Fossil Gen 4 Venture HR Smartwatch: Where Fashion Meets Function

With all the shopping, gifting, cooking, cleaning, decorating and party planning on your to-do list, the holiday season can be hectic and stressful. Powered by Wear OS by Google, the stylish Fossil Gen 4 Venture HR Rose Gold-Tone Stainless Steel Smartwatch will help you get better organized and more productive with loads of amazing features. It also makes a perfect gift for fashionistas who are looking to get fit in the new year.

I'm very excited about the opportunity to try out this beauty. I fell in love with its elegant design at first sight. Then I was impressed by how easy it was to set everything up. Simply connect it to your smartphone via Bluetooth, follow the on-screen instructions to move from one step to the next, and the watch will be ready for use in just a few minutes. Based on your configuration, the watch alerts you about a new email, an incoming call, a calendar reminder or a notification from a mobile app through a gentle buzz (or longer, double vibration if you like).

This Fossil Gen 4 Smartwatch is designed with your health in mind. It comes with many built-in tools to help monitor your health and reach your fitness goals. It tracks your heart rate throughout the day and the monitor is automatically turned on when you are in a workout session. The Google Fit app installed with Wear OS by Google provides smart health coaching and activity tracking based on guidelines from the American Heart Association & World Health Organization. Its two new new activity trackers — Heart Points and Move Minutes — use evidence based metrics to measure activity intensity while motivating you to stay active and live healthier. In addition, Google Assistant offers proactive, personalized help to keep you ahead of your day and get more done.

The watch is swimproof, which means you don't have to take it off when you wash your hands, take a shower/bath, or even jump into the pool. It also uses untethered GPS, which allows you to track your run's distance without your smartphone. Better yet, you can play stored music on your runs! Another neat feature is its quick access to Google Pay. There's no need to carry your wallet around on a workout session. Just pay with a wave at almost any place that accepts credit cards.

As Wear OS is compatible with both Apple iOS and Android, this watch communicates with both iPhone and Android smartphones for easy data collection.

The Fossil Gen 4 Venture HR Stainless Steel Smartwatch does so much more than a traditional timepiece. It's where fashion meets function AND fitness! There's still time to get this incredible smartwatch for the fitness and fashion enthusiasts on your list for the holidays. Stop by a Best Buy store near you or order one at BestBuy.com.

Disclosure: The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product. All views and opinions expressed are my own.