The crypto bill is falling apart in Congress
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Last week, when I was tracking Coinbase's opposition to the Clarity Act, I kept hearing the same fear from worried DC insiders: The crypto industry was running out of time to pass a bipartisan market structure bill that would actually give them a favorable outcome. The midterm elections are imminent, and Congress will switch to campaign mode in the upcoming weeks, mean …
The best Android phones
The Android ecosystem is all about choice. While iPhone owners have a smaller pool of new devices to pick from when it’s time to upgrade, there’s a wider range of choices on Android. Some Android phones even fold in half! Imagine.
On the flip side, all that choice can make for some hard decisions. Here’s where I’d like to help; I’ve tested a whole boatload of recent Android phones, and I think there are some real winners in the current batch. It’s all a matter of what you’re looking for, what you’re comfortable spending, and what your definition of a “reasonably sized phone” is. (I have my own, personally.)
As you sift through the options, you’ll almost certainly come across tech’s favorite buzzphrase of the moment: AI. Generally speaking, AI has yet to really impress me on a phone. The Pixel 10 series has some useful features, including Magic Cue, which proactively aims to surface relevant information when you need it, and Galaxy devices can translate a phone call for you in real time. These things are nothing to sneeze at! But none of it feels like the platform shift that the big tech companies keep promising. Best not to put too much stock in any company’s AI claims just yet.
If you live in the US, I have some bad news about the Android market, though. For complicated reasons having to do with “capitalism” and “geopolitics,” we don’t get nearly as many of the options as you’ll find in Asia and Europe — brands like Huawei, Xiaomi, Honor, and Oppo just aren’t available here. I’ve limited this guide to the devices I’ve personally tested in depth; thus, it is a fairly US-centric set of recommendations.
With that in mind, it’s also worth acknowledging that most people in the US get their phones “for free” from their wireless carrier. If you can manage it, buying an unlocked phone will give you the most flexibility and freedom if you end up wanting to change carriers in the near future. Phone manufacturers also offer financing and trade-in deals to make payments more manageable. But if you’re happy with your carrier and the free phone on offer is the one you really want, by all means, take the free phone. Just make sure you understand the terms, especially if you need to change plans to take advantage of the deal.
However you go about it, you have some fantastic options for your next Android phone.
The best Android phone overall
Google Pixel 10
Google’s Pixel 10 has a 6.3-inch OLED display, Google Tensor G5 processor, 12GB of RAM, support for Pixelsnap wireless charging, and a triple-lens camera system that includes a new 5x telephoto.
Score: 8
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Screen: 6.3-inch, 1080p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Tensor G5 / Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.7 main with OIS; 13-megapixel f/2.2 ultrawide; 10.8-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS; 10.5-megapixel selfie / Battery: 4,970mAh / Charging: 30W wired, 15W wireless (Qi2) / Weather-resistance rating: IP68
The Pixel 10 is Google’s latest take on the “just right” Android phone that introduces a few notable upgrades. For $799, you get a sharp 6.3-inch OLED screen, the same Tensor G5 chip found in the pricier Pro version, and Qi2 wireless charging with built-in magnets, no case required. The device is built to handle the day-to-day without fuss, and the whole thing feels straightforward instead of flashy.
This year, the Pixel 10 also adds a dedicated telephoto lens, a first for the non-Pro. Unfortunately, the main and ultrawide cameras are a step down from last year’s model. If you’re not scrutinizing every pixel or chasing low-light portraits, you’ll probably never notice. For regular photos, the Pixel 10 is great; it produces clean shots, solid performance, and enough versatility for the average user.
What really sets the Pixel 10 apart, though, is how easy it is to use. AI features like Magic Cue are useful, proactively providing info without getting in the way. For example, it can surface a restaurant’s address or reservation details from your search history or confirmation email as you finalize plans over text. The phone runs cooler than previous versions, handles heavier workloads well, and shrugs off dust and water. If you want an Android smartphone that doesn’t overcomplicate things, the Pixel 10 is an easy recommendation.
Read our full Pixel 10 review.
The best budget Android phone
Google Pixel 9A
Score: 8
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Screen: 6.3-inch, 1080p OLED, 120Hz / Processor: Tensor G4 / Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.7 with OIS, 13-megapixel ultrawide, 13-megapixel selfie / Battery: 5,100mAh / Charging: 23W wired, 7.5W wireless / Weather-resistance rating: IP68
The budget-friendly Pixel 9A nails the essentials, offering a bright 6.3-inch OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, IP68 water and dust resistance, wireless charging, and Google’s fourth-gen Tensor G4 chipset. It’s dependable and polished, with steady performance and a battery that lasts all day, even with the always-on display enabled. Overall, it delivers fantastic value for $499 — especially given it’s set to receive seven years of OS updates — and stands head and shoulders above the other inexpensive options we’ve recently tested.
Google’s entry-level handset does make some compromises to hit its lower price point, though. The 48-megapixel main and 13-megapixel ultrawide cameras are decent for everyday shots, but low-light performance and portrait mode lag behind the latest Pixel 10 phones (and even older Pixel 9 devices). Meanwhile, it runs a more pared-down version of Google’s on-device AI, so you miss out on some features, including the Screenshots app and Call Notes. The core experience is fantastic, though, and the long support window is among the best you’ll find in this price range. If you want a relatively inexpensive phone that feels just a step below today’s flagships, the 9A is an easy pick.
Read our full Pixel 9A review.
The best maximalist phone
Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
Score: 8
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Screen: 6.9-inch 1440p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite / Cameras: 200-megapixel main with OIS, 50-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS, 10-megapixel 3x telephoto with OIS, 50-megapixel ultrawide, 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: 5,000mAh / Charging: 45W wired, 15W wireless (Qi2 Ready) / Weather-resistance rating: IP68
There’s still no phone quite like the Ultra. The Galaxy S25 Ultra is Samsung’s latest answer to the question, “What if your phone had all of the features?” It’s equipped with two telephoto cameras, a built-in stylus, and a big, bright screen. Good luck finding that combination in another phone. Related: this is one of the most expensive slab-style phones you can buy.
The newest edition of the Ultra comes with rounded corners and flat edges, making it more comfortable in your hand. But if you’re looking for significant year-over-year improvements to the Ultra formula outside of that, well, you won’t find much. Samsung’s focus has been on software features, which is to say AI features. But AI on Galaxy phones remains a mixed bag — it’s certainly not the paradigm shift Samsung wants us to think the S25 series represents.
All of that puts the Ultra in a place of slightly less distinction than previous versions. The biggest updates are software features available to the rest of the S25 series. The Ultra looks and feels more like other Galaxy phones this time around, too. More than ever, it’s hard to understand what Samsung means when it calls this phone “Ultra.” Still, it’s your best choice for a feature-packed Android phone — even if it’s not quite as ultra as it once was.
Read our full Galaxy S25 Ultra review.
