I used a smartwatch to take my blood pressure, and I want to do it once again.

 While I was sitting in a booth at IFA 2022 in Berlin, the Huawei Watch D took my blood pressure with virtually no sound but a lot of wrist pressure. Just some wearable technology carrying out a task that is usually only reserved for the cuffs you wear in the doctor's office, that's all. Between unpleasant and impossible, it felt in the middle.

The Huawei Watch D was first unveiled in May, but it has just lately received (or is very close to receiving) European clearance for use as a health gadget. However, there has been no news from the US FDA, and given Huawei's low profile in the US, I don't anticipate that to happen any time soon. No one was able to test it out earlier this year, but Huawei was prepared to allow me and other attendees of the show to do so while regulatory permission was still pending.

To be clear, other wearable businesses are developing and beginning to offer blood pressure reading, but they mostly use IR sensors. But not the Huawei Watch D. It's a real blood pressure cuff, albeit one the size of the wrist.

There are a few unexpected aspects of the gadget, some of which have little to do with the blood pressure mechanism itself, but let's concentrate on that for the time being.

Watch face for a Huawei Watch D (Photo by Future and Lance Ulanoff)

The Huawei Watch D does a respectable job of concealing its pressure-reading abilities by appearing to be a typical health and fitness wristwatch, although one that is a little thicker. Actually, the technology consists of two parts.

(Photo by Future and Lance Ulanoff)

A ridiculously small micro pump that can, according to Huawei, pump up to 49 kilopascals (kPa) of pressure is housed inside the watch. When fully pumped, the bladder, or dual-layer airbag as Huawei referred to it, in the watchband, can read between 40 and 230 kPa (If you're at 230 or above, it could be cause for significant concern).

No watch or band calibration is available. Instead, you begin by measuring your wrists to determine whether you need a medium or large band (the watch will arrive in those two band sizes for just one watch size). Each band then includes a number of adjustments for a snug but comfortable fit.

wrist measurement for the Huawei Watch D (Photo credit: Future / Lance Ulanoff)

With a rectangular face and an easy-to-use interface, the watch itself is quite appealing. A blood pressure monitor watch might seem more medical, but it also has other smartwatch features and is used for fitness (supports 70 programmes). With the strip of inflatable bladders inside, the band is both broader and slightly thicker than usual. However, it's not enough to draw attention from others or to cause unease.

The bladder-shaped concealed strap for the Huawei Watch D was created by Future and Lance Ulanoff.

After my brief fitting, a Huawei representative found the proper clasp position and placed the watch over my hand and onto the top of my wrist.

I observed him use the watch's blood pressure reading app before being instructed to untie my fist, relax, and rest my arm across my chest (okay, I was a little nervous - I am a terrible patient).

activation of blood pressure monitoring on a Huawei Watch D (Photo by Future and Lance Ulanoff)

The Watch D band bladder started to fill virtually silently when he pressed the side button on the watch. It seemed like someone had their wrist in a very tight hold as the pressure mounted. Although it wasn't painful, it wasn't exactly comfortable (basically like a regular blood pressure machine).

The pressure suddenly removed after about a minute (maybe less), not gradually but swiftly and firmly.

My reading, a little high 132/100, came right away on the watch and, as the representative demonstrated to me, also on a Huawei phone. There, I learned more information about what I had read, including an ominous reference to "hypertension (Stage 2)". I'll attribute this to anxiety and the strain of being at IFA since my blood pressure was perfect when I just got a physical and I'll put that down to this.

The software also allows you to set up reminders for taking your blood pressure.

(Photo by Future and Lance Ulanoff)

I was stunned as I read that passage, as my British friends would say. Nothing about it was flimsy or ambiguous. The Huawei Watch D and its teeny wrist cuff for measuring blood pressure performed as promised.

The watch's ability to perform ECGs, measure heart rates, track workouts, get smartwatch notifications, and survive for seven days on a single charge is another impressive boast. The company maintains that this was achieved by taking numerous measurements from each sensor, including the blood pressure cuff. That would be astonishing if true.

Additionally, the watch is IP68-rated, so it won't have an issue with water or dust.

Here's the awful news: Although the Huawei Wach D is about to be approved for use in the European Union, other countries, including as the UK, have not yet approved it. I doubt the watch will ever reach the US because the FDA has a famously tough time approving medical gadgets there. Ask Apple, which takes care to avoid claiming any actual medical benefits for any of the functions on the Apple Watch.

Additionally, there is no price and no estimated release date for any market.

It's sad that what seems like cutting-edge wearable technology may still be months or more away from becoming widely available to consumers and that key markets like the US might never see it. Huawei is taking the wearable industry in new directions. This is genuine diagnostic capability in wearable technologies for consumers. I wonder if this is Apple's next experiment.

In order to demonstrate that my blood pressure is fine, I'd also like to use the Huawei Watch one more time when I'm considerably more relaxed.

TechRadar is in Berlin for IFA 2022, Europe's largest tech expo, to bring you all the latest news and announcements as well as our firsthand experiences with the new TVs, wearables, audio equipment, and other gadgets on display.