While it has basic pedometer capabilities, the Fossil Q Gen 3 is not specifically a sport tracker watch. It can be worn while washing one’s hands, having minor water resistance, but this watch is by no means recommended for any other, more steadfast direct contact with water. Do not wear this watch in the shower, and do not wear it for aquatic adventures outdoors. This watch is more to be worn in the everyday shuffle; you could wear it for a run or a cycle but bear in mind your sweat should be tended to once you’re done with your exercise. Keep it simple, with this watch. It’s a sleek piece of sophisticated machinery, and while not exclusive to a suit-and-tie look, it really wasn’t intended for skydiving gear. Might it survive? Sure. But this is not a sports watch with waterproof bezel and shock-absorbent frame, so please don’t treat it that way.

As mentioned, the Fossil Q Gen 3 has a step counter built in. It also has a distance calculator, and a meter for calories burned. It also has a basic stopwatch capability, but that’s where the sports functions end, on this watch. Instead, the focus shifts to being more of a personal assistant. There are various time zone setting functions, alarms, date and time display (which is probably the most obvious thing to mention) as well as calendar alerts and notifications for various compatible apps. It connects to your cell phone via Bluetooth, and there is even a small LED flashlight built in, in case you need to find your phone in the dark.

Among the more upscale extra capabilities for this watch are individually personalized goals tracking, via your activity tracker. It has a weather readout, a mic and speaker, social media watch faces, and even has 4GBs of music storage for the purposes of taking your watch on a run, but not your cell phone, if your running clothes don’t have pockets. You can also track multiple time zones and set each button to a specific action. Additionally, it has wireless syncing and charging capabilities, as well as changeable dials, and various bands and straps in both leather and stainless steel. There’s quite a bit that’s customization capable about this watch, so there’s plenty to discover.

With no plugs to fuss with, the wireless nature of the Fossil Q Gen 3 is all around complete. It connects to many types of cell phone via 4.1 Low Energy Bluetooth, as long as it is either running an Android Operating System of 4.4+ (not including the “Go” edition) or an Apple Operating System of iOS 9.3+ and is Wi-Fi capable. It is a worthy to note that this watch should be kept more than 20cm away from any medical implant devices, as there is a slight chance of radio frequency (or “RF”) interference. Generally speaking it’s fine to wear this watch while having a pacemaker, for example, but try not to keep your wrist clutched to your chest over your heart for long periods of time and wear the smart watch on the opposite wrist if you find you’re experiencing interference, just to be on the safe side.

The Fossil Q Gen 3 is compatible with most apps in terms of notifications. The watch doesn’t have enough room to put all of your apps directly onto it, but when you sync it to your phone you’ll get notifications for your top apps such as your calendar, text messages, phone calls, and some other apps that might vary between the Android and iOS versions, or what preset options the smart watch comes with versus your phone’s needs. It also comes with voice activated Google, and Google Maps. Just remember, there are certain only sorts of things that are stored on your smart watch, like the music storage capability to play music while you’re out for a walk. Everything else comes from syncing.

For the most part, someone has to try really hard to make an uncomfortable watch. It has been suggested that the Fossil Q Gen 3 is a little on the big side – even the men’s watch seemed to run a bit on the large side, in terms of the face. It’s common knowledge that how you wear a watch can affect your comfort level as well – if you wear it so tightly that you’re digging an imprint into your arm, lighten it up a bit. If it’s sliding all the way down past your wrist bone to flop onto the back of your hand, it’s probably too loose – but there are various lengths, adjustments, and materials that can be customized for the purposes of comfort.

There are plenty of sportier options in terms of smart watches, but the Fossil Q Gen 3 carries more of an appearance for a flashy sort of statement. If you prefer less shiny metal, there are more understated options. If you’d rather have a non-metal strap entirely, that’s an option too, and such options will keep you looking classy while you subtly command attention. The face is customization capable in terms of background image, the frame different based on the base style you choose, and whether you go sleek or swanky you’ll have a functional piece of impressive tech on your wrist. Wear it with pride.

For those of you who may be concerned with how the Fossil Q Gen 3 will hold up to normal wear and tear, we have two words for you: stainless steel. In addition to being a timeless classic in appearance, stainless steel has the added benefit of standing up to sunlight and all kinds of summertime heat if you find yourself outside. Of course, if leather is more your style, rest assured that the strong, real stitched leather standard means your strap won’t be some flimsy pretender. The touch-screen is made for normal wear and tear, and the buttons are also made of stainless steel, for added durability. That said, it is not recommended to assume this watch will survive extreme sports. Certainly not water sports – you shouldn’t even wear this smart watch when showering – but also not the sort of sports that risk excess filth or blunt force. Rock climbing, races that involve obstacles or mud (or both, as some do) are all the sort of exciting event that should begin with taking off this watch and securing it somewhere safe and not on your person.

The round display of the Fossil Q Gen 3 has three customizable buttons, meaning you can decide for yourself what each button will do on your smart watch. Additionally, the face of your touch-screen smart watch is also customizable, with the capability to take on your favorite photos as a background. Just imagine getting a ping on your smart watch (for one of its many compatible notifications). You glance at your wrist to see the text message or calendar reminder, and seeing your spouse, your child, your pet, or your favorite landscape or skyline image behind the readout as a background. This smart watch makes it easy to truly make your watch your own, even with something as simple as a display image.

