Like smartphones, smartwatches are fast becoming a part of our daily digital lives. The tech behind these smartwatches is fantastic. They are no longer just time telling machines. Smartwatches can now provide weather alerts, check your heartbeat, keep an eye on your exercise routine, and much more. Many of these features come built into the smartwatch; however, due to their small screen sizes, you cannot set up many features or access the historical trends of your fitness data.

This issue can be easily addressed by syncing your smartwatch with your phone. When you connect your smartwatch to your mobile, you get many additional features (depending on your brand and model):

• Call, SMS, email, and WhatsApp notifications
• Basic ability to control music
• Ability to set alarms and to-do reminders
• Ability to make and answer calls
• Ability to reply to write messages and replies
• Send alerts to loved ones and emergency services whenever required
• Ability to track your lost phone if it’s nearby, etc.

Even though smartwatches are becoming a part of our daily lives, there is still not a universal method of pairing these devices to your smartphones.

How to connect a smartwatch to a smartphone?

There are several ways through which you can connect your smartphone with your smart wearable. Both devices should have Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity in order to get paired with each other successfully. So, the most basic way to pair your smartwatch with a smartphone is by using Bluetooth.

Connect a smartwatch to a smartphone via Bluetooth

1. Turn on the smartwatch as instructed in the manual guide.
2. Go to the Settings in your Andoird/iOS device.
3. Search for Bluetooth.
4. Turn the Bluetooth on and make sure your phone “appears visible” to nearby devices.
5. Tap the Search Devices or Scan Devices button.
6. The name of your device will appear in the list of devices.
7. Tap the name of your device and following the pairing instructions.

How to connect a smartwatch to an Android phone?

If you have a smartwatch with Google WearOS, you can easily connect it with your Android smartphone by following this simple process:

Connect a Wear OS device to an Android smartphone

1. Make sure your phone and watch are 80% charged.
2. Visit g.co/WearCheck through the browser of your Android device to check for compatibility.
3. If your phone and wearable are compatible, then download the Wear OS app from the Google Play store on your Android phone.
4. Turn on your watch.
5. Using your phone, open the Wear OS app.
6. Tap Set it Up.
7. Follow the instructions on your watch and the phone for the initial setup.
8. Your phone and Android device will show a code. If the codes match, then tap Pair.
9. Once successfully paired, you will get further instructions. Follow them to complete the setup.

Connect a Wear OS device to an iPhone or iPad

1. Make sure your phone and watch are 80% charged.
2. Visit g.co/WearCheck through the browser of your iPhone or iPad to check for compatibility.
3. If your phone and smartwatch are compatible with each other, then download the Wear OS app from the App Store.
4. Turn on your watch.
5. Using your phone, open the Wear OS app.
6. Tap Set it Up.
7. Follow the instructions on your watch and the phone for the initial setup.
8. Your phone and Android device will show a code. If the codes match, then tap Pair.
9. Once successfully paired, you will get additional instructions. Follow them to complete the setup.

Troubleshooting WearOS connectivity problems

If you are facing troubles in painting your Wear OS watch with your smartphone, you first need to check if it was previously paired to your smartphone via Bluetooth. If it was, then you will have to remove the watch from the list of your connected devices.

In some cases, you also need to activate Location Sharing on your Android phone to set up your Wear OS device. Once you have turned on the Location Sharing service, just tap Refresh on your watch to finish the pairing process.

If most extreme cases when nothing works, you should consider resetting your watch to factory settings.

How to connect Samsung Galaxy Watch to a smartphone?

The smartwatches under the Samsung Galaxy Watch series are not Android-based wearables. Instead, these watches run on Tizen Wearable OS, Samsung’s operating system for smart devices. Here’s how you can connect your Samsung Galaxy Watch to your phone:

1. Make sure your phone and watch are 80% charged.
2. From the App Store or Google Play Store, search and install the Galaxy Wearable app.
3. Once installed, open the app, and tap Get Started.
4. Select your watch model.
5. Follow the instructions to complete the process.

How to connect a Chinese smartwatch to an Android phone or iPhone easily?

If you are thinking of buying a smartwatch from China, you should go for popular brands like Xiaomi, Realme, Haylou, Oppo, or Elephone. These brands have dedicated apps for their respective model.

If you are going to buy a generic smartwatch from China with names like V8, V18, M4, or Q7, you must read the product guide to know the pairing process. Most generic Chinese smartwatches use apps like Lefun Health, FunRun, FunDo, or Yoho Sports. The procedure remains the same:

1. Install the provided wearable app.
2. Open the app and give the required permissions
3. Keep your watch next to the phone as the app scans for new devices.
4. Follow the in-app instructions to complete the syncing process.