These smartwatches can function independently with cellular connectivity and can also be used for capturing pictures.

So, in this article, we are going to discuss the key features of smartwatches, which will help you to choose your smartwatch. If you are planning to buy a smartwatch but are confused about what features your smartwatch should have? then this article will surely help you. Let’s get on to the features now.

1# Light & Comfy Design

Smartwatches are meant to be worn the whole day and if you are using it for sleep monitoring then it has to be worn while sleeping at night too.

So light and comfortable design are very essential to serve the purpose.

Although many people wear it as a style statement that has smart features if it is being used for fitness purposes then a light design with comfortable materials is a must.

2# Bluetooth connectivity

Bluetooth connectivity is a must for every smartwatch as it enables users to sync their wearable to a smartphone and almost all the smartwatches have this function. So if your wearable has no bluetooth, then simply don’t buy it!

Once synced smartwatch offers full functionality like notification alerts, incoming calls, and messages, music control, camera remote, etc.

All the companion smartwatches rely on Bluetooth connection for most of their features, unlike standalone smartwatches that are capable within themselves.

3# GPS/Navigation

GPS and navigation are very important features in a smartwatch. It is useful in tracking distance while walking or running or to plan route while hiking. In very few smartwatches, you will get the built in GPS sensor, most of the smartwatches use the GPS of the smartphones for tracking purpose.

However your watch must-have navigation features. Navigation is of great use when you are in an unknown city or place as you don’t have to look in your phone again and again for directions.

Some smartwatches also have different vibrations for telling whether you have to turn left or right while navigating.

4# Activity Tracking

Again it is a very basic feature for a smartwatch. Almost all the smartwatches have activity tracking features in them. It automatically identifies in which activity you are indulged in or you can manually also select the activity.

Smartwatches have multiple sports mode for sports like cycling, running, treadmill running, hiking, swimming, mountaineering, etc. for tracking your fitness data accordingly. Like my personal smartwatch, Huawei GT has 10 sports mode.

Such sports features you can also get even in very cheap smartwatches (under $50) like umidigi uwatch 2S. It has 15+ sports mode!!

They have various sensors like a barometer for measuring changes in elevation while mountain climbing and hiking or GPS for measuring distance while running or cycling.

5# Notification Alert

Checking your smartphone again and again for every notification can be very annoying sometimes and it also doesn’t look good when you are in a meeting or somewhere important.

This is where smartwatches come in handy to allow you to check notifications by just tilting your wrist and decide whether it is useful or not. You just need to connect your watch with the Bluetooth to get a notification on your smartwatch.

Most of the budget smartwatches only support notification for calling & messages. Like if someone calls you, it will show the calling notification with the name of the caller. You can check the notification alert on the watch and you can pick the call from your smartphone or simply reject the call with the smartwatch. You can not accept calls from your smartwatch (because most of the budget smartwatches don’t have a speaker & mic)

You need to carefully check this feature before buying a smartwatch.

6# Answering Calls & Messages

Answering phone calls and replying to messages comes in handy with smartwatches when you are exercising or driving or in any other awkward situation where you cannot take the phone out. This feature generally found in premium smartwatches. It is available in Apple series watches, Samsung galaxy watches, etc.

You can also use the screen touch to pick the call from your smartwatch. The most important thing which is needed for such smartwatches is a built-in speaker & Mic facility.

So If you want to use your smartwatch as a smartphone, just check first that it must have a speaker and a microphone.

Some smartwatches have this unique feature that if your smartwatch is connected with your smartphone via Bluetooth and if any phone calls come, you just need to shake your hand to pick the call, Isn’t it amazing!

Many smartwatches also have voice support for more convenience. This, of course, cannot replace smartphones but can be very useful in some situations.

7# Long Battery Life

Long battery life is one of the great concerns for smartphone users. Smartwatches are designed to complement smartphones but many people don’t like charging it again and again like smartphones and it is also not possible many times.

There are many budget smartwatches like Amazfit BIP that give you more than a month battery life!!

This is the most important feature which you should consider while choosing a smartwatch. If your watch does not have a good battery life, it will ruin all the joy of this smart gadget.

We have covered an article, which has some of the best smartwatches with the longest battery life. If you want to know more, you can read that article.

