A strenuous test was conducted by tech reporter Michael Hicks, who assessed the ten most popular fitness watches,—Apple, Garmin, Samsung, Google, OnePlus, Amazfit, COROS, Polar, Suunto, and Withings,—while he was walking and jogging for 10,000 steps. The objective of the experiment was to find the watches that would provide accurate step counts for the users, both everyday and fitness enthusiasts, who are actually in need of such a feature.
Key Findings
- Most reliable: The Apple Watch Ultra 2, OnePlus Watch 2R, Garmin Forerunner 970, Polar Vantage V3, and COROS APEX 4 kept their accuracy very close to the actual count and as a result, they earned the users’ trust.
- Moderately accurate: Amazfit Active 2 and Withings ScanWatch 2 were not that accurate but the differences in the results were very minor.
- Least accurate: Suunto Race 2 struggled with walking tests, undercounting thousands of steps, though it was accurate during jogging. Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic also lagged behind other major brands in walking accuracy.
- The anomaly is quite interesting: Watches that were in pockets, besides tracking time, also counted steps — Garmin and COROS even reported more than 5,000 steps from just the pocket, although there were some brands that counted much fewer steps.
Walking vs. Running
The accuracy of step detection is high in jogging because the arm movement is very consistent; on the other hand, the arm movements during walking are subtle and can be misinterpreted by some watches.
Why Accuracy Matters
Discrepancy of even 200 steps can add up to a whopping 6,000 steps a month or 72,000 a year, in turn affecting your health targets. Accurate step counting is mandatory for healthy heart, weight management, maintenance of good mood, and completing the fitness resolutions that were made at the beginning of the year.
Conclusion
Accurate step tracking is one of the main features and it is definitely beneficial for runners, hence the majority of the most popular fitness watches have it as a main feature. Apple’s and Garmin’s high-end brands offer the highest accuracy while Amazfit’s and Polar’s cheaper ones still perform decently. Though for walking Suunto might not be that dependable, it is nevertheless very good for running.
