TL;DR: The CMF Watch 3 Pro is a stylish, fitness-capable budget smartwatch with strong battery life (if you skip Always-On), dual-band GPS, and a surprisingly solid feature set. The software still needs polish, but an AED 369, it’s one of the best value-for-money smartwatches you can buy right now.

Introduction: When Hype Meets Wrist

Every so often, a gadget lands on my desk that makes me feel like I’m back in the early 2000s, unboxing my first iPod and thinking: “This is it. This is the future strapped into my palm.” The CMF Watch 3 Pro didn’t exactly give me iPod-level goosebumps, but let’s just say it had me raising an eyebrow in a very Spock-like fashion. For a smartwatch hovering around the AED 369 mark, this little orange-accented slab of AMOLED glass and metal is trying really hard to prove that you don’t need to drop Apple Watch money to get Apple Watch vibes.

And folks, it almost pulls it off.

I spent a couple of days living with the Watch 3 Pro as my daily driver. That means it endured sweaty gym sessions, desert heat, late-night doomscrolling, and my annoying habit of ignoring calls until they reach “last chance before voicemail” status. What follows is my unfiltered, geeked-out breakdown of whether CMF’s latest wrist candy deserves a place in your gadget arsenal—or if it’s destined to live in the drawer next to your abandoned Fitbit from 2016.

Design & Build: Minimalism With Just Enough Flair

Let’s talk looks, because let’s be real—that’s half the battle with smartwatches. Nobody wants to wear a glorified Tamagotchi on their wrist. The CMF Watch 3 Pro nails a minimal aesthetic with a splash of personality. The 1.43-inch AMOLED display sits on a slightly chunky but handsome body. Bezels are slim enough to not feel 2015, but don’t expect Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra-thin wizardry here.

The case itself is mostly metal with some plastic around the bezel. At 51 grams, it’s not featherlight, but it doesn’t feel like wrist shackles either. The Orange edition (my unit) screams personality in a world of boring black straps. It’s the kind of watch that doesn’t beg for attention but gets it anyway—like that one friend who always “accidentally” wears the perfect outfit to brunch.

Durability-wise, it’s IP68 rated, which in human language means: fine in the shower, fine in the rain, not fine if you decide to take up pearl diving in Fujairah. I wore it during multiple workouts and daily errands, including one regrettable IKEA trip where my wrist was constantly smacking into flat-pack furniture. The watch came out unscathed, which tells me it can handle clumsy humans just fine.

Display: Bright Enough for the Dubai Sun

The AMOLED panel is sharp, vibrant, and reasonably bright at around 650–670 nits. Is it as blinding as an Apple Watch Ultra at full brightness? Nope. But I tested it under the relentless Dubai sun, and I could still read my WhatsApp notifications without squinting harder than Gandalf reading the One Ring inscription.

Colors pop beautifully, especially with CMF’s included watch faces. I found myself switching between minimalist digital looks for workdays and more playful, analog-inspired faces for weekends. The responsiveness of the screen was solid—swipes registered immediately, and taps felt snappy. There’s no awkward delay that makes you question whether you’ve suddenly lost fine motor skills.

Always-On Display is available, and it looks gorgeous… until you realize it guzzles battery like your friend who “just wants one sip” of your milkshake. Still, if you want your wrist to feel like a futuristic dashboard at all times, it’s an option worth having. Just prepare for more frequent charging sessions.

Software & Experience: The Good, The Buggy, The Work-in-Progress

Now, this is where budget smartwatches usually faceplant. CMF uses its own lightweight OS, powered by the Nothing X app on your phone. Setting it up was smooth—pairing was painless, unlike the Bluetooth tango I’ve had with some cheaper Amazfit units.

The interface itself is intuitive enough: swipe up for notifications, swipe down for quick toggles, swipe left and right for widgets. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it doesn’t need to. The animations are smooth, and the watch rarely felt laggy.

Notifications work… most of the time. I had the occasional ghost alert (old calendar event popping up from the digital grave) and sometimes a delay that made me feel like my watch was buffering real life. Lift-to-wake is hit-and-miss too—sometimes the watch wakes up eagerly, other times it sulks like a teenager asked to do chores. That said, when it did work, it felt snappy and natural.

