm build and 1.47-inch display, it leans large, yet manages to stay comfortable on my wrist, even during workouts. I’ve recently revisited my love of jumproping, and despite its stature, the GT 6 Pro was comfortable even while my arms flailed.

The octagonal bezel is a repeated design cue from the last generation, and the overall aesthetic largely echoes last year’s model, which isn’t a bad thing. The sharp, angular sides help the device stand out in my watch box otherwise dominated by smooth circles and rounded squares. When I hear “octagon,” my mind jumps straight to the UFC, but on the GT 6 Pro, the shape feels elevated and refined, with polished metal and clean lines. Unlike the latest Galaxy Watch series, the design is unique in a good way.

On the Sports Edition I tested, the polished case flows smoothly into the fluoroelastomer strap. Compared to the metallic option of the Classic Edition, the flexible sport band feels far more practical for the gym and makes the device a reasonable workout companion without undercutting its fashion-forward appeal. The strap didn’t cling or get steamy when I worked up a sweat on the bike. HUAWEI does sell additional bands separately, and the swapping mechanism is enjoyably smooth if you’re interested in swapping into a different material for nights out. Again, I don’t feel the sport band detracts much from the upscale look anyway. The Pro model features sapphire glass, aviation-grade titanium, and a nanocrystal ceramic rear cover, so it’s plenty elevated.

Front and center, the GT 6 Pro’s AMOLED display is bright, crisp, and generously sized. Colors pop without looking cartoonish, and with peak brightness up to 3,000 nits across the series, the panel holds up even under direct sunlight. Navigating the interface feels familiar if you’ve used HUAWEI wearables before: swipes bring you to health stats, notifications, and quick settings with little fuss. The animations aren’t flashy, but they’re smooth enough to keep the experience fluid. There are also a variety of watch face styles to choose from, ranging from classy minimalist looks to an animated pet one that, in my opinion, clashes with the otherwise mature aesthetic, but to each their own. Overall, Harmony OS is a UI that favors simplicity, which makes sense for a device built to last weeks on a charge rather than burn through power chasing flair.

If there’s one spec that makes the HUAWEI Watch GT 6 Pro instantly tempting, it’s the battery. HUAWEI promises up to 21 days on a single charge, which is about three times longer than most of the mainstream competition. By comparison, the flagship Google Pixel Watch and Apple Watch average 24 to 36 hours, while Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 8 line tends to stretch closer to 40 hours. Even Garmin, my typical go-to for multi-day stamina, doesn’t always match HUAWEI’s claim outside of its beefier outdoor models. Next to my Pixel Watch, which rarely makes it past a second morning, the GT 6 Pro feels like a luxury.

In practice, that means I could head out for a two-week trip and realistically leave the charger behind. Battery life is highly dependent on usage, and tools like always-on will immediately shrink HUAWEI’s 21-day claim, but even with heavier use, including GPS tracking, the Watch GT 6 Pro is still built to last far longer than the average smartwatch. It’s liberating not to wake up wondering if the battery will last through a long run or a day on the trails.

The GT 6 Pro ships with a hefty magnetic charging puck that snaps the watch into place and delivers fast top-ups. Unfortunately, HUAWEI still relies on a USB connector rather than USB-C, which feels outdated for a device otherwise leaning so hard into modern design.

Long battery life means more time on the wrist to actually record stats, and the Watch GT 6 makes good use of its endurance. HUAWEI’s catalog of more than 100 workout modes carries over from the last generation, covering everything from swimming to HIIT. New this year are fitness tracking enhancements for four popular outdoor activities: cycling, trail running, golf, and skiing.

Going in reverse order, skiing mode now provides more precise positioning and richer datasets. Given I live in Hawaii, I don’t anticipate testing that particular upgrade anytime soon. For golfers, the Pro offers high-definition fairway maps for more practical course management. In trail running mode, it adds altitude trend charts and real-time grade analysis (meaning I can check whether my quads are reasonably sore or just being whiny in real time). If you’re more of a trail walker than a trail runner, the feature is useful no matter your pace.

