It doesn’t matter whether you’re a marketer, partner at a firm or spend time as one of upper management for a corporate brand — you probably wouldn’t be caught dead with a plastic, geeky-looking smartwatch on your wrist. Let’s face it, part of your appeal is looking good. That includes minding your fashion and style.
Problem is, smartwatches and wearable tech can make you more productive especially in an environment where checking a message or notification on your phone in a timely fashion could mean the difference between hundreds of thousands of dollars.
There is a bit of hope. Some of the latest smartwatches hitting the market are much more stylish and slick than any previous models, for instance the Pebble Steel and Moto 360. If you want a full list of options, however that’s going to take a bit of work to find. To help out, we put together a list of some of the best smartwatches for business use.
The Best Smartwatches for Business
Most of the watches on this list include a stainless steel design, just because that happens to look better than chintzy plastic. Translation, stainless steel smartwatches for business are some of the best. Keep in mind, if you don’t like stainless steel you can always swap out the stock bands with a custom one of your choosing. For instance, the Moto 360 stainless steel band can be switched to leather or fabric, if you so desire.
Moto 360
We know, we know, the Moto 360 is one of the more obvious choices of smartwatches for business. That’s because it looks fantastic, and it resembles a real wristwatch thanks to the round design. It was one of the first to achieve this general style, and a lot of manufacturers followed suit after its launch.
On top of that, it’s powered by Android Wear which means there’s a whole lot you can do with it from customizing apps, to the watchface and more. Perhaps most relevant to business is the voice dictation and activation support thanks to Google Now. It works fantastic, which is a whole lot more than you can ask for from a device like this.
The Moto 360 is $249.
Pebble Steel
On top of being one of the most universal smartwatches for business available — it works with Android, iOS, Blackberry and Windows Phone — the Pebble lineup has also been around longer than a lot of the others on this list. That means there are so many more apps, watchfaces and software customizations available, more than 6,500 to be exact.
Of course, the Pebble Steel uses a black and white e-paper display instead of a full-color one like the G Watch R and the Moto 360. That doesn’t mean it’s any less detailed, however. Take a look at some of the custom watchfaces at My Pebble, they’re truly amazing. Plus, the battery lasts for an entire week on a single charge, a day or two less with heavy use.
The Pebble Steel also supports custom bands if you don’t want to keep the stock stainless steel one, and it even comes bundled with a couple different options. If you decide you want to pick up the Steel, it will set you back $200.
Alcatel OneTouch
The Alcatel OneTouch is another round-style stainless steel smartwatch, but the biggest difference between it and the Moto 360 is that it works with iPhones, Android handsets and even Windows Phone devices. You’re not locked down to a single platform, which means if you upgrade or change your phone — which happens more often than you might think — you can still use your smartwatch.
It’s running a proprietary OS developed by Alcatel, but it still looks great. It runs great too, or at least from what we’ve seen of the device at expos and public demonstrations.
It’s scheduled to launch in March, with a price of $150.
LG G Watch R
Continuing with that round-style momentum, the LG G Watch R is LG’s take on the traditional wristwatch design.
The G Watch R looks an awful lot like a diving watch, especially with the numbered bezel on the sides. It is much bulkier than some of the other options on this list, with a more sporty design. Just like the Moto 360, it’s powered by Android Wear which offers a lot in the way of software features and customization.
The G Watch R is $299.99.
Samsung Gear S
The Samsung Gear S is a standalone device which means you can ditch your smartphone completely and use just the watch. It can make calls, send messages, browse the internet and do everything that you’d expect a smartphone to do. You can also use it as a companion device if you have a Samsung branded handset.
It is running Tizen, Samsung’s proprietary mobile OS. This watch is a good pick if you have Samsung hardware, but if you don’t it’s pretty locked down. Not to mention, if you pick up this device and your next phone is not a Samsung model you can at least use the standalone features.
The Gear S is $349.99.
Martian Voice Command
The Martian Voice Command borrows the same design and style as the company’s previous device, the Notifier. This time around it’s packing voice command support — as you may have guessed — thanks to a special hands-free microphone.
There’s no touchscreen display here. The Martian smartwatches are analog-based with a small LCD panel at the bottom for text information, notifications and alerts. This is one of those smartwatches for business that would never even be identified as a smartwatch to most.
This also means that unlike the other watches on this list — other than the Pebble which also lasts a week — the Martian Voice Command does not need to be recharged every night. The battery will last a full seven days on a single charge.
The Martian Voice Command is about $240 give or take.
Sony SmartWatch 2 or 3 Stainless Steel
The SmartWatch 2 might be a little more difficult to find out in the wild, or you could always purchase a Sony SmartWatch 3 and install your own custom stainless steel band. Still, the SmartWatch series are great devices that are compatible with Android handsets.
Keep in mind, the SmartWatch 2 is running a custom-skinned version of the Android OS and runs full Android apps. The SmartWatch 3 on the other hand is powered by Android Wear. The 3 is rocking a 1.6″ transflective touchscreen display, with support from a quad-core 1.2GHz processor and 512MB of RAM.
The SmartWatch 3 will set you back $249.99, while the older version (SmartWatch 2) can be found for much cheaper.
Asus ZenWatch
Call us crazy, but we think the Asus ZenWatch looks good. Sure it’s a bit bulky, and the stock leather straps could do with a makeover but this is one device that will look great on your wrist as-is or with a stock band installed. It’s powered by Android Wear too which means it’s pretty powerful in terms of software features and functionality. You get the same package deal as the Moto 360, LG G Watch R and comparable Android Wear devices.
It features a beautiful 1.63″ AMOLED touchscreen display, backed by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 1.2GHz processor and 512MB of RAM. To translate, that’s plenty of power packed into a little wrist-device.
It won’t break the bank either, since the ZenWatch is $199.99.
What are Your Favorite Smartwatches for Business?
Now that you’ve seen our list, it’s time to weigh in with some of your own choices. What are your favorite smartwatches for business use? Did we miss anything good? Is there anything on the way that you would prefer to wait for?