In addition to the individuality of a personalized screen face, the Fossil Q Gen 3 comes in various band styles and colors, which are all interchangeable. Feel like wearing leather in your day to day? There’s a brown or navy option. Ore of a stainless-steel sort of wearer? It comes in gold-tone, bright stainless steel (think silver-tone) or even a more subdued but no less impressive “smoke” gun-metal sort of appearance. If you base your decisions more on the closure than the appearance, you should be made aware that, like most watch bands, the material changes the clasp. The stainless-steel options have a fold-over securing clasp. The leather version is an unsurprising – but very reliable – belt-buckle design. The various bands, provided they are all 22mm (18mm for the women’s watch), are interchangeable with your same bezel. Keep in mind that the leather options need to be taken care of if you’re in overly dry areas or damaging amounts of sun, and none of these bands are designed for extended periods of wetness. The watch is water resistant for hand-washing levels only, so take your watch off to shower.

Like any bit of tech, purchasing the Fossil Q Gen 3 should come with an instruction manual. If you download the app to sync it to your cell phone, the process of setting it up becomes even more simplified as you poke and select your way through the preparation and customization options. If you want to press the bottom button to see the weather, you simply assign that job to that button. If you want a photo of your family vacation from Instagram as your face background, you can set the photo. If you can navigate a cell phone, you will be able to map your way through the setup of your smart watch. It isn’t designed to be difficult, or to trick you – the purpose of this watch is streamlined functionality. We live in a technological world, and the abounding prevalence of all sorts of tech means that it’s much more likely to have a basic exposure and understanding to touch screens and app-based forms of software. A basic understanding is all you need to get through the starting setup, and then using this smart watch will be a breeze.

Every smart watch, just like every cell phone, has the same disclaimer about battery life: it depends on use. If you have the always-on display running, or poke at your watch every time you’re waiting for a message or notification, you’re going to use more battery life than if you simply go about your day and use it only when the moment calls for use. The average estimated lifespan of this stunning bit of technology is approximately twenty-four hours. The simplest answer to worrying about the battery running low is to keep it on the charging pad when you’re home – most likely when you’re asleep – and it will be good to go in the morning when you get up. Just be sure you’re only using the official charger. It is not recommended to use any USB hubs, USB splitters, y-cables, or battery packs for the Fossil Q Gen 3. Where you purchase the watch might change what warranty you acquire, if any, but be sure to look into things carefully. Mishandling of the watch when charging might void said warranty. It’s better all around to use the recommended official charger that comes with your smart watch. If the idea that you might use your watch so much that you’ll need to charge it while away from home crosses your mind, it’s as simple as bringing your charger with you, but you likely won’t need it.

The price of a smart watch varies greatly depending upon the capabilities of your selection. The Fossil Q Gen 3 is capable of doing a lot of things while looking amazing on your wrist, so it’s going to have a price tag to match. Dependent upon where you make your purchase and what band or color option you choose, you could be looking at a price tag of $200-$350. Also, your warranty option (which is always recommended) may be included or may be sold separately. This might seem steep, but the best way to decide if the price is right is to compare the quality. If you’re looking between the Fossil Q Gen 3 and another smart watch, look at the long list of features this one offers and see how it compares to the capabilities and price of the contenders. Odds are, the Fossil Q Gen 3 is going to measure up easily.

As mentioned, the Fossil Q Gen 3 comes in various bezel appearances and band styles and colors. Beyond them, there aren’t many in the way of accessories for this smart watch because it is an impressive accessory all its own. It shifts from day to evening across any time zone in appearance and function, and has quite a bit of customization built in. With so much going for it already, what more could you need to further accessorize this stunning little accessory? Truth be told, there are after-market bands as well, such as the white silicone buckle-closures option. If having a separate band for every day is how you like to accessorize, there are plenty to choose from out there, not just the five options that come with the watch. If you look on the internet long enough, you’re sure to find something that someone has come up with to become a kind of add-on but exercise a certain amount of caution if you go adding a hand-made or one-of-a-kind change to your watch.

-Bluetooth/Wifi
-Compatibility to Android OS 4.4+ and iOS 9.3+
-various customizable features including face and band

It’s sometimes hard to know what kind of expectations to have for a smart watch. It’s a relatively new piece of tech, even in today’s amazingly advanced world. The more advances are made, the more we think a gadget should be able to do, the more we demand – and that’s a wonderful thing. If we don’t keep reaching, eventually we will settle. The fact is, humans aren’t made to sit still. We’re made to be on the move, to keep challenging ourselves, and to keep exceeding our own expectations of ourselves to reach our fullest potential. The Fossil Q Gen 3 embodies that same drive in a smart watch; we’ve come a long way from a wristwatch that needed to be wound every day. Instead we now have a time-telling personal assistant right there almost literally at our fingertips, and to get it back on its feet you just place it on the charger when you lay down to rest. It will wake up rested and ready to go when you do. If you see yourself going places, the Fossil Q Gen 3 will be the perfect stylish tool to get you there.

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