The best Android phone that isn’t huge
Samsung Galaxy S25
Score: 8
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Screen: 6.2-inch 1080p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite / Cameras: 50-megapixel main with OIS, 12-megapixel ultrawide, 10-megapixel 3x telephoto with OIS, 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: 4,000mAh / Charging: 25W wired, 15W wireless (Qi2 Ready) / Weather-resistance rating: IP68
Most people like a big phone, and I get that. I do. If you want a big Android phone, you have plenty of options. But some of us like a smaller phone — something that (kind of) fits in your pocket, or feels more comfortable in your hand. For us, there is but one option on Android: the Samsung Galaxy S25.
That’s the regular S25, not the Plus, which is a fine big phone. But the standard S25 is basically the last of its kind: a full-featured phone with a 6.2-inch screen. It’s not small, but it’s not huge, and we’ll have to take what we can get. And it’s a darn good phone that keeps up with the bigger devices in all the important ways: the battery goes all day, it comes with plenty of RAM, and it even has a real telephoto lens — not something you get on a basic, 6.1-inch phone on, say, iOS.
The Galaxy S25 isn’t just a good, small-ish phone by default. It’s reliable, durable, and comes with the promise of seven years of OS updates. It’s not my pick for the overall best Android phone because Samsung software can be a bit much, but if you’re comfortable in the Samsung ecosystem and you just want a phone that fits in your dang pocket, then this is the one to go with.
Read our full Galaxy S25 review.
The best lightweight big phone
Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge
Score: 8
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Screen: 6.7-inch 1440p 120Hz LTPO OLED / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite / Cameras: 200-megapixel f/1.7 main camera with OIS, 12-megapixel f/2.2 ultrawide, 12-megapixel f/2.2 selfie / Battery: 3,900mAh / Charging: 25W wired, 15W wireless (Qi2 Ready) / Weather-resistance rating: IP68
Big phones have a tendency to, well, look and feel big. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge, on the other hand, is different. Thanks to its slim, lightweight design, the device provides a welcome reprieve from the countless chunky, heavy alternatives. It’s thinner and lighter than the Galaxy S25 Plus, making it the big phone you can actually slide into your pocket or even your evening bag without it protruding.
So, what’s the catch? The S25 Edge’s battery life is fine. Not great, not terrible, but somewhere straight down the middle. To be fair, it held up admirably during a particularly strenuous workday, one complete with hours of screen time, mobile hotspotting, and live blogging, making it to bedtime with battery to spare. It also lacks a dedicated telephoto lens, though it does feature the same 200-megapixel main camera found in the S25 Ultra.
Even with those compromises, the S25 Edge is a very capable phone that offers similar performance and durability to other devices in the S25 lineup. You’ll just have to be a little more aware of battery life as the day goes on; however, unless you’re routinely streaming video or playing graphics-intensive games throughout the day, the noticeably thinner, lighter design offers a nice change of pace.
Read our full Galaxy S25 Edge review.
The best phone if you hate waiting for your phone to charge
OnePlus 15
The OnePlus 15 offers some of the best battery performance you’ll find from any flagship phone stateside. There’s a top-shelf processor too, a combination that more than makes up for a lackluster software experience.
Score: 8
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Screen: 6.78-inch 1272p 165Hz LTPO OLED / Processor: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 / Cameras: 50-megapixel f/1.8 main with OIS, 50-megapixel f/2.8 3.5x telephoto with OIS, 50-megapixel f/2.0 ultrawide, 32-megapixel selfie / Battery: 7,300mAh / Charging: 80W wired, 50W wireless / Weather-resistance rating: IP68 and IP69K
The OnePlus 15 takes the “never worry about charging” ethos of its predecessor and cranks it up a notch. Its massive 7,300mAh silicon-carbon battery comfortably delivers two days of real-world use — and that’s with every power-draining feature enabled, including the always-on display. You don’t have to baby it to get the best possible battery life, either. If you do need a quick top-off, the included 80W wired charger and patented USB-C cable can provide you with a full day of battery life in just 20-ish minutes of charging.
As for other specs, the 15 features a sharp 1.5K, 165Hz display and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Elite Gen 5 chip, meaning there’s more to the handset than just battery life. That said, there are some tradeoffs given the newer technology. The chemistry of silicon-carbon batteries may degrade faster than that of lithium-ion batteries, though OnePlus claims the battery will retain over 80 percent of its overall health for the first four years. The 15 also lacks built-in Qi2 magnets, unlike the Pixel 10, so you may have to fiddle with the alignment on your wireless charger to get it just right. If absurd battery headroom is what you’re after, though, the 15 offers it in spades.
Read our full OnePlus 15 review.
The best foldable phone
Google Pixel Pro 10 Fold
Score: 8
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Where to Buy:
Screen: 8-inch, 2076p, 120Hz OLED inner screen; 6.4-inch, 1080p, 120Hz OLED cover screen / Processor: Google Tensor G5 / Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.7 main with OIS; 10.8-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS; 10.5-megapixel ultrawide; 10-megapixel selfie (cover screen); 10-megapixel inner selfie camera / Battery: 5,015mAh / Charging: 30W wired, 15W wireless (Qi2) / Weather-resistance rating: IP68
The Pixel 10 Pro Fold brings better durability to a category that’s historically fragile. With an IP68 rating, it’s the first foldable to offer full dust and water resistance. In real-world use, that means the device can take a tumble at the beach and remain relatively unscathed. Plus, you get the convenience of Qi2 support with built-in magnets for snap-on charging and accessories, including Google’s excellent magnetic ring stand. Performance is smooth, too, and the slightly wider outer display feels more like a standard slab-style phone.
Battery life is also solid for a folding phone, lasting a full day with minimal use of the inner screen; however, spending more time multitasking on the larger display may leave the battery in the red by bedtime. While the 10 Pro Fold’s cameras are good, they lag behind Google’s other 10 Pro models. The foldable is also over 40g heavier than Samsung’s lightweight Galaxy Z Fold 7. If you’ve been avoiding foldables because of durability concerns, the 10 Pro Fold’s improved hinge design means exposure to dust and grains of sand doesn’t equal certain doom.
Read our full Pixel 10 Pro Fold review.
Other Android phones worth considering
There are many more great Android devices that weren’t covered here, and a few are worth calling out that didn’t quite make the cut for a recommendation.
- The Nothing Phone 3 is billed by the brand as its “first true flagship phone,” with a $799 starting price that competes directly with the iPhone 17, Galaxy S25, and Pixel 10. It boasts a 6.67-inch OLED display, a generous 5,150mAh capacity battery, and a Snapdragon 8S Gen 4 chipset, which is on the lower end of the flagship spectrum. It also looks different from previous Nothing devices. Instead of the iconic light strips on the back that glow and flash, the Nothing 3 features a small dot-matrix LED display that can show pictures and icons. Read our review.
