I greatly enjoyed using the first model of the Withings ScanWatch, which I can confidently recommend due to its sophistication and health and fitness centric features. Retaining the best features from its predecessor, the ScanWatch 2 introduces several nuanced additions, with temperature tracking being the most notable of them all, albeit its introduction comes with a little steep price increase.

This smart gadget, unlike ordinary smartwatches, has a petite screen, gives limited notifications and maintains a detailed record of your health, activity and quality of sleep unobtrusively. Displaying the times via real hands, this watch can easily go for a month between charges – a feature that makes it more attractive for users. After using it for a couple of months, I found it to be a handy and comfortable partner.

The stylishness of the Withings ScanWatch 2 is one of its major attractions. By combining the physical hands and the faces of a traditional wristwatch with sleek lugs, this hybrid smartwatch invites attention. It uses sapphire glass and stainless steel for durability and offers 5ATM water resistance. Interestingly, the ScanWatch 2 continues to be appealing even its additional features like the fitness tracking and heart rate variability monitoring were not yet available and I could not yet test the new menstrual cycle tracking feature. I also found the updates on the companion Health Mate app quite bothersome in general.

The top half of the smartwatch holds the small OLED display which shows all the data clearly. The time and the date are displayed by default. But, you can choose to view the heart rate, skin temperature, steps taken, distance travelled and available workouts by rotating the crown. Available workouts can be recorded, and you can also choose to take an Electrocardiogram or  measurements or start a breathing exercise from the settings menu. The ScanWatch 2 alerts you about any notifications you receive on your phone, and although it may be a bit time-consuming to go through longer messages, it's enough to decide whether or not you need to check your phone.

One feature that particularly intrigued me is the TempTech module that can track your basic body temperature and inform you of any significant changes. This could potentially assist in identifying signs of upcoming illness or in avoiding heat exhaustion. This feature also improves the accuracy of sleep and activity tracking.

Similar to its predecessor, ScanWatch 2 also has a sleep tracker, however I found it to have difficulties in distinguishing between when I was lying down but awake and when I was lightly sleeping. The ScanWatch 2 also offers workout tracking for around 50 activities, however, triggering the tracking often felt cumbersome.

Although simplified compared to most fitness trackers, the ScanWatch 2 manages to deliver a satisfactory shallow overview, which might suit some users just fine. Breath-taking battery life is another major plus. Depending on usage, you can expect up to 30 days of battery life. After some adjustments, like leaving the screen on during workouts and activating the ScanWatch 2 monitor for oxygen saturation during sleep, the battery drained faster but still lasted beyond two weeks.