Realme Watch S5 review: A good looking smartwatch held back by its software
Follow Us
Smartwatches have reached a point where even affordable options are trying to offer premium features. So much so that the challenge is no longer adding more features but delivering an experience that feels complete in daily use. After spending time with the Realme Watch S5, I came away feeling that Realme understands this well. It packs a bright AMOLED display, built-in GPS, Bluetooth calling, extensive fitness tracking, and impressive battery life into a package that costs under Rs 8,000. Although the device does have some drawbacks, it manages to find that middle ground.
I’ve been using the Realme Watch S5 as my primary smartwatch for the past few days, paired with a OnePlus 15. Though the company claims big things about the wearable, let’s just deep dive and check how much of that is actually true. Here’s my full review.
Realme Watch S5: Design
When I first unboxed and assembled the Realme Watch S5, it did not look like a budget smartwatch. The circular dial, combined with the aluminium alloy frame, gives it a premium appearance that easily blends into both casual and formal settings. It also feels sturdy in hand and does not give the impression of being cheaply built. I could be sitting at my desk, walking outdoors, or wearing it overnight for sleep tracking, and the weight never felt bothersome to me. Of course, the main reason for this is that it only weighs 49.63 grams, including the strap.
The Watch S5 also boasts three physical side buttons, making the navigation easier and adding to the overall experience as you no longer need to juggle through the apps to open certain things. Moreover, while most interactions happen through the touchscreen, having dedicated buttons is always useful during workouts or when your hands are wet.
However, I do have mixed feelings about the bundled silica gel, aka silicone straps, which I already mentioned in my first impression. While this is more of a personal preference than a direct criticism, I have never been a fan of silica gel straps on smartwatches. In case of exercise or even everyday activities, when it is humid, it becomes difficult for me to keep the sweat away from beneath the strap of the watch, considering that I wear it tightly for better health results.
Another thing about the Realme Watch S5 is that sweat usually takes its time to evaporate, making the watch slightly uncomfortable to wear for longer durations. This was due to the sensors on the back getting dirty easily. In order for the sensors to read accurately, I had to clean them regularly. I experienced this multiple times with SpO₂ measurements, as when the sensors were covered in sweat, the watch often refused to record a reading.
In terms of durability, the Realme Watch S5 uses Panda Glass protection, which should provide some resistance against everyday wear. Still, much like almost every smartwatch I have tested, the Watch S5 picked up a few minor scratches during normal usage and daily travel. They are not immediately visible unless viewed under direct light, but it shows that you still need to be extra careful in that compartment. I’d suggest you go ahead and put up an external screen guard to keep it safe.
Realme Watch S5: Display
The display is arguably one of the strongest aspects of the Realme Watch S5. The company has equipped the smartwatch with a 1.43-inch AMOLED display. Furthermore, it is equipped with a 466 x 466 resolution and a display pixel density of 302 PPI, which makes the display appear sharp, colourful, and enjoyable to view all day long.
While the on-paper specs give you high hopes, the real-life testing tells you the correct story. When put to the test, everything from watch faces to notifications appears crisp. The colours felt punchy without looking unnatural, and the overall viewing experience feels premium for a smartwatch in this price segment.
The company claims a peak brightness of 1,000 nits, and during my testing as well, the outdoor visibility was generally excellent. Under direct sunlight, I could comfortably read notifications, fitness statistics, and other information without having to search for shade.
That said, if you have ever used a high-end smartwatch like an Apple Watch before, you may notice that the Watch S5 does not appear quite as bright. However, this sort of comparison also needs context. Basically, the price difference is quite significant between these two watches. While the Apple Watch has been the gold standard when it comes to smartwatches and brightness, it also costs upwards of Rs 40,000 to Rs 45,000. In Realme’s case, it gives you a damn good experience and legibility, for a smartwatch that costs under Rs 8,000.
That said, one minor issue that I will point out with my watch is its automatic brightness feature. On more than one occasion, I have stepped out of the house and had to wait for the watch to get used to the change in environment and light levels. When manually set to maximum brightness, the display remains perfectly usable outdoors. However, the trade-off is that the battery consumption is increased.
Realme Watch S5: Software experience
In all honesty, the one aspect that made me unable to appreciate the Watch S5 fully was its software. The watch works well enough on its own. However, the user experience is entirely dependent on the companion app, which is where I had most of my issues.
During my testing, I faced random disconnections between the watch and the Realme Link app. Reconnecting it was not as simple as pairing again. I often had to reset the watch completely before it could be paired back successfully. This also deletes all your previous health data from both the device and the unsynced app.
These problems significantly affected my overall experience because even excellent hardware can feel frustrating when the software ecosystem is unreliable.
Realme Watch S5: Watch faces and customisation
Customisation is another area where the Watch S5 feels somewhat limited. The watch does provide a healthy selection of watch faces, including cloud-based options, custom photo watch faces, and always-on display support. For many users, this may be sufficient.