- The Galaxy Z Flip 7 is Samsung’s other new foldable device. Unlike previous Flip series devices, the company’s latest flip phone ditches the file folder-shaped look for a 4.1-inch, edge-to-edge display that wraps around the cameras. The larger screen is a joy to use, making it much easier to quickly respond to texts and manage full apps. While the design is a big upgrade, the device still offers no protection against fine particles like dust or sand, raising concerns about how the device will hold up over time. Read our review.
- The Pixel 10 Pro is Google’s most refined flagship yet, and a great showcase for the Android ecosystem. It features a premium design and big hardware upgrades over its predecessor, like a Tensor G5 chip and Qi2 wireless charging with built-in magnets. It also offers genuinely useful AI features, and the camera’s portrait mode is much improved over its predecessor. However, while the 10 Pro’s battery capacity is a bit larger this time around (4,870mAh vs. 4,700mAh), the battery life is just okay. We also feel uneasy about generative AI being inside the camera app. Read our review.
- The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is a thin, lightweight foldable that feels like a regular phone when folded shut. It has a spacious inner display that’s great for multitasking and gaming, and its battery can last all day with moderate use. That said, the device has a starting price of $2,000 — $200 more than the Pixel 10 Pro Fold — though we’ve seen it drop as low as $1,529.99. It also has an IP48 rating, meaning it’s fully water-resistant but not completely immune to tiny specks of dust. Read our review.
- As is typical for OnePlus’ budget phones, the pared-down OnePlus 15R launched shortly on the heels of the OnePlus 15. The $699 phone poses a bit of a condundrum in that it costs $200 less than the 15 and $200 more than the midrange Pixel 9A, the latter of which offers both better camera camera performance and wireless charging. That said, it does pack a massive 7,400mAh battery that lets you eke out several days on a single charge, not to mention top-tier performance in the form of Qualcomm’s last-gen Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chipset. Still, the $200 markup over the Pixel 9A is painful, making it hard to recommend. Read our review.
What’s coming next
- Samsung recently announced the Z TriFold after teasing it over the summer. The new foldable is set to arrive on January 30th in the US and features not one but two hinges, which open to reveal an inner screen measuring 10 inches diagonally, with a resolution of 2160 x 1584 and a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate that can drop all the way to 1Hz. The 1080p outer display, meanwhile, measures 6.5 inches and features a 21:9 aspect ratio, while the device itself is 12.9mm thick when folded shut. It also has a ceramic-glass, fiber-reinforced polymer back panel that’s designed to resist cracking, along with an IP48 rating, meaning it’s fully water-resistant but not dust-tight.
- While an official launch is likely still months away, we’re already starting to hear murmurs about Google’s Pixel 10A. The device is expected to look similar to the Pixel 9A, according to leaked CAD renders, and carry over some features from the Pixel 10. That means we could see the entry-level 10A launch with Google’s powerful Tensor G5 processor, offering the same great performance as the brand’s best device.
- The Razr Fold, Motorola’s first book-style foldable, is set to launch in the US this summer at an undisclosed price. It features some of the nifty software tricks found on Motorola’s clamshell-style foldables, along with a 6.6-inch outer screen, an 8.1-inch 2K LTPO inner display, three 50-megapixel rear cameras, a 32-megapixel selfie camera, and a 20-megapixel shooter on the inner screen. We know little else, though, having recently spent some time with an early production sample, we can attest to the phone’s thinness and the quality of the back panel finishes, which are quite nice.
Update, January 27th: Updated pricing / availability and added the Motorola Razr Fold to the “What’s coming next” section. Brandon Russell and Brandon Widder also contributed to this post.
Meta is spending millions to convince people that data centers are cool and you like them
Over the last few months of 2025, Meta spent $6.4 million on an ad campaign running in cities across the country, from Sacramento to Washington, with a clear mission: win over viewers on the construction of new data centers. As the New York Times reports, the ad campaign is anchored by short, folksy video spotlights on Meta's data centers in Altoona, Iowa, and Los Lunas, New Mexico.
The ads make the case that Meta's data centers create jobs, revitalizing rural communities.
However, they take a fairly idealistic tone. For instance, the Altoona ad portrays a town on the brink of disappearing, but thanks to Meta's data center, its residents …
Moltbot, the AI agent that ‘actually does things,’ is tech’s new obsession
An open-source AI agent that "actually does things" is taking off, with people across the web sharing how they're using the agent to do a whole bunch of things, like manage reminders, log health and fitness data, and even communicate with clients. The tool, called Moltbot (formerly Clawdbot), runs locally on a variety of devices, and you can ask it to perform tasks on your behalf by chatting with it through WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Discord, and iMessage.
Federico Viticci at MacStories highlighted how he installed Moltbot on his M4 Mac Mini and transformed it into a tool that delivers daily audio recaps based on his activity in his calend …
The best budget robot vacuums
Today’s robot vacuums are becoming a bit like cars: with all the features, upgrades, and fancy trimmings available these days, it’s easy to forget that they can just be simple machines that get us from point A to point B. Yes, some bots blow hot air on their bums (mop pads), deftly navigate dog poop, and have arms to pick up your socks, but there are plenty of basic budget robot vacuums that just do a decent job of cleaning your floor autonomously — as long as you tidy up first.
Fancier models have obstacle recognition, and some even use AI-powered cameras to tell popcorn from poop and avoid the latter. If you want one of those, check out my best robot vacuum buying guide. But if you think you can manage the task of picking up after yourself (and your puppy), a budget bot will save you a lot of money and still do a good job cleaning your floor.
Best budget robot vacuum and mop
Tapo RV30 Max Plus
A budget robot vacuum and mop with high-end features, including room-specific cleaning, carpet boost, and smart navigation, it also features an auto-empty dock for just $80 more.
Score: 8
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Suction power: 5,300Pa / Dustbin capacity: 300ml / Self-empty dock option: Yes / Mopping option: Yes / Mapping: Yes, lidar / Keep-out zones: Yes, virtual / Runtime: 100 mins, 2,600mAh battery/ Brush style: Single rubber bristle hybrid / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home
For around $300, TP-Link’s Tapo RV30 Max Plus is a very capable robot vacuum and mop with some key features typically found only on vacuums that are more than twice its price. These include room-specific cleaning, multiple suction and water levels, smart lidar-based navigation, and an auto-empty dock.
Thanks to lidar navigation, the RV30 did an excellent job of navigating my house, cleaning the perimeters of the rooms, and then using a mesh grid to clean inside the rooms. I did have to tidy up before it ran, though, as there’s no camera on board or AI-powered obstacle detection — so cables and socks will trip it up.
Its 5,200Pa suction power is impressive on a bot at this price, and ably sucked up Cheerios and dry oatmeal on hard flooring. It left some of the finer dust and debris, as its single bristle / rubber brush isn’t super effective. It fared less well on carpet. However, in the app, I could set it to clean a room three times for each job, after which it generally picked up all visible debris.
