Hi
I am looking for a simple and compact cellular smart watch with gps. Main reason for this will be safety, i want to call for help if things go bad, olso it would be nice to see my speed while i am surfing. Gps doesn't need to be super accurate or have ton of features i will never use, but recording max and average speeds would be nice. Being compact size, lightweight and durable (especially screen), easy to read screen while surfing are important for me, temperature sensor would be nice too.
For now i am leaning towards samsung watch active 2. Do you have any suggestions other than apple?

Hi sea Lotus,

Calling for help from a watch while at sea.... good luck with that ! I had to call from my phone once and it was already quite a struggle !
Any gps watch will do for your speeds, but I'd recommend taking a real phone with you, and not one with a touch screen.

The watch's speaker and microphone will be full of water and you'll have a hard time hearing and being heard.

I carry this sort of phone with me all the time . (has a flash light too )
100$ phone on a 10$ plan, I value my life a little more than that

My girlfriend actually used her cell Apple Watch to arrange her own rescue when her mast popped through the sail off shore at Cervantes last year.
she rang me when I was on my boat mid river back home also on the Apple watch
and I in turn called Isaac who was on the beach at Cervantes who then got Patrik to run the JetSki to her rescue.
So yes the system does work but you should always have a back up plan....
The Apple Watch has voice activation which works better than using the phone.
you can use the touch screen but just need to wipe the water off on your wetsuit.

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seanhogan said..
Hi sea Lotus,

Calling for help from a watch while at sea.... good luck with that ! I had to call from my phone once and it was already quite a struggle !
Any gps watch will do for your speeds, but I'd recommend taking a real phone with you, and not one with a touch screen.

The watch's speaker and microphone will be full of water and you'll have a hard time hearing and being heard.

I carry this sort of phone with me all the time . (has a flash light too )
100$ phone on a 10$ plan, I value my life a little more than that

Hi Sean - is that phone waterproof i.e. do you need to put it in a waterproof pouch?

it's totally waterproof, I still do keep it in a pouch to prevent corrosion as it stays in my back pack all year long

Seanhogan , what model is it and who are u with ?
It sounds like a great thing.
I could call up the missus when I'm getting hungry , while sailing , to have a sandwich ready for me when I get home
Or better still , she could bring down to the beach , tapas , a curry and beer

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seanhogan said..
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mobile-Phone-Waterproof-IP68-2-4-inch-FM-Radio-3-SIM-Card-Led-Flashlight-GSM/163595370928?hash=item26170b41b0:m:mMgmm3tbTvTSLY6LLHmL2lQ
actually 50 $ now....

Went for a plan (in new cal) so I don't have to recharge it every now and then. I used to have a prepaid, would forget to top it up and loose the number...

It looks like a 2G phone that no longer would work in Australia.

For safety alone, the best option would be a PLB. They are for real rescue situations but not practical for anything less severe e.g when you can self rescue yourself and your gear. They don't have any other features or functions like mobile phones or cellular watches either.

Naah i dont want to "carry" a phone with me, smart watches are more convenient i think. Touch screen is a problem (especially for samsung as i heard) but its not a deal breaker as long as you can navigate via buttons.

I checked Suunto and Garmin. Suuntos are all too bulky, not for me. Garmin vicoactive 4s, forerunner 45s, fenix 6s pro, venu have relatively small dimensions, but their website doesn't indicate if they have cellular.

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Sea Lotus said..
Naah i dont want to "carry" a phone with me, smart watches are more convenient i think. Touch screen is a problem (especially for samsung as i heard) but its not a deal breaker as long as you can navigate via buttons.

I checked Suunto and Garmin. Suuntos are all too bulky, not for me. Garmin vicoactive 4s, forerunner 45s, fenix 6s pro, venu have relatively small dimensions, but their website doesn't indicate if they have cellular.

They don't