- We have a release date for the smaller 43mm OnePlus Watch 3
- It will begin rolling out on July 8
- It’s said to be “packed with specs that rival the full-sized version”
When I reviewed the OnePlus Watch 3 two months ago (at the time of writing), I said it was already a contender for the best Android smartwatch of 2025. I loved the stainless steel, classic aesthetic and excellent battery life, but my biggest gripe was a style one: it was a big, heavy metal watch, and only came in one size.
As a sports watch, that’s a major downside. One of the reasons the best Apple Watches are so popular is that they offer watch faces of different sizes, allowing people with smaller and larger wrists to find a watch that feels like it belongs on their arm.
Having reviewed fitness tech for many years, I know search terms like ‘smallest Apple Watch’ and ‘best smartwatch for women’ are popular on Google. Customers who don’t want to wear big, chunky timepieces, whether that’s due to aesthetics or comfort, are sadly limited in choice.
Thankfully, OnePlus listened to our complaints. In my OnePlus Watch 3 review, I wrote: “My main gripe is the watch’s size: at the time of writing the initial early review, I said I would have loved to see OnePlus bring out a second, smaller model for those with smaller wrists. Many people, including a lot of women, will find it’s just too big and heavy for daily wear.
“However, during my testing, OnePlus published the news there would be a second, smaller size along with LTE capabilities for future models, and my fears were dispelled.”
OnePlus had already revealed a smaller size was coming, but not when, nor did we have any other details about it. Would it have the same specs as the larger model? What about battery life? Would it still be a OnePLus Watch 3, or something closer to an Apple-style ‘SE’ model? For months, we had no answers to these burning questions.
Published today in an exclusive interview with TechRadar, Celina Shi – Chief Marketing Officer at OnePlus Europe – finally spilled the beans on the new watch’s release date, and even provided an image – the picture above. At first glance, the 43mm looks a lot more Pixel Watch-y than the full-size 47mm Watch 3.
“In February this year, we launched our latest flagship wearable, the OnePlus Watch 3. It was highly popular due to its huge battery life, accurate GPS and health and wellbeing metrics,” said Celina. “We’re bringing a smaller iteration of this device that’s perfect for those with smaller wrists – but don’t underestimate it.
“It’s packed with specs that rival the full-sized version, as well as exclusive monitoring features not found on any other device – and will be available in sleek Silver Steel!”
It sounds like it’s getting at least one exclusive feature, although we don’t know any more details on it. It’ll also pack specifications that match the 47mm version of the watch.
The best part? It’s launching on July 8, mere weeks away, along with a bevy of other OnePlus devices such as the OnePlus Nord 5, the OnePlus Buds 4 and the OnePlus Pad Lite.
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