Mopping was better than average for a mop with no pressure or oscillation. It has a wide mop pad, and the bot has a big 300ml tank (which also incorporates a 300ml dustbin), so it applies enough water for a good surface clean.
Another unique feature for a budget robot is the ability to set customized cleaning for each room, choosing from five suction levels and three water levels as well as three rotations.
The Tapo app is very simple to use, with an easy-to-edit map that lets you add virtual walls and no-go zones, add furniture, and designate carpet areas. There’s no carpet sensing, so you need to tell it where carpets are if you don’t want it to mop them. You can also set the cleaning direction and build up to four maps — again, features usually only found on higher-end robots.
5,200Pa suction power is impressive on a bot at this price
It’s also easy to start a clean from the app, and I really like that you can tap on the map to send the robot to that spot.
The biggest downside of the Tapo is its tiny battery, which is just 2,600mAh. That is half the size of most vacs, and it couldn’t clean my entire 800-square-foot downstairs without needing to go back and recharge. It also takes a while to charge and occasionally has trouble repositioning itself on its dock.
You can get the RV30 without the auto-empty dock for around $80 less if you prefer an even simpler robot vacuum setup. This way, it will fit under a couch or bed, but you’ll have to manually empty its bin.
Best upgrade budget vacuum
Roborock Q10 S5
A more expensive budget robot vacuum and mop that adds AI-powered obstacle avoidance, more suction power, better mopping and longer runtime
Score: 8
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Suction power: 10,000Pa / Dustbin capacity: 600ml / Runtime: 150 mins, 5200 mAh / Brush style: single bristle / rubber hybrid / Auto-empty dock option: yes / Mapping: yes / Keep-out zones: yes / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts
Roborock’s Q10 S5 is a step up from the Tapo RV30, thanks to double the suction power, a much larger battery and longer runtime, AI-powered obstacle avoidance, and the ability to automatically detect carpet. It also has a vibrating mopping system that does a better job at scrubbing your floors, and it can lift its mop up to 8mm to pass over low-pile carpets.
It has a more advanced lidar-based mapping and navigation system, which, like the Tapo, lets you set specific rooms to clean, create no-go zones, and customize cleaning schedules. But unlike the Tapo, it moves more intelligently around the house and is less prone to getting stuck.
However, the robot vacuum alone costs more than the Tapo with the auto-empty base. If you upgrade to the Q10 S5 Plus, which includes an auto-empty base, you’re looking at over $500. It is frequently on sale, however, which makes it worth considering if you want a budget bot with better vacuuming and mopping.
One downside is that the bot is much larger and wider than the Tapo, so it may not fit into some tighter spaces. The Roborock app is more fully featured than Tapo’s, giving you lots of options for almost infinite customization.
Best budget vacuum-only bot
Shark Navigator RV2120
A solid vacuum-only bot with big wheels, a big bin, and good runtime. It uses lidar for navigation and mapping so you can set keep-out zones and clean specific rooms, plus there’s a version with an auto-empty dock.
Score: 7
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Suction power: unknown / Dustbin capacity: 500ml / Runtime: 120 mins / Brush style: single bristle / rubber hybrid / Auto-empty dock option: yes / Mapping: yes / Keep-out zones: yes / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home
The Shark Navigator RV2120 is a basic vacuum-only bot that’s a step up from my previous Shark pick, the Shark Ion, thanks to lidar navigation. This means it can map your home without bumping and rolling around blindly like the Ion. Mapping lets you send it to clean specific rooms and add keep-out zones to prevent it from going where you don’t want it to.
There are no bells and whistles like AI-powered obstacle detection or room-specific cleaning settings, but the RV2120 does the basics well. It has a nice big bin, a simple app experience, decent battery life, and good repairability. It’s also fairly bullish, pushing through fabric skirting to go under beds and sofas, something not all lidar bots will do. It is very loud and rattly, even at its lowest power level.
Unlike many budget bots, it uses a hybrid roller brush that’s both bristle and plastic and doesn’t get as tangled as standard bristle brushes.
But the best thing ‘bout this bot is its tank-like wheels that will roll right over anything in its path, including high transitions between rooms, obstacles like lounger chair legs, and other furniture traps that regularly stump other bots.
The Shark RV2120AE model includes an auto-empty dock. I love that Shark’s auto-empty docks don’t require replacement dust bags — which saves money in the long run. However, the RV2120AE is more expensive than the Tapo RV30, even after factoring in the cost of bags for the latter.
One benefit of Shark vacuums to consider over the Tapo is that they’re very repairable. You can buy replacement parts for almost everything on the bot, unlike with the Tapo.
Best budget robot vacuum without Wi-Fi
Eufy 11S Max
The Eufy 11S Max is a super slim, repairable bump-and-roll bot with a large 600ml bin and three cleaning levels. Its biggest selling point for some, however, is that it lacks Wi-Fi, meaning you don’t have to fiddle with an app.
Score: 8
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Suction power: 2,000Pa / Dustbin capacity: 600ml / Runtime: 100 mins / Brush style: single bristle / rubber hybrid / Auto-empty dock option: no / Mapping: no / Keep-out zones: no / Works with: n/a
The Eufy 11S Max is a rarity — a robot vacuum that doesn’t use Wi-Fi at all. There’s not even an app. Instead, you just press the button, and off it trundles. It also comes with a remote if you’d rather not get up off the couch, and you can use that to program it to clean at a specific time.
The 11S is super slim, 72.5mm high, with no lidar tower, so it will get under most couches. It has a big 600ml bin, and I was very impressed with how much it got up off my hardwood floors, even with its relatively small 2,000Pa of suction. There are three cleaning levels, and at the lowest, it registers around 55db, which is quiet enough to run in a home office.
It does have a smallish battery — only 100 minutes of runtime — but it will go back and recharge. For $200, this is the perfect budget bot for those wary of or who don’t want to deal with an app or Wi-Fi. It’s a bump-and-roll bot, meaning there are no real navigation skills. But it has plenty of replaceable parts, including the battery and wheels, so you can keep it going for a long time.
Other budget robot vacuums to consider
- The $399.99 Switchbot K11 Plus is a great option for small spaces. Its tiny size lets it navigate around tight areas with ease, and it even comes with a pint-sized charging dock. It offers 6,000Pa suction and does a good job of cleaning up both carpets and hardwood floors. Just note that its mopping is more of a light wipe than a true scrub, and there’s no AI-powered obstacle avoidance.
- The $310 Dreame D20 Plus is an upgrade to my previous pick for best budget mopping robot, the $239.99 Dreame D10 Plus. We’ve not tested it yet, but it doubles the suction power to 13,000Pa, and its included auto-empty dock has a larger dust bag. The D20 also has a bigger water tank and adds the option to adjust the water flow and suction power.
Update, January 27th: Adjusted pricing and availability. Added new picks, including the Shark Navigator RV2120 and Roborock Q10 S5. Sheena Vasani also contributed to this post.
