Smartwatches have become synonymous with fitness, hence comes the need to choose the perfect one! Apple has always ruled the world of fitness trackers until a pro player called Whoop entered the battleground. On observing carefully, you’ll see that most of the athletes nowadays are wearing Whoop smartwatches instead of Apple…
This leads to the battle- Whoop vs Apple Watch! You may wonder which one is better for you… Go through this article and you’ll find out!
Whoop vs Apple Watch: A Quick Comparison
First of all, let me count on the similarities between both brands. Both Whoop and Apple Watch offer the following features-
- Workout tracking
- Automatic workout detection
- Calories tracking
- Sleep tracking
- Sleep stage analysis
These are the general features that are present in both brands. Next, comes the differences between Whoop and Apple Watch-
| Features | Whoop | Apple Watch |
| Chest Straps (Heart Rate Monitor) | Absent | Present |
| Heart Rate Broadcasting | Present | Absent |
| Guided Workouts | Absent | Present |
| Strain Tracking (Measures how active you are) | Present | Absent |
| Sleep Quality Score | Present | Absent |
| Recovery Score | Present | Absent |
| Health Monitor | Present | Absent |
| Battery Life | 5 Days | 18 hours |
| Price in India (depends on model type) | Rs.25,999 to Rs.42,499 | Rs.46,900 to Rs.59,900 |
| Monthly Subscription | Present | Absent |
| Airplane Mode | Absent | Present |
In the upcoming sections, we will look into the differences in terms of various aspects.
Daily Activities and Workouts
Now, let’s see what kind of activities you can track through Whoop and Apple smartwatch-
| Activities | Whoop | Apple Watch |
| Type of Workouts Detected | All types of previously-logged workouts | Running, walking, swimming, elliptical workouts, rowing |
| No. of workout types | Over 100 | 20 |
| Threshold for workout detection | 15 minutes with a minimum strain scrote of 8 | Varies as per the workout type |
| Basis of Fitness Goal Score | Metabolic strain | Active minutes |
| Recommendations | AI-powered training plans, Strain Coach, Sleep Coach | Exercise reminders |
| Post-workout analysis | Metrics and recommendations | Raw metrics |
| Community | Teams | Awards and activity sharing |
One of the most common queries that the folks have is how these two smartwatches score the workouts. Well, both have their own approaches.
Apple Watch monitors your activity in motion. In other words, it counts the time when your heart rate is elevated beyond the normal zone. And how is that counted? You ask. When the intensity of your movement exceeds the intensity of a brisk walk, it is counted as an exercise. It may sound quite a generalized way…
But Whoop calculated the score more accurately by tracking the strain put on the cardiovascular system. It uses the following formula-
Whoop Score = Resting heart rate + 0.3* (Max. heart rate – resting heart rate)
Simply, it calculates the heart rate reserve of a person. Heart rate reserve (HRR) is the difference between your maximum heart rate and your resting heart rate. If any activity increases the heart rate above 30% of your reserve, then it is added to the strain.
Thus, if you are more focused on cardiovascular fitness, then you must go for Whoop!
Sleep Tracking Features
You can never ignore the sleep and resting stage on your fitness journey. After all, it is the time when your body replenishes itself. Hence, sleep tracking is an essential feature of smartwatches. Let’s compare this feature for Whoop vs Apple Watch-
| Sleep Tracking Features | Whoop | Apple Watch |
| Sleep goals | Accurately calculated | Manual |
| Sleep efficiency | Calculated | Not calculated |
| Sleep stage tracking | Present | Present |
| Respiratory rate | Present | Present |
| Sleep improvement recommendations | Bedtime and total sleep required | Notifies to reduce the screen |
| Analytics & correlations | Present | Absent |
| Silent Alarm | Present | Present |
| Smart Alarm | Present | Absent |
| Sampling frequency for measuring biometrics | 100 times per second | Once every few minutes |
From the above table, you can see that Whoop tracks your sleep more accurately as compared to the Apple smartwatch. That’s due to the following advanced sensors-
- Heart rate sensor
- 3D Accelerometer
- Skin conductance sensor (measures electrodermal activity)
- Skin temperature sensor
Also, Whoop tracks the following biometrics even if you are sleeping-
- Respiratory rate
- Blood oxygen saturation (SpO2)
- Resting heart rate (RHR)
- Heart rate variability (HRV)
- Skin temperature
You won’t get this sort of detailed comprehensive feature in the Apple Watch but you can perform an on-demand blood oxygen saturation check in it.
Hardware and Sensors
Here comes the core part of this article. The hardware and sensors determine the smartness of a fitness tracker. Let’s compare which smartwatch brand has better sensors-
| Hardware & Sensors | Whoop | Apple Watch |
| 3D Accelerometer and Gyroscope | Present | Present |
| Optical heart rate sensor & Pulse Oximeter | Greed + Red + Infrared LEDs | Green + Red + Infrared LEDs |
| NTC (Negative Thermal Coefficient) body temperature sensor | Present | Absent |
| Electrodermal activity (skin conductance) sensor | Present | Absent |
| Sampling rate | 100 times per second | Varies |
| Interchangeable straps | Present | Present |
| Electrocardiogram (ECG) | Absent | Present |
Earlier, the Apple Watch used only green LEDs. Later, it was discovered that green LEDs don’t penetrate the human tissue as deeply as infrared or Red LEDs. The latter two penetrate deeper into the skin and monitor blood oxygen better.
Then, why do smartwatches still use green LEDs? You may wonder.
Look, infrared and Red LEDs don’t offer accurate heart rate data during workouts. Why? Because they’re prone to motion artifacts.
Therefore, the smartwatches use Green LEDs to measure the heart rate during exercise.
Note: We have compared some of the most affordable smartphone brands available in the Indian market-
Final Words on Whoop vs Apple: Which is better for you?
Do you remember that we said the athletes are turning into Whoop for their fitness tracking purposes? By now you might have understood the underlying reason. Apple Watch shows the raw data related to activity and sleep patterns. Also, it collects the data periodically throughout the day.
On the other hand, Whoop measures each aspect accurately and correlates the fitness factors to determine the overall health outcomes.
The Whoop offers coaching features that help you change your behaviors, such as how hard you should push yourself each day. The Apple Watch, on the other hand, gives you data and lets you decide what to do with it.
Whether the Apple Watch or Whoop is “a better value for money and perfect for you” depends on your needs and preferences…
In short, if you are a fitness enthusiast with an ordinary workout and sleep routine then the Apple watch is perfect for you. But if you are a core-athletic person with strict training and practice schedules then undoubtedly Whoop is made for you!
By the way, which smartwatch brand do you use and why? Don’t forget to share your thoughts in the comments below! Thanks for reading 🙂