So having a longer battery life which can last for a few days or at least a whole day is very important for any smartwatch. Don’t go for a watch if it has less than 1 day of battery life in regular use.

8# Fitness Tracking

Fitness tracking is a core feature for many smartwatches available in the market. You can replace your fitness band with a good smartwatch with features like a pedometer for counting your steps, calories, distance, etc.

It has sensors like a heart rate sensors for keeping a track of your heart rate, pulse rate, etc. Some smartwatches now even offer ECG functionality. Smartwatches can also be used for monitoring sleep quality and also remind you to take a walk when you have been sitting for too long.

Some smartwatches also have female health apps for keeping a check on women’s menstrual cycle.

9# NFC Pay

Many smartwatches nowadays have NFC support for making payments on the go. NFC support is very helpful for making payments quickly without taking out your cards and can be very useful when you don’t have your cards with you.

NFC transactions are also accepted quickly than credit cards thus saving your time when you are in a hurry.

10# IR Sensor

IR Blaster or IR Sensor is also one of the handy features in smartwatches. It lets you use your wearable as a remote for appliances like TV and AC.

Also with the increasing popularity of home automation systems, this feature can be of great use for controlling various smart devices around your home.

11# SIM Card Support

A smartwatch with a SIM slot can perform all the features of a basic smartphone. Of course, it can never replace your smartphone with a high-end camera and big display, but sometimes when you don’t want to carry your bulky phone like on a jog or long walks it can be a great companion.

The standalone smartwatch can be used to make a phone call, send messages, browse the internet, use various social apps over cellular connectivity.

They also have enough memory to store music and videos for entertainment on the go. Kids smartwatches also have SIM card support so that kids can make a phone call in an emergency.

12# Water-resistance

A water-resistant smartwatch is a great buddy while swimming or running in rains.

Smartwatches have various levels of water-resistance like 3ATM, 5ATM or 10ATM indicating how much depth and water pressure they can resist.

Waterproof smartwatches above 5ATM is an essential feature for rugged smartwatches as they can be worn during extreme water sports or even deep-sea diving.

13# Internal Storage

A smartwatch cannot store a large amount of data like your smartphone but having enough internal storage for music, photos, apps is very important. When you don’t have your phone around like when running, exercising or any other situation it can offer you the convenience of listening to music, watching videos or playing games.

Many smartwatches have an in-built camera so internal storage is also used for storing captured photos and videos.

14# Smartwatch with Camera

A smartwatch camera is not as advanced as a smartphone’s camera but it comes handy for taking pictures and videos in emergency situations or for video calling.

There are many spy smartwatches available in the market which have camera smartly hidden in their design and offer HD video recording and also night vision lens.

15# Emergency SOS

The SOS feature is a great use for women and kids for sending alerts in an emergency situation. The smartwatch has some shortcuts like pressing the power button a few times which directly sends a message and your location details to the contacts you have set up in the SOS contact list. This feature can save you in critical situations.

So these are the features you must check before making any buying decision, hope this article will help you to choose your first smartwatch.

Apart from sports and studies, ’90s kids just had a single option of entertainment and that is television.

However, nowadays there are numerous options available. We have noticed kids involvement in mobile activities like watching videos, playing games, clicking selfies, etc..

Even a 2-year-old can start the desired youtube video with the help of a voice assistant. So, kids are whole-heartedly welcoming these broad changes and becoming highly tech-savvy.

They are smarter than us when it comes to smart tech. We need to understand it and encourage them to take authority.

Also Check: Amazing Smartwatch Gift ideas for Christmas

There has been a decade-long argument as to when to give personal mobile phones to kids. While kids start demanding it from the elementary school itself, parents always try to push the decision. But even the parents can’t deny the ultimate benefit it can show.

So, to bridge the gap between kid’s age and Smartphones,  tech-minded people have developed many kid-specific Smartwatches which are a boon to both parents and the child.

Parents can now shift the child’s attention from Smartphone to Smartwatches easily.

Do kids really need a Smartwatch?

You must be thinking – What is so special about this gadget?  Will it really appear just as a Smartphone to the kid? Let us take a glance as to what benefits it can provide:

Peace of mind for parents –

With parents in the office and kids in school, coaching classes or park, this device can help keep track of your kid’s whereabouts unobtrusively with the GPS tracker giving a sense of relaxation to the parents.