The winter storm tested power grids straining to accommodate AI data centers
The colossal winter storm that swept across 34 states left hundreds of thousands of people without electricity. Bitterly cold temperatures lingering after Winter Storm Fern are still testing power grids, already under stress from a rush of new AI data centers.
Over the weekend, wholesale electricity prices soared in Virginia, the state with the most data centers. And while that's not surprising during a spike in energy demand for heating, it could add to the growing discontent over rising utility bills that has fueled opposition to data centers across the US. Utilities and grid operators were already hard-pressed to meet the increasing pow …
The best fitness trackers and watches we’ve tested
Fitness trackers have come a long way from the simple bands that tracked steps and little else. Modern trackers can monitor everything from your heart health to how well you’ve recovered from a hard bout of training. Even flagship smartwatches, which used to be lackluster trackers, have become pretty adept workout companions. Whatever your fitness goals are, there’s probably a fitness tracker that can help you achieve them.
Compared to some other gadgets, wearables are incredibly personal, which means there are a few extra considerations you’ll have to take into account before reaching for your wallet. It makes it hard to say that any one fitness tracker is the best for everyone. Thankfully, the best thing about fitness trackers in 2026 is that there’s enough variety to fit into every kind of lifestyle.
Best fitness tracker overall
Amazfit Active 2
The Amazfit Active 2 delivers outsized value for the price. It looks spiffy and has a wide array of health tracking features, plus built-in GPS and AI chatbots to provide extra context to your data.
Score: 7
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Size: 43mm w/ 20mm straps / Weight: 29.5g for standard, 31.7g for premium / Battery life: Up to 10 days / Display type: OLED touchscreen / GPS: Five GNSS systems / Connectivity: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: N/A
Hear us out: the Amazfit Active 2 is the best all-rounder on the block. Smartwatches are definitely getting more high-tech, but the Active 2 keeps the spirit of a humble fitness tracker — a good price, all the basic health features with a holistic tracking approach, and a comfy yet stylish design. At $99.99 for the standard version and $129.99 for the premium version with a leather band, you get an incredible amount of bang for your buck.
The hardware and design are surprisingly chic for the price. The standard version has a stainless steel case and tempered glass screen, while the premium version bumps you up to sapphire crystal and gets you an extra leather strap. The screen itself is nice and bright at 2,000 nits, and you get an estimated 10 days of regular use on a single charge. (In testing, I got closer to eight or nine days as a power-user.) European users also get NFC payments.
As far as health features go, you get all the basics like continuous heart rate monitoring, blood oxygen rate, heart rate variability, stress tracking, alerts for abnormally high and low heart rate, and skin temperature tracking. It’s also got a daily readiness score and detailed sleep tracking if you’re into recovery metrics. (There’s also a Zepp Aura AI chatbot if you ever want to get more in-depth insights into your recovery metrics; it costs an extra $77 yearly, including taxes, but it’s also optional.) For workouts, it supports 160 different sport types, including HYROX and a strength training mode that automatically counts reps. The Active 2 also adds offline maps, turn-by-turn directions, the ability to connect to third-party peripherals, and Zepp Coach — an AI-powered coach that can generate custom training plans for you. Built-in GPS with five satellite systems is also included.
I don’t have a lot to complain about. My biggest gripes are that the touchscreen is hard to use with sweaty fingers and the onboard AI assistant for voice commands sometimes requires you to enunciate. It does lack advanced health features, like EKGs and sleep apnea detection, but that’s not really the point of something like the Active 2. This is meant to be a classic, basic fitness tracker that happens to look like a watch — and it does so with aplomb.
Read our full Amazfit Active 2 review.
Best fitness watch for casual users
Garmin Venu Sq 2
The Garmin Venu Sq 2 is a great replacement for a Fitbit smartwatch. Not only do they look similar, but the Venu Sq 2 has way more fitness features, long battery life, and no subscription.
Score: 8
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Sizes: 40mm w/ 20mm straps / Weight: 38g / Battery life: Up to 11 days / Display type: OLED touchscreen / GPS: All-systems GNSS / Connectivity: Bluetooth, Ant Plus / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: 4GB (for Music Edition)
The $250 Garmin Venu Sq 2 is the watch I recommend for anyone looking to replace their aging Fitbit Versa 2, 3, or 4. It’s got a similar look and vibe, with a much nicer OLED display and longer battery life.
Garmin is known for its comprehensive fitness tracking, and that’s not an exception here. Of course, you get the basics, like steps and calories burned, but you get a whole lot more, too. There’s built-in GPS for tracking walks, runs, and bike rides, as well as plenty of other sports profiles like yoga and strength training. For smart features, you get push notifications, timers, contactless payments, and a bunch of safety features like Garmin’s Incident Detection, which is the company’s take on fall detection. (You will need to carry your phone with you, however, as the Venu Sq 2 doesn’t have LTE.)
If you want the option of onboard music, you can shell out $50 extra for the Music Edition, which comes with enough storage for about 500 songs. I wouldn’t recommend it, however, as you’ll most likely have your phone on you since this isn’t a true standalone watch.
What I like most about this watch, however, is that it’s one that you can grow with. On top of recovery metrics and sleep tracking, it also has Garmin Coach — a built-in, free training program for beginner and intermediate-level runners hoping to tackle a 5K, 10K, or half marathon. For health tracking, you can monitor heart rate, blood oxygen, intensity minutes (how many minutes of moderate exercise you get per week), stress, hydration, respiratory rate, and menstrual cycles. None of these existing data features are locked behind a paywall; however, Garmin introduced a premium tier last year that provides personalized AI-powered insights and additional features for $6.99 a month (or $69.99 a year).
One note: Garmin has since introduced both a Venu 3 and a Venu 4, which introduce a heart rate sensor, nap detection, and — in the case of the Venu 4 — the ability to view health metrics on the watch face. We liked the Venu 3 quite a bit, and it ticks off a lot of the right boxes — except for price. It’s $449.99, which puts it outside what I’d consider ideal for casual users, while the newly released Venu 4 is even more expensive at $549.99. Another option is Garmin’s Forerunner 165, a $249 budget training watch that’s quite similar to the Venu Sq 2 feature-wise, albeit with a sportier vibe.
Basically, go with what you find within your budget. I firmly believe older models are still a good choice if all you want is the fitness-tracking basics. This is especially true since newer software updates often make their way to older Garmin hardware, and Garmin users tend to hang onto their devices for a good while.
Read our full Garmin Venu Sq 2 review.
Best for serious outdoor athletes
Garmin Fenix 8
The Garmin Fenix 8 adds smart features like the ability to take calls on the wrist, and an on-board voice assistant.