For calls, music control, and even voice transcription (which I used to jot down review notes mid-run), the software is surprisingly functional. Voice notes synced quickly, and Bluetooth calling was good enough for short conversations when I didn’t feel like fishing my phone out of my pocket. Just don’t expect to install third-party apps. This isn’t Wear OS, it’s RTOS: fast, efficient, and as closed-off as an introvert at a house party.

Fitness & Health: Surprisingly Serious

CMF clearly wants fitness folks to take this watch seriously. And honestly? They should. It’s got dual-band GPS (L1 + L5) for better accuracy, a 4-channel heart-rate sensor, blood oxygen monitoring, stress tracking, sleep analysis, and even menstrual health tracking.

In real-world testing, GPS accuracy was solid. I mapped a run through Downtown Dubai and compared it against my Garmin Forerunner, and while the Garmin still won on precision (duh), the Watch 3 Pro held its own shockingly well for the price. Tracking routes around tall buildings wasn’t perfect, but it was far better than I expected from a sub-$100 device.

Step tracking felt accurate enough for casual use, and the watch never tried to gaslight me into thinking a quick walk to the fridge was a 20-minute workout. Sleep tracking nailed my late-night YouTube binges followed by groggy mornings—no lies detected. It even picked up on restless nights when my cat decided 3 a.m. was the perfect time for parkour.

The Running Coach feature is a nice touch too, giving me training plans that actually felt achievable. Granted, I ignored half of them because kebabs exist, but that’s a “me” problem. For most users who want guided workouts without spending Garmin money, this is more than good enough.

Battery Life: Marathon Runner With One Weak Ankle

CMF claims 13 days of typical use, 10 days of heavy use. In my testing, I got close to those numbers—as long as I didn’t enable Always-On Display. With AOD on, battery life dropped harder than DC movies at the box office.

Without AOD: I averaged 11–12 days with workouts, notifications, and Bluetooth calling sprinkled in. With AOD: more like 4–5 days. Still decent compared to Apple Watches, but nowhere near the Amazfit GTR’s ridiculous endurance.

I pushed it further with a mix of workouts, GPS runs, and constant notifications during a particularly chaotic workweek. Even then, it gave me close to 9 days without needing a charge, which is more than respectable. Charging is straightforward with the included puck, taking about 90 minutes to go from zero to full. Not blazing fast, but fine for topping up while you shower and binge TikTok.

Everyday Use: Living With It

So what’s it like as a daily companion? Honestly, pretty great for the price. Calls were clear, though I wouldn’t take a work meeting on it unless you want to sound like you’re trapped inside a tin can. Notifications came through consistently enough that I didn’t feel cut off. Music controls worked seamlessly with Spotify, which meant fewer awkward pauses when I wanted to skip a track mid-run.

The lack of third-party apps didn’t bother me much, because let’s be honest: 90% of the time, I just want my watch to tell me time, buzz when my mom texts, and track how badly I’m failing my fitness goals. It did all of that without drama.

The Orange strap also got me compliments, which almost never happens with my other smartwatches. A barista even asked about it, which sparked a five-minute conversation about Nothing’s quirky branding. If an AED 369 gadget can improve my social life, that’s ROI you can’t ignore. And yes, the strap is comfortable enough for all-day wear—I even slept with it on a few nights, and it didn’t feel like I was handcuffed to a brick.

I also appreciated the small details: the haptic feedback is subtle but satisfying, the UI animations feel polished, and the watch face library—while not as endless as Apple’s—offered enough variety to keep things fresh. The watch managed to strike a balance between being useful and not overwhelming me with too much noise.

The Verdict

The CMF Watch 3 Pro is proof that budget smartwatches don’t have to feel cheap. It’s stylish, surprisingly capable at fitness tracking, and nails the basics of smartwatch life. Yes, the software is buggy in places, and Always-On Display is basically a battery hostage situation. But for AED 369, I’m not just impressed—I’m borderline recommending it to friends who usually blow half a paycheck on an Apple Watch they don’t even fully use.

It’s not for everyone. If you’re a hardcore fitness enthusiast who needs every metric under the sun, Garmin is still king. If you want seamless integration with an iPhone, the Apple Watch SE is still your safest bet. But if you’re like most people—someone who wants a reliable, stylish smartwatch that covers the essentials without draining your wallet—the CMF Watch 3 Pro deserves a serious look.