Independence –

You can ask your child to go out alone without worrying by setting safety zones for kids and thus inducing independence in them.

Motivation –

Growing interests of kids in watching television and mobile phones are not only affecting their eyesight but also their overall health. Child obesity is a major issue these days and through the many activity-tracking features, they can stay motivated and make active decisions regarding their health.

Enabling Parental Controls –

This is one of the best features that remove every single doubt from the parent’s mind. Yes, you can enable any parental control as per your preference. This control includes blocking unknown numbers, restricted game time, classroom mode, Internet restrictions ( best one), etc..

Budget-friendly –

These Smartwatches come at affordable prices. You can buy a nominal-budget watch like Kurio 2.0 or an extravagant or expensive like TickTalk 3, according to your preference.

10 Best Kids Smartwatches in 2021

Discussed this, let us now move on to the best 11 Smartwatches for kids in 2021. I have sorted the following list according to the GPS tracker availability.

1# Ojoy Smartwatch (Age- 5 to 10 years)

Ojoy smartwatch has its own kido operating system. This OS making it very easy for the kids to understand and navigate through.

They can take both photos, videos and also apply various filters to them making it a fun experience.

Apart from the tracker installed, this waterproof smartwatch also provides a sim slot that can be used to call and message to pre-selected contacts. Thus, making it totally reliable.

Key Features:-

• Display- 1.4 inch LCD, 320 X 320 pixels with Corning Gorilla glass
• First 4G VOLTE smartwatch phone
• Empowered with Kido OS based on Android and animated UI
• Storage of 4 GB ROM and 512 MB RAM
• Functions with Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 2100 platform
• Supports both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.
• GPS for real-time location tracking along with location history
• 2 MP front camera with 84 degrees wide-angle lens
• Comes in two colors- Blue and pink

2# Tencent kids smartwatch (Age-4 to 10 years)

Tencent Kids watch is well built and of premium quality with a nano-sim slot. It is accurate for parents trying to keep a constant watch to their child’s movements by enabling geo-fencing alert and parental controls like preset contact list and remote turn-off the watch.

It has a very easy interface with smooth touch-screen and easy navigation. The look of the watch is amazing and will satisfy your child’s needs.

Key Components:

• Display- 1.44 inch IPS display,
• GPS, GSM, and SOS enabled
• Storage – 32 MB ROM + 32 MB RAM
• 3 MP camera
• Waterproof
• Supports two-way communication with sim card
• Pedometer and parental controls

3# TickTalk 3 (Age – 5-12 years)

This is not just a watch but a phone placed on your child’s wrist. They can call or face-time with preset contacts thus providing good communication and safety for families.

This is an advanced 4G watch with all the recent technologies installed and providing a sense of contentment to both parent and child.

If it suits your budget then this could be the best pick among other smartwatches.

Key Components:

• Display: 1.54 inches touch-screen LCD
• 4G Smartphone that combines 2-way video calling, voice calling and smart messaging,
• Water-resistant,
• 2MP Camera,
• GPS with SOS, Wi-Fi, LBS 3-way locator,
• Available for individual or group chat.
• Available in 6 different colors,

4# DUIWOIM (Age – 4 to 12 years)

The Duiwoim is a budget-friendly watch with the best of features like active tracking, parental controls, games, pedometer, calendar, and a calculator so your child can perform simple calculations.

With a reasonable price and trendy styling specific for both the genders, this is another masterpiece contribution to smartwatches.

Key Components:

• Display – 1.44 inch LCD,
• GPS with SOS, Wi-Fi, LBS enabled,
• GPRS real-time positioning,
• Waterproof,
• Allows two-way voice-calling and texting,
• Supports seven languages,
• Long-lasting battery,
• Supports micro-sim card

5# HereO Watch (Age- 3 to 12 years)

This watch provides peace of mind to the parents and a great medium of communication for panic alerts or group messages.

Geo-fencing is the most sought-after feature and it is quite easy to configure with your phone location-history.

Now, you don’t have to worry about your kids while you are busy at the office. You will get all the necessary updates about the location and you can track their activities once you are back home.