Where to Buy:
Sizes: 43mm w/ 20mm straps; 7: 47mm w/ 22mm straps; 7X: 51mm w/ 26mm straps / Weight: 60g (43mm), 73g (47mm), 92g (51mm)/ Battery life: Up to 10 days (43mm), 16 days (47mm), 29 days (51mm) Display type: MIP or OLED / GPS: All-systems GNSS and dual-frequency GPS / Connectivity: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi / Water resistance: 10ATM / Music storage: Up to 32GB
The Fenix 8 is Garmin’s response to the Apple Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch Ultra in terms of aesthetics, with added smart features. The watch has a circular OLED display with a Gorilla Glass or sapphire crystal lens, a stainless steel or titanium bezel, and a battery that lasts up to 26 days, depending on the size. These are mostly the same materials Apple and Samsung use for high-end smartwatches, though the Fenix 8 stands out with its circular frame. What sets it apart from its predecessor is the addition of many welcome smart features.
The smartwatch features a built-in microphone and speaker that lets you take calls, and its smart voice assistant can be used to set timers, start activities, or access your phone’s assistant to handle more complex tasks. The watch’s smarts are held back by its lack of LTE, which means some of its features (including the ability to make and receive calls) depend on it being connected to your phone via Bluetooth. That’s less of a limitation in your home, but it may be frustrating if you’d like to stay connected during a phone-free run. Cellular connectivity is available on the Fenix 8 Pro, which starts at $1,199.99.
But the reason to choose the Fenix 8 over other premium smartwatches is its plethora of fitness features. The free, built-in Garmin Coach offers running, cycling, and strength training plans, and will make tweaks based on data it collects about your health and how you’re performing in workouts. It will also suggest daily workouts, provide an estimated recovery time, and plot out a recommended pace time for long races using GPS data. It can even assess the impact a run has on your body and recommend a mileage cap to avoid overexertion.
This smartwatch can record your activity, heart rate, and sleep (including naps), and use that information to generate a daily health and wellness summary in the morning. It’ll also create an evening report suggesting how much sleep you need, and provide details about your upcoming workout. If you’re traveling, the Fenix 8 can offer suggestions for adjusting your sleep schedule and exercise routine. These features can help prepare you for your next race, while the smart features improve the watch’s usefulness when you’re not on the track.
Read our full Garmin Fenix 8 review.
Best non-wrist tracker
Oura Ring 4
Score: 9
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Sizes: 12 proprietary sizes, 4–15, sizing kit needed / Weight: 4–6g (depends on size) / Battery life: Up to seven days / Display type: None / GPS: None / Connectivity: Bluetooth / Water resistance: Up to 328 feet / Music storage: None
The vast majority of fitness trackers are worn on the wrist, but the $349 Oura Ring isn’t. The smart ring is a good option for people who are looking for something a little more discreet. It’s also less distracting than some other wrist-based options, as it lacks a screen and doesn’t mirror push notifications from your phone.
The Oura Ring 4 isn’t functionally that much different from the previous Gen 3. It’s slimmer, features an all-titanium design, has improved battery life, and has an updated sensor algorithm that Oura says is more accurate. None of these software features is gatekept to the Ring 4, so Gen 3 owners shouldn’t feel the need to upgrade unless their ring no longer lasts more than two days on a single charge. That said, the fourth-gen model has an expanded size range spanning from 4 to 15. If you felt your Gen 3 was a bit snug or couldn’t find a size that fit right, you may have a better option now.
While smaller than your average wearable, the Oura Ring still tracks a ton of metrics, including heart rate variability, body temperature, blood oxygen, all-day heart rate monitoring, and cycle tracking. Since launching, the Oura Ring has also added activity tracking, blood oxygen levels, chronotypes to help visualize your circadian rhythms, a social feature called Circles, improved stress tracking, and cardiovascular age and capacity metrics.
More recently, it’s added an AI chatbot, meal logging, and glucose tracking, though you’ll have to purchase a $99 Dexcom Stelo CGM to take advantage of the latter. It’s rolled out a more accurate sleep stages algorithm as well, and the app has been entirely revamped to better organize these features and metrics. An update that rolled out last year improved its step-tracking accuracy by using an algorithm that better detects when movement is the result of a step. The same update improved calorie burn estimates by using heart rate measurements to determine the intensity of your workouts.
The Oura Ring tracks typical metrics — such as steps and calories burned — but its main focus is sleep and recovery. Each day, you’re given three sets of scores for your readiness, sleep, and activity. It’s a simple, holistic look at your overall wellness, and it’s an ideal pick if you want a more hands-off approach to your data. In October, Oura also announced a feature called Health Panels, which lets you schedule a blood test with a local Quest Diagnostics location. The results include dozens of biomarkers relating to your cardiovascular and metabolic health, which you can view within Oura’s app. You can also ask Oura Advisor, the company’s AI chatbot, to help you parse the results.
If you’ve got a Samsung Galaxy Watch, you may want to consider the $399.99 Galaxy Ring. It’s a bit more expensive than the base Oura Ring, but it doesn’t come with a subscription, and you get much better battery life when used with the Galaxy Watch. The hardware is also excellent, especially the charging case. That said, this is only an option for Android users, and even then, you don’t unlock its full potential unless you’ve got other Samsung gear.
You can read my experiences with a bunch of other smart rings, but right now, the Oura Ring is the most polished option with the best overall experience.
Read our full Oura Ring 4 review.
Best fitness band
Amazfit Band 7
The Amazfit Band 7 offers a lot of features for the price, including an OLED display, long battery life, and features like abnormal heart rate notifications.
Score: 7
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Size: 42mm x 24mm x 12.2mm with 16mm straps / Weight: 28g / Battery life: Up to 18 days / Display type: OLED / GPS: Tethered / Connectivity: Bluetooth / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: None
It’s truly hard to beat the Amazfit Band 7’s $49.99 price — doubly so since you can often find it on sale for even less. Wearing the Band 7 feels like a throwback to 2014, which is great if all you’re looking for is a simple and casual tracker that won’t break the bank.
No one is going to compliment you on the Band 7’s design, but it’s got a handful of cute watch faces that make good use of its OLED touchscreen. And despite having an OLED display, you’ll still get roughly 14 days of battery life on a single charge. It’s also incredibly lightweight, making it a good option for sleep tracking as well.
You also get an absurd number of features for the price, including Amazon Alexa, continuous heart rate monitoring, blood oxygen monitoring, stress tracking, advanced sleep tracking, training metrics like VO2 max and load, abnormal heart rate alerts, menstrual tracking, push notifications, find my phone, a camera remote, and even a Pomodoro timer. You’re sacrificing contactless payments and will have to settle for tethered GPS, but this is a fair tradeoff considering everything else you’re getting. It’s not the best option for hardcore fitness tracking, but this is a great option if all you’re looking to do is casually track activity and your steps.
Amazfit’s been making surprisingly good budget trackers for a while. That said, if you’re a little wary of a lesser-known brand, the $159.95 Fitbit Charge 6 is a decent alternative. It’s pricier, but you get a lot of what Amazfit is missing. That includes access to Google services like YouTube Music, Google Wallet, and Google Maps. Plus, it has built-in GPS and the ability to broadcast your heart rate with some Bluetooth-compatible gym equipment.