Finally, for cyclists, the device adds a brand-new virtual power meter, the first of its kind on a HUAWEI watch. It mimics pro-level hardware to deliver wattage estimates directly on the wrist, offering deeper insights without requiring extra gear.

Beyond sports, the newest watches also debut HUAWEI’s all-new TruSense system, a hardware and software upgrade aimed at improving accuracy across key health metrics. HUAWEI says it improves heart rate tracking, SpO₂ monitoring, and sleep tracking, and adds HRV measurements. In my own testing, I noticed quick heart rate lock-on, and I still love HUAWEI’s post-workout recovery measurements. Heart rate data, unfortunately, remains a hurdle to export cleanly for comparisons, but on the device, measurements matched up closely with my other trusted wearables.

When it comes to GPS performance, the GT 6 Pro performed well enough for most users. I tested the watch on a series of runs, and for the most part, its routes lined up closely with my Apple Watch Ultra 2, a high bar for accuracy, as shown in the map above. You can see some areas where the watch wasn’t perfectly aligned, veering wide of my actual path slightly. Yet, pace and distance matched nearly perfectly, often within one hundredth of a mile. The accuracy isn’t perfect, but it’s likely good enough for most athletes.

I do highly recommend turning off the workout announcements before heading to a track, unless you want your splits loudly broadcast to everyone within earshot.

It’s important to set expectations. The HUAWEI Watch GT 6 Pro is not a full-fledged smartwatch in the vein of a Pixel Watch, Galaxy Watch, or Apple Watch. HUAWEI’s GT lineup has always leaned toward fitness-first features and battery endurance rather than deep smart functionality, and this model follows suit.

There’s no app store, no LTE connectivity, and only limited support for third-party integrations. Notifications work fine, but replies are minimal, and you won’t find the same ecosystem of apps you’d expect on a Wear OS or watchOS device. Even the NFC hardware is restricted to HUAWEI Wallet, which isn’t universally supported and is effectively unusable in the U.S. If features like tap-to-pay or music streaming from your wrist are essential to you, the GT 6 Pro won’t meet those needs. It’s better to think of it as an advanced fitness tracker dressed up as a smartwatch, rather than a smartwatch that happens to track fitness.

What stands out most about the device is its stamina and how completely it leans into the GT identity. This isn’t HUAWEI trying to beat Samsung, Google, or Apple at their own smartwatch game. The GT 6 Pro doesn’t have the kind of deep integrations you’ll find on competitors. If you want a device to pay for groceries, manage your playlists, or serve as a wrist-based extension of your phone, this isn’t it. For that type of user experience you’ll need to shop the Galaxy Watch 8 ($349.99 at Amazon) or Pixel Watch 4 ($349.99 at Amazon), or if you’re an iOS user, the Apple Watch Series 11 ($399 at Amazon).

Instead, the GT 6 Pro makes its case as a very polished, very attractive fitness tracker with phenomenal battery life. Its premium build quality and sleek design, plus its impressive multi-week endurance, set it apart from mainstream competitors. Most smartwatches require constant charging. Power management of the GT 6 Pro fades into the background while it records runs, rides, and sleep for weeks at a time without a wall outlet. In that sense, it’s closer to a Garmin or even a Fitbit than a Wear OS or watchOS device, but it’s dressed in a package that can hold its own against luxury-leaning flagships.

If what you want is an advanced fitness companion that looks sharp, lasts forever (by smartwatch standards), and keeps the basics covered, the HUAWEI Watch GT 6 Pro delivers. Just don’t mistake it for a full-fledged smartwatch, because it’s not trying to be.

Finally, unfortunately, the watch won’t be officially available anytime soon to US shoppers. As always, you may also face some feature limitations if you choose to import the watch.