Key Components:

• Display – Electronic Paper Display(EPD) with 60% reduction in power consumption,
• World’s smallest GPS watch specially designed for young children,
• Available in four color variants,
• Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi connectivity,
• Accelerometer, Panic button present,
• Parental controls like geo-fencing and SOS,

6# Verizon’s Gizmo Watch (Age 3-11 years)

Gizmo watch resembles an Apple watch and is quite popular for its lively design. Even though the kid is wearing it, it is completely controlled by the parents like only 10 trusted contacts, and 23 approved text-messages can be sent.

Your children would be happy to be the sole owner of the watch, but it is actually you functioning at the back-end.

Key Components:

• Display – 1.3 inches AMOLED with 240 X 240 pixels,
• Battery life up to 4-7 days.
• 4G LTE connectivity,
• Pedometer and remote turn-off(via parent app)
• GPS enabled with geo-fencing,
• Two-way voice calls and messaging,
• Lock with a PIN,
• Record voices and play audio,
• Available in two color variants
• Price: Rs. 12,709 approx.

7# Garmin Vivofit Jr. 2 (Age- 4 to 9 years)

Even though this watch lacks a most important feature i.e. no GPS tracking, it is a very popular and useful watch to frame the day’s activities for your kids.

Parents worrying about their kid’s incomplete chores or bad behavior can set timers and award points which motivates the child to improve themselves.

But you need to check the brightness and band’s quality before buying it. Overall, it is indeed the best activity tracker for the kids.

Key Components :

• Display – 11mm X 11mm dimensions, 8-color MIP(Memory-in-pixel) and a resolution of 88 X 88 pixels.
• Available in six vibrant themes with either adjustable or stretchy bands.
• Activity Tracking, Sleep monitoring, Sedentary reminder, chores-tracker, In-app rewards and many more.
• Aces at battery component with a non-rechargeable battery that needs to be changed every year,
• It is swim-proof and shower-proof.
• Bluetooth Connectivity,
• Compatible with both Android and iOS Smartphone,

8# Vtech Kidizoom DX2 (Age- 4 to 12 years)

With the increasing obsession in clicking selfies, this watch is a boom for kids. They can take selfies or record video with a single click and can transfer it to any other device via USB plugging.

With plenty of watch faces and games, it surely is an eye-candy but no GPS tracking is surely a bit disappointing.

Key Components :

• Display – LCD with a screen-size of1.44 inch, 320 X240 pixels.
• Storage – 256 MB,
• Battery – 2 to 3 days,
• Comes in two colors- Blue and Purple,
• USB Connectivity,
• Motion Sensor, Pedometer(Step Counter),
• Splash-proof not waterproof,
• A selfie and side Camera with Speaker, and Microphone enabled,
• Price – Rs. 8,855

9# Kurio 2.0 (Age- 6 to 14 years)

If you are afraid of your child misusing the internet or connecting with strangers, this watch is for you.

Along with that, it features many fun games that require the child to squat, run and then freeze while playing.

A great watch with an affordable price. But, you need to check on the camera and speaker quality before buying.

Key Components :

• Display – 1.54-inch touch screen with a resolution of 240 X 240 pixels.
• Vast memory attributes with 256 MB internal memory and SD Card slot up to 32 GB,
• Battery Life – 1 day,
• Comes in three colors- Lavender, blue, pink,
• Bluetooth and USB connectivity,
• Front-facing 0.3 Mp Camera,
• Built-in Motion Sensor, Speaker, and Microphone.

10# Leapfrog leap band(Age- 4 to 7 years)

This watch lets your kids choose from 50 fun games for which they tend to win jewels and earn pets. They can further personalize those pets and groom them as per their wish.

The best feature is the parental controls that can be set in the laptop after syncing the two. You can set school quiet time, bedtime, and also mold the physical activities you want your kid to pursue.

All in all, it is a small video game placed in the wrist.

Key Components:

• Display: 1.44 inch LCD with a hi-res color screen, 128 X 128 pixels
• Water-resistant with active parental control
• USB connectivity
• Rechargeable battery that stays firm for 3-4 days
• First kids activity tracker with a personalized pet,

So, these are some of the best picks of the season. I hope you enjoyed it and can now confidently figure out the best Smartwatch for you and your kids.

Buying Guide for Kids Smartwatch

Here we have pointed out some of the unique features to look for when you move out to purchase this tech product for your kids:

1. The Look –

Smartwatches are available in a variety of colors, textures, and designs. You need to select one according to your requirements like a pink-strap watch for a girl and a star-war inspired watch for a boy. In other words, the watch should complement the personality of your child.