Read our full Amazfit Band 7 review.
Most stylish fitness watch
Withings ScanWatch Light
The Withings Scanwatch Light is a hybrid analog smartwatch that tracks the basics like steps and activities, while delivering up to 30 days of battery life.
Score: 7
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Sizes: 37mm with 18mm straps / Weight: 45g / Battery life: Up to 39 days / Display type: OLED display / GPS: Tethered GPS / Connectivity: Bluetooth / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: N/A
The $249.95 Withings ScanWatch Light is a fetching hybrid analog smartwatch. Think of it as a dressier fitness band with some Swatch-like design sensibilities. It’s got all your basics like simple push notifications, timers, and alarms. Plus, you can track steps, sleep, menstrual cycles, and GPS activities straight from the wrist. It looks spiffy on the wrist, and if you like a pop of color, Withings offers minty green and pale blue color options. It’s also got excellent battery life, with an estimated 30 days on a single charge. I got a little less in testing at around 25 days, but that’s still much better than the vast majority of flagship smartwatches. This also looks way more stylish than beefier multisport watches with similar battery life.
As its name suggests, the Light is a pared-down version of the $369.95 ScanWatch 2. The main things you’re missing are an EKG sensor for atrial fibrillation detection, a temperature sensor, blood oxygen tracking, and an altimeter for tracking elevation. For basic fitness tracking, you don’t really need those sensors. That’s why I think the extra $100 in savings is worth it for the Light, especially since both are lacking in safety features, contactless payments, and some other bells and whistles you can get from other watches in the $350 price range. That said, if you want extras, the ScanWatch 2 also gets you a slightly more elegant look thanks to the second step-counter dial.
Another option I like is the $179.99 Garmin Vivomove Sport, which actually dominated this category in the past few years. It’s hard to beat the price, especially since it gets you access to Garmin’s platform. However, Garmin’s “hidden” OLED display can get washed out in bright lighting, and battery life was significantly shorter than that of other hybrid analog watches at around five days. Still, if you’d prefer a platform focused on fitness rather than wellness, the Vivomove Sport may be the better choice over a Withings watch.
Read my full reviews of the Withings ScanWatch 2 and Light.
Best fitness tracker for iPhone users
Apple Watch SE 3
Score: 9
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Where to Buy:
Sizes: 40mm, 44mm / Weight: 26.3g (40mm), 32.9g (44mm) / Battery life: Up to 18 hours / Display type: Always-on LTPO OLED / GPS: Built-in GPS, plus GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, Beidou / Connectivity: 5G (optional), Bluetooth, Wi-Fi / Water resistance: Up to 50 meters / Music storage: 64GB
The Apple Watch SE 3 being Apple’s most exciting smartwatch of 2025 was unexpected, but it’s true. Apple’s latest entry-level smartwatch has an always-on display that the company claims to be more scratch-resistant than its predecessor. Not to mention, it has the same S10 chip that’s in the Apple Watch Series 11 and Apple Watch Ultra 3, though it lacks the Ultra Wideband chip found in those higher-end models. Apple brought fast charging, on-device Siri, its double tap and wrist flick gestures, and a built-in speaker to the SE line for the first time. The cellular version of the Apple Watch SE 3 supports 5G for faster downloads and better coverage.
The better specs make it harder to recommend the pricier Apple Watch Series 11 unless you care about having a smartwatch that can take an EKG, although the SE 3 can passively check for signs of atrial fibrillation via irregular heart rhythm notifications. It can also send you sleep apnea notifications, and has more robust period tracking. That said, it can’t record your blood oxygen level, which is a feature Apple recently reintroduced to various Apple Watch models that support it in the US after being removed due to a copyright dispute in 2023.
The Apple Watch SE 3 was released alongside WatchOS 26, which includes additional fitness and wellness features. Workout Buddy uses your fitness data to generate personalized insights, advice, and pep talks through a virtual assistant. Your Workout Buddy will remind you of your goals, recent achievements, and recap your results at the end of your workout. WatchOS 26 also comes to the Apple Watch SE 2, Apple Watch Series 6 and above, and all Apple Watch Ultra models.
One of the few technical details Apple didn’t improve was battery life — the SE 3 still lasts around 18 hours per charge. In one of our tests, which included a cross-country flight and 48-minute mini golf session, the watch has 27 percent battery left after around 13 hours of use with no reliance on low power mode. The Apple Watch SE 3 is the one to get unless you need an Apple Watch with a larger screen, if you want more sophisticated health tracking, or you’d benefit from the ruggedness and multi-day battery life of the Apple Watch Ultra.
Read our full Apple Watch SE 3 review.
Best fitness smartwatch for Samsung phones
Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra
The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra is targeted at more outdoorsy folks with dual-frequency GPS, a multisport activity tracker, an emergency siren, and increased durability.
Score: 7
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Sizes: 47mm / Weight: 60.5g / Battery life: Up to 100 hours / Display type: Always-on OLED / GPS: Built-in GPS / Connectivity: LTE (optional), Bluetooth, Wi-Fi / Water resistance: 10ATM, IP68 / Music storage: 32GB
Truthfully, the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra left me a bit disappointed after reviewing it — not because it’s a bad piece of hardware, but because it copies a bit too much from Apple. Even so, this is the most full-featured fitness smartwatch a Samsung phone owner can buy.
The Galaxy Watch 8’s squircle design may seem controversial at first, but it allowed Samsung to make the smartwatch slimmer than its predecessor. It also sits flatter against your skin, which makes it more comfortable to wear. I preferred the Galaxy Watch 7 over the Ultra for casual fitness tracking and wearability, and that’s still true with the Watch 8, but the improvements over the previous generation aren’t significant. Its battery is barely bigger, and its brighter screen (up to 3,000 nits vs. 2,000) didn’t make much of a difference even in direct sunlight.
There’s a Vascular Load feature, which measures how stressed your vascular system is while you sleep, but it doesn’t explain why this metric is important. Its Antioxidant Index, which gauges whether you’ve eaten enough fruits and vegetables, can help encourage you to eat more healthily when creating a new diet.
In testing, the sensor works by using blue, yellow, and infrared LEDs to pick up the carotenoid levels in your skin. Carotenoids are antioxidants that give fruits and vegetables their color. The sensor could be fooled by pressing any colorful object — a piece of broccoli, a blackberry (which exploded), a marker-colored finger, and a Cheeze-It — against it. I did find the Running Coach feature, which creates a training regimen based on your performance after a 12-minute run, to be helpful. Its assessment of my current fitness level was fair, and the workouts it suggested were well-structured.
