Hands on with the Huge Diesel Full Guard 2.5 smartwatch

• Fashion brand Diesel just unveiled a new smartwatch at IFA 2018: the Diesel Full Guard 2.5.
• This new Diesel smartwatch does it all: heart rate tracking, GPS tracking, NFC payments, and more.
• However, the chipset on this new Diesel smartwatch is over two-years-old at this point, making it hard to recommend.

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At IFA 2018 the Fossil Group is showcasing several new members to its family. Earlier we had a look at the new Skagen Falster 2. Now we have a new Wear OS smartwatch reveal from Italian fashion brand Diesel: the Diesel Full Guard 2.5.

As you can see from our hands-on images, the new Diesel smartwatch is enormous. Diesel’s design aesthetic usually has a chunky look to it, so the look of the Full Guard 2.5 will likely appeal to those who already love the brand’s clothes.

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The Diesel smartwatch might be so huge because of all the features the company crammed into the device. If you are looking for a full-featured Wear OS smartwatch, this one has pretty much everything you need:

• Heart rate tracking using fitness apps like Google Fit
• NFC contactless payments using Google Pay or other payment apps
• GPS tracking for logging distance and speed during your runs, bikes, hikes, etc.
• Swim-proof construction with a depth rating of three meters

The watch’s specs are the kind we’ve come to expect from higher-end units: a 300mAh battery with magnetic charging, 4GB of onboard storage, 512MB of RAM, a 1.39-inch display with a resolution of 454 x 454, and support for all Android versions above Android 4.4 KitKat (aside from Android Go versions).

However, there is one major downside to the Diesel Full Guard 2.5, and that’s its chipset: it is running on the woefully outdated Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 2100 chip, which at this point is over two-years-old. The follow-up to this chipset arrives in a few weeks on September 10, making this a really ill-advised time for Diesel to release a new smartwatch.

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But, as with the recently-released Fossil and Michael Kors smartwatches, the fashion-conscious buyer likely doesn’t care that much about internal specs, so it might not really matter.

Speaking of being fashion-conscious, the Diesel Full Guard 2.5 smartwatch ain’t cheap at an MSRP of $325. However, that price applies to the leather, sport, and metal band versions, so it’s nice that Diesel isn’t asking a premium for premium bands.

The Diesel Full Guard 2.5 smartwatch hits store shelves and Diesel.com in October of this year.

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