2. The Dial –

The Smartwatch should display the perfect amount of brightness so that the kids don’t develop vision issues. Also, the screen should be well-organized with a flawless touchscreen.

3. The battery –

This is an important feature to look at. What is the use of a smartwatch if it cannot survive for a quality time after being charged?

4. The GPS –

According to me, this is a must and best feature a Smartwatch can have. It is a super essential element in a kid’s watch.

5. Activity Tracking and Emergency Apps –

These are the most useful apps as discussed above and should be taken into consideration while making a purchase.

You can also read our Must-Have key feature for a smartwatch article, which will further give more clarity for your purchase.

With such a boon in these kinds of wearables, every company started investing in making the best smartwatches. Even the tech giants like Apple, Samsung have launched many generations of their wearables by now. These watches are not only good in jam-packed features but also works as an accessory. The most popular feature of these watches is their GPS system, through which parents can keep track of their kids from anywhere with the help of their smartphone.

These wearables had gone to such an extent in the technology that you can do the two-way calling, two way messaging, Geofencing (a system that helps to manage safe zones for kids), count your kid steps, and even some have a camera too for clicking instant moments. A lot of designs and colors are introduced for every watch so that the kid can choose the one that fits his personality the most. 7 best GPS Smartwatches available for kids are:

1. TickTalk 3

TickTalk 3 smartwatch has developed a lot as compared to its previous generations. It has a built-in camera to have a smooth video call with your kid anywhere and anytime. Along with the sim card, it gets connected to the Wi-Fi as well.

Kids used to play with water a lot without caring for their clothes and accessories, but as this watch is IP67 WATER RESISTANT, so there is no need to worry. It has replaceable straps and a new locator that is 50% more accurate than the previous generations.

2. GizmoPal 2

This watch has a two-way calling feature that was using the Gizmo Hub app by which you can save 4 numbers that you can call anytime. You can check the location of your kid anytime to keep track of where he is wandering.

This Kids smartwatch from Gizmo can be used with straps that come in a wide variety of color ranges. It really gives a relief to the parents, and then they can concentrate on their own work.

3. Tencent QQwatch

The best feature of this watch is the two modes calling that is Monitor mode and Dialing mode. When you call your kid with monitor mode, then you can hear the surrounding sounds too. You can also insert a sim card or can use Wi-Fi for location and can do a real-time track of your kid.

With this GPS Watch you can even communicate by voice and text messages using this GPS smartwatch. The voice messages are two ways, whereas the text messages are one way that is from parents to kids.

4. GBD GPS Smart Kid Tracker Watch

GBD GPS Smart Kid Tracker has an alarm to notify the kid when to come back home. It gets connected to cellular, Wi-Fi, GPS. It is really beneficial to monitor the health status of the kid as it has a fitness tracker, sleep monitor.

A built-in camera in the watch can be used for video calling and keep an eye on the activities of kids. This smartwatch can also work as standalone smartwatch with the use of SIM card.

5. DokiWatch

This watch is really good at design. It is one of the segments which has a built-in camera for video calling anytime. The GPS tracker helps to monitor real-time location. It has fitness tracking features to keep a look at our health.

Dokiwatch also has an SOS button for emergencies. It has a Geofencing feature in which parents can mark the safe areas, and whenever the kid leaves that boundary, the trigger will let the parents know on their phones.

6. hereO

hereO kids GPS smartwatch comes in various colors loved by kids. You can insert sim or can use Wi-Fi for using data for monitoring location and calling. It gives notifications and alerts on the watch itself and is helpful for messaging parents about any issue or anything.

You have to take a subscription for using it as well as it has support for over 120 countries without any roaming charge.

7. FiLip 2

It is one of the best-looking smartwatches of all in design. Flip 2 has a one-way messaging feature that means the kid can only receive messages. The kid can receive and make calls from this watch to 5 contacts max. Set by the parents.

With Filip 2 smartwatch you can track the location of the kid using GPS by using data from inserting a sim or a Wi-Fi.

Above mentioned 7 best watches available for kids are really helpful for enhancing the safety of the kid, giving the kid a danger-free and stress-free surrounding. Using all these wearables, parents can work calmly without stress, and even kids can play well.