As far as AI is concerned, the Galaxy Watch 8 has Google Gemini, which was hit or miss in my testing. It couldn’t send a message in Slack, and the K-pop-inspired running playlist it created had a few songs outside that genre, but it’s handy if you want to use Google’s AI on your wrist rather than taking out your phone. Google Gemini support is one feature of One UI 8 (Samsung’s fork of Wear OS 6, Google’s latest wearable operating system), which also includes Material 3 Expressive, a redesign optimized for circular watches. Live updates, which let you track things like deliveries, rideshares, and information from navigation apps, will also be coming in 2026. Samsung’s One UI 8 also came to the Galaxy Watch Ultra as a software update.
However, there’s still a significant gap between the Galaxy Watch 8 and the Ultra in my testing as far as accuracy, especially when it comes to GPS tracking. And what really sealed the deal for me was the difference in battery life. (The gaps are much less egregious between the base Apple Watch and Ultra 2.) The caveat is that if all you want is casual fitness tracking, the Galaxy Watch 8 is the better choice for wearability. It’s just more comfortable for sleep tracking and lighter overall. Just keep in mind it lacks the Ultra’s emergency siren and shortcut button.
Both watches have the same processor, a 3-in-1 BioActive Sensor, some AI health features, and FDA-cleared sleep apnea detection. The hardware in both current-gen Galaxy smartwatches makes for a more future-proof purchase, but I found the AI health features to be hit-or-miss in practice. As always, some features, like EKGs and sleep apnea detection, are limited to Samsung owners. That makes it hard to wholeheartedly recommend this to non-Samsung Android users.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 8
Samsung’s latest smartwatch features a squircle design, Gemini, and some additional health features like an Antioxidant Index and Running Coach.
Where to Buy:
If the Ultra doesn’t float your boat, now is a good time to find the Galaxy Watch 7 series, particularly the base models, on sale. The base Galaxy Watch 8 isn’t a massive update over the Watch 7 in terms of actual use.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra review.
Best fitness smartwatch for Android
Google Pixel Watch 4
Score: 8
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Sizes: 41mm, 45mm / Weight: 31g / Battery life: Up to 30 hours / Display type: Always-on OLED / GPS: Built-in Dual Frequency GPS / Connectivity: LTE (optional), Bluetooth, Wi-Fi / Water resistance: 5ATM / Music storage: 32GB
The Pixel Watch 4 isn’t just the best fitness smartwatch for Android — it’s the most interesting flagship smartwatch to have launched within the last year. The newer wearable features several hardware improvements over its predecessor, starting with the display, which offers thinner bezels and higher peak brightness. Google focused on repairability for the Pixel Watch 4, and you can now replace its screen and battery individually rather than scrapping the entire wearable.
Speaking of the battery, it can last a lot longer per charge. In our tests, the battery on the 45mm model lasted 45 hours on its first charge, which was 13 hours longer than the Pixel Watch 3. We averaged 36 to 42 hours with the always-on display enabled. Google also improved the Pixel Watch 4’s charging speed, and we were able to top up its battery from 14 to 97 percent in around 45 minutes.
Wear OS 6 comes preloaded on the Pixel Watch 4, which means Gemini is ready to go on your wrist. The smart assistant can be activated with a new Raise-to-Talk gesture, though it was hit-or-miss in our tests. A new AI-enabled feature called Smart Replies offers up personal replies to your incoming text messages, though it only works if you have a Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 9 series, or Pixel 10 series phone. Notification cooldown can automatically change the frequency with which you receive certain notifications without enabling a do-not-disturb mode.
One of the biggest fitness improvements to the Pixel Watch 4 is improved activity detection. The watch can automatically record cardio activities for at least 15 minutes, and you’ll receive a notification and activity recap within an hour of finishing. You can train AI to better recognize your preferred activities, too. We tested these features during walks, runs, and cycling sessions, and they worked well each time. However, automatic activity detection is currently limited to tracking these activities: walking, running, bike riding, spinning, rowing, elliptical training, and team sport workouts.
The Pixel Watch 4’s dual-frequency GPS allowed it to track my runs more accurately than the Pixel Watch 3, though the Galaxy Watch Ultra was even more accurate. The Pixel Watch 4 will also work with the new AI-powered Fitbit Health Coach, which can create exercise programs based on your goals and sleep, and can adapt to extenuating circumstances like injuries.
Read our full Pixel Watch 4 review.
Best for early adopters and elite athletes
Whoop MG
The latest Whoop MG features the ability to take EKGs and get beta blood pressure insights. It comes with the premium Whoop Life subscription.
Score: 6
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Sizes: 34.7 mm x 24 mm x 10.6 mm / Weight: 27g / Battery life: Up to 14 days / Display type: None / GPS: None / Connectivity: Bluetooth / Water resistance: Up to 10 meters / Music storage: None
The Whoop MG isn’t a huge departure from the Whoop 4.0, which I reviewed previously, but it’s still the best choice for elite athletes. Its buckle still annoyed me, and bands from the previous generation are incompatible with this model, though Whoop will give you a credit for trading in your current bands. Its processor is 60 percent faster, but I didn’t notice any difference in day-to-day use, aside from faster data syncing with Whoop’s app. I did notice the bump in battery life from five to 14 hours, Whoop’s redesigned app, and a handful of new health and wellness features.
A key part of the Whoop MG’s appeal is the dense daily reports on your health and wellness accessible within its app. They verge on overwhelming, with an emphasis on how much activity has strained your body. The Whoop Coach (an AI-powered chatbot) summarizes your sleep duration, activity, and heart rate to give you advice on reaching the fitness goals you selected during setup.
Similarly, a feature called Healthspan calculates your Whoop Age based on three weeks’ worth of sleep, exercise, steps, VO2 Max, heart rate, and lean body mass data. It’ll update your Whoop Age weekly after its first assessment, but be mindful that it discounts factors like genetics, your environment, and lifestyle, which significantly impact the rate your body actually ages.
The Whoop MG has an FDA-cleared EKG reader, and can send you notifications if it detects atrial fibrillation. It can also give you blood pressure insights, but is currently in beta. Whoop Advanced Labs is an upcoming service that will let you send in a blood test to be reviewed by clinicians to give you even more health insights. If you like the distraction-free design of a smart ring, but want your wearable on your wrist instead of your finger, consider the Whoop MG.
Read our full Whoop MG review.
What’s coming next
- Motorola’s latest smartwatch, the Moto Watch, launches on January 28th for $149.99. The forthcoming wearable covers all the fitness and smartwatch basics — from step tracking and heart rate monitoring to notifications — and features dual-frequency GPS, courtesy of a recent partnership with Polar. Probably the biggest draw, however, is that the 47mm watch can supposedly last up to 13 days on a single charge or around seven days with the always-on OLED display enabled. That would handily beat rivals like the Apple Watch Series 11 and Google Pixel Watch 4, though we haven’t an opportunity to put those claims to the test as of yet.
Update, January 27th: Adjusted pricing and availability. Brandt Ranj and Brandon Widder also contributed to this post.
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