Personally, I enjoy personalising my smartwatch to reflect my own style and preferences. Unfortunately, the customisation options here are more limited than they initially appear. Many watch faces only allow colour adjustments rather than meaningful layout changes. You cannot significantly alter the arrangement of complications or customise information displays to the extent offered by some competing platforms.
Storage limitations add another inconvenience. The watch can only store around 12 watch faces locally at a time. Downloading and syncing new faces also takes longer than expected. As a result, customisation feels functional rather than exciting.
Realme Watch S5: Notifications and smart features
Notifications are one of the most important smartwatch features, and unfortunately, this is another area where the Watch S5 leaves room for improvement. Basic notifications arrive reliably most of the time, but the overall experience feels limited.
Images within notifications cannot be viewed properly. Emoji support is inconsistent, meaning messages occasionally lose context when displayed on the watch. Notification customisation options are also quite limited compared to more mature smartwatch platforms.
Voice replies exist, but in my experience, they were not reliable enough to become part of my daily workflow. There were too many situations where using my phone directly felt faster and easier.
That said, Bluetooth calling performs much better. Call quality was generally good, voices sounded clear, and the built-in microphone handled conversations reasonably well. For quick calls while walking or working, the feature proved genuinely useful.
Realme Watch S5: Fitness tracking and health monitoring
The Realme Watch S5 packs in a solid set of health features. You get heart rate tracking, blood oxygen monitoring, sleep analysis, stress tracking, breathing exercises, and support for over 110 sports modes. On the surface, it sounds like everything you could ask for. But having a long feature list and actually delivering on it are two different things.
Take heart rate monitoring. For everyday use, it does the job fine. But during workouts, the readings jumped around more than I would have liked. Nothing wildly off, but not the kind of steady, reliable data you want when you are actually pushing yourself.
Step counting had its moments, too. Some days it felt spot on, while other days it was clearly counting things that were not steps. The most telling moment? I got a notification saying I had hit my daily walking goal while I was sitting at my desk typing. That was hard to ignore.
Workout tracking tells a similar story. The data it gives you is useful enough, but I would call it decent rather than impressive. What really got to me was the auto-detection. It kept missing workouts that should have triggered automatically, so I ended up having to start sessions manually more often than not.
If you are someone who just wants a rough idea of how active you are being, these things probably will not bother you much. But if you take your training seriously and need numbers you can actually trust, this watch may leave you wanting more.
Realme Watch S5: GPS performance
One feature I was particularly interested in testing was the built-in GPS. The good news is that independent GPS functionality works reasonably well. Being able to leave your phone behind during a walk or run is convenient, and the watch generally maintains a stable connection to satellite systems.
Route-tracking accuracy was sufficient for daily exercise. Distance tracking appeared accurate, and recorded routes matched my movements most of the time.
That said, route and distance tracking do not quite match the performance offered by dedicated sports watches from companies such as Samsung or Garmin. Occasional discrepancies appeared in the recorded maps. Even so, the GPS performs reliably and remains one of the watch’s strongest features.
Realme Watch S5: Battery life and charging
Battery life is another spot where the marketing numbers and real life do not quite match up. Realme claims up to 20 days of battery life, and sure, you can get there technically. But to do that, you have to switch on Light Smart Mode and turn off most of the health tracking features running in the background. At that point, what is even the point of buying a smartwatch loaded with features?
In actual use, I got around six to seven days with the always-on display turned on, which I thought was fair. Switching that off may push it to somewhere between 10 and 12 days, which honestly feels like the more realistic number most people will land on day to day.
However, charging was where things slowed down a bit. It took close to three hours to go from empty to full, and the watch did get a little warm while plugged in. It has been brutally hot lately, so I am willing to give the wearable the benefit of the doubt in this department.
The Watch S5 relies on a proprietary magnetic charging puck connected via USB Type-C. The magnetic attachment is weaker than I would prefer, making alignment somewhat frustrating. More than once, I found myself readjusting the watch to ensure charging had started properly.
Realme Watch S5: Final verdict
The Realme Watch S5 is a smartwatch that constantly reminds you of its potential. It has an excellent AMOLED display, dependable battery life, built-in GPS, good Bluetooth calling, and an attractive design that looks more premium than its price suggests.
Unfortunately, the software issues prevent it from providing the experience matching the quality of its hardware. Frequent connectivity problems, sync failures, limited customisation, average fitness accuracy, weak notification handling, and a frustrating companion app make the watch harder to recommend than it should be.
If your priorities are display quality, battery life, and basic smartwatch functionality, the Watch S5, priced at Rs 7,999, delivers enough value to remain a reasonable option. However, if you expect a polished software experience and highly accurate fitness tracking, you may find yourself wishing Realme had invested as much effort into the software as it did into the hardware.
Realme Watch S5 Key Specs, Price and Launch Date
| Release Date: | |
| Market Status: | Launched |
