It’s one thing to know that you’re ready to invest in a smartwatch, and another altogether to know which one you want. There are a lot of options out there, and there are almost as many features to pour over as there are options on the marketplace.

If you’re interested in purchasing a hybrid smartwatch in the near future, take a look at the 6 features you should be looking for before you decide to take the plunge.

1. Reliable Fitness-Tracking Capabilities

Fitness trackers have become more advanced in recent years. Not only can you keep an accurate account of steps taken, you can even track calories consumed and set an alert to remind you when to drink or get up for a quick walk.

Fitness trackers aren’t all made equal, and some are downright unreliable, skipping some steps here or adding them there. For those who want to meticulously track their activity, this is a big issue.

Ensuring reliable, consistent accuracy was important to us, and you can see in the chart above that our watches were consistently more accurate than the FitBit Charge 2 in terms of pedometer accuracy.

You want your watch’s fitness tracking tools to be reliable; otherwise, what’s the point in tracking it?

2. A True, Classic Look

Conventional fitness trackers are dead useful, but most of the options on the market aren’t what you’d always want to wear. They lack a sophisticated look, and while they might be ok at the gym, you wouldn’t necessarily want to wear them to work or out to dinner, resulting in inaccurate counting.

Too many smartwatches on are only designed for function or looks... not both. 

That's why we designed our analog hybrid smart watches with a classic look and a traditional, mechanical calendar. While other hybrid smartwatches use the watch hand to point at the date on the dial, it's so small that it's hard to see, and the multi-functions often confuse the user.

Having a beautiful, analog watch on your wrist is a classic, timeless look, allowing you to gain functionality without sacrificing aesthetics. 

3. Full Customization to Improve Efficiency

Too many smartwatches on the market don't offer you many-- if any-- customization abilities. You might be able to change a few audio notifications, but that's about it.

Look for a smartwatch that utilizes advanced haptic vibrators, which allow users to set different vibration patterns for different alerts. One pattern could indicate an incoming call, while another could signal an email, or an alert to drink a glass of water. Users will be able to tell what they're being alerted to without even needing to look at the watch. 

With our New York Standard Watches, we took this a step further. In addition to customizing vibration patterns, users can also look at the app in order to see what's triggering the alert. 

4. True Ease of Use & Convenience

If you're looking for an analog hybrid smartwatch, most of them will have the circle on the watch face showing a percentage of your fitness goal that you've reached so far. If you want to hit 5000 steps, it will show that you've hit a 35% goal once you get to 1750. The percentage points, however, is often confusing for users and annoying to calculate, making the watch more difficult to use.

You want a watch that's simple to use, so that you only need a quick glance at it to know where you're at and what you still need to accomplish. Look for a watch that features a direct pedometer, letting users see the exact number of steps at a quick glance. We were the first ones to do this, and we're proud of it; it's a feature that our customers regularly rave about. 

5. Fully Rechargeable

Did you know that most analog watches aren't actually rechargeable? They might be long-lasting, but they'll need to be replaced 6 months. And for the watches that are rechargeable, too many of them get drained quickly, giving you only a day or two's worth of battery life.

Seek out a watch using a truly rechargeable and long-lasting battery. A single charge for one of our watches will last for about two weeks, even with frequent usage.

By choosing a rechargeable device with a longer battery life, you'll be able to keep it on your wrist more often instead of having it hooked up to a charger or sending it out and paying to have the batteries replaced. 

6. Great Customer Support

Hybrid smartwatches of all kinds are, in some ways, wearable technology. And technology can have glitches and require updates or maintenance, so you need to ensure that you're purchasing your timepiece from a company who is currently invested in keeping it running smoothly.

Look for warranties, and check reviews for tips about customer service. If you're able to see an FAQ section with troubleshooting tips, that's actually a good sign instead of a bad one; most wearable tech will have problems pop up occasionally, and you want to be purchasing from a transparent company who will help you address them. 

You also don't want to look for outdated models on eBay; buy your smartwatch brand new and directly from its creator. This allows you to take advantage of warranties, and it also ensures that you aren't purchasing a timepiece that's no longer supported. 

Conclusion

There are a number of smartwatches out there to choose from, all of them offering a variety of styles and features. Ultimately, you'll need to search for a watch that offers everything you want, and remember to keep an eye out for these 6 key features when you're making your purchasing decision. Trust us... you'll thank us in the long run. 

Want to check out our watches for yourself?

Take a look at our classic Manhattan analog hybrid smartwatch here.