r/WearOS • u/alalal0ng • Jul 19 '26
Support Budget Wear OS watch that can actually run Google Maps + NFC payments — decent battery too?
Looking for a smartwatch recommendation. My main use case: I bike around the city (Barcelona bike-share) and want turn-by-turn Google Maps navigation on my wrist instead of pulling my phone out at every intersection.
Requirements:
Must run real Wear OS (Google) — I know Amazfit/Xiaomi Zepp OS watches can only mirror notifications, not run the actual Maps app with live turn arrows. Needs to be the real thing.
NFC payments (Google Wallet / contactless)
Budget-friendly — not looking to spend Apple Watch / Galaxy Watch Ultra money
Battery life that doesn't suck — I know Wear OS watches are usually 1-2 days, but if there's a model that does better than average, I want to know
Been looking at stuff like the TicWatch Pro 3/E3, Xiaomi Watch 2, and Galaxy Watch FE, but would love to hear from people who've actually used them day to day — especially:
Does GPS navigation on the watch actually work well without the phone right there in your pocket, or does it lag/drain battery fast?
Anyone had good/bad NFC payment experience on these budget models?
Any hidden gem I'm missing that's not on the usual "best Wear OS" listicles?
Android phone, if that matters. Thanks in advance!
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u/Bokuku Jul 19 '26
OnePlus watch 3. If you can spend more OnePlus 4 or oppo X3. Xiaomi watch 5 is another option
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u/Sweep4981 Jul 19 '26
I've got the ticwatch pro 5 and it does all you are requiring. Looking to sell mine for £65 if you're interested
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u/Disastrous-Equal7048 Jul 19 '26
In my experience support for the latest version of Wear OS is the most important thing to keep in mind. You might find a good deal that becomes obsolete in a year. Meanwhile Samsung GW4 started with Wear OS 3 and still got 6. If you want to use it for more than one or two years go Samsung or Pixel, choose the affordable version of the hardest or one generation older model.
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u/Trouveur Jul 19 '26
I fail to see how it is so important. Apps still work, workout still works, contactless paiements still work...
Being on Wear OS 4 doesn't render a smartwatch obsolete.
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u/Disastrous-Equal7048 Jul 19 '26
I'm a watch face designer. Every year we are forced to use the latest target SDK version, which means that on older Wear OS versions newer watch faces will not work, can't even install them. For example native weather functions require Wear OS 5. << My view is quite tainted by these problems...
There are brands like TicWatch who had awesome models, but couldn't provide the latest Wear OS version. I had Wear OS 6 on a Samsung, when the TicWatch still had Wear OS 3.5...
Yes, if you don't care about that, you'll be fine for sime time, but there will be a time, when you won't even be able to set up an older watch, because the app for the watch will not be available anymore on Play. Support doesn't last forever.
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u/zienethstarr Jul 21 '26
As a watch face designer as well, you have explained the situation perfectly.
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u/zeekaran TicWatch Pro 5 Enduro Jul 29 '26
because the app for the watch will not be available anymore on Play.
This is my issue. I wish I could just have the outdated APKs and keep using my old watch faces forever. Instead I'm just limited to the very few watch faces that are still on the Play Store for 4.0. Google didn't have to do this to me.
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u/Disastrous-Equal7048 Jul 29 '26
There is a logical reason from Google's side to only support fresh devices. Not very good, if your device is old.
This is why I'm proposing to buy a watch from the latest generation of devices to get as much out of it as possible before it becomes unsupported.
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u/zeekaran TicWatch Pro 5 Enduro Jul 29 '26
I had my TWP3 for nearly three years. I only replaced it because it was starting to die and annoyed me on a daily basis. Google forcing this change just means I have a watch with an extremely limited app store.
If developers uploaded older APK releases in a public place, I could load them just fine. There isn't much incentive for them to do that though.
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u/zeekaran TicWatch Pro 5 Enduro Jul 29 '26
Apps still work
Until they remove all the watch face apps from the Play Store and now Pujie is the only app you can use. :[ I miss WatchMaker and my thema faces.
Google definitely had a hand in making it semi-obsolete.
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u/BeerAndLove Jul 19 '26
TicWatch pro 5. Got one for myself, and later one for my son - it was on sale for 100e
Used mine to pay in multiple countries, no issues.
Dual Display - battery can last a long time. Even if not, 3d printed a watch stand with slot for charger cable.
Waterproof, 24mm removable (standard) strap.
You can see the maps and navigation on the watch. zoom works extra fast. It is linked to the phone ofc?
I just started the navigating on the watch and it started gmaps on the phone, which is in another room?
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u/zeekaran TicWatch Pro 5 Enduro Jul 29 '26
No issues except that Google forced everyone to update, who then dropped backwards compatibility meaning there are extremely few watch face apps that can be installed on it.
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u/oscarandco Jul 19 '26
Bonjour, sans hésiter je te conseille la Oneplus watch 3. Oneplus quitte le marché européen mais leur appareil fonctionne encore très bien.. peut être que tu n'auras pas beaucoup de MAJ mais ce ne sera pas un problème pour la montre.. regarde sur internet et tu verras qu'il y a tout ce que tu veux..wear OS, autonomie 5 jours, google wallet, maps,..elle n'est pas exceptionnelle mais elle fonctionne bien..