what smart watch should i purchase other than the apple one?

I know that Wear OS is technically useable with an iPhone, but it's been forever since I last did that, so don't remember what worked and what didn't. I now use a samsung galaxy S22 Ultra, and my Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is great with it. It can also be used with other Android phones from what I understand, though you're not getting quite the best out of it when using it with anything not from Samsung, but it can be done with Android. Media playback, calls, all that works. Now for iPhones, no idea. I remember using Wear OS with an iPhone and while calls were possible, the experience was not the best, and at least at that time, I don't think media playback could be handled on the watch.
You will never get the same experience with a different brand's watch paired to an iPhone as you will with the Apple Watch. A lot of that is by design.

I have the Samsung Galaxy 6 Classic which is the rival of the Apple Ultra, it is in no way competing against the Apple wach. If you are going to be something, either you wait until you have the money to get the Apple Watch or dismiss the idea fully. The Samsung Galaxy watches are too slow if you compare them to the Apple Watch, the layout of the apps is unexplainable, and many features are lacking as far as accessibility is concerned.
As the techie saying goes: buy it nice or buy it twice.

You might consider that.

Always worth looking out for deals too.

https://www.macrumors.com

Often has listings of deals in the states which are sometimes mirrored elsewhere around the world.

If you're looking for a fitness band, fitbit have some options with limited accessibility. Personally, using an apple watch for calls feels really janky so I like my wrist warn device to give me time, vibrations for notifications, record my activity and that's about it. Voiceover on the apple watch is still sluggish, difficult to navigate and rather pointless. It's a device designed to be glanced at, wich we can't do. Much easier to grab up ones phone and use that.

I'm not trying to put you off the apple watch here, but wanted to point out there are other options if you're happy to boil down what you actually want from your wearable.

Sadly I don’t think there are many, if any, options. I looked into this before because I don’t like the design of the Apple Watch, but came up blank.
Wear OS watches used to work with iPhone but newer versions do not. So the likes of the Tick watch, Fossil, Samsung and Pixel are no longer an option.
Garmin make nice ones but do not have a text to speech feature.
Dave

Something to bear in mind and a pro for the apple watch is siri. We'll know more on monday but if siri gets more smarts, siri 2.0 as it were, you'll have that on your wrist and it will become one of the most powerful wearable ai devices you can get. How that applies to the product stack, IE which it will be available on and what, remains to be seen.

This article sums it up, though is highly speculative and has a degree of hope in there too, I think:

https://www.tomsguide.com/wellness/smartwatches/siri-20-is-about-to-make-the-apple-watch-the-ultimate-ai-wearable-heres-how

I have the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro and really like it. I like the design that is closer to an actual watch. The 6 and 6 classic have much smaller batteries. This 5 Pro will get me a few days at a time, something I never experienced on an Apple watch.
One thing I always tell people with any Galaxy or Wear OS watch is turn off talkback sounds. Keep vibrations if you want, but turning off the TB sounds will make the device feel much less sluggish. I'm not sure why, but something with the way the devices process both speech and other sounds at the same time just causes problems on pretty much any Wear OS device I've ever used.

I'm afraid, as far as I understand it, voiceover on apple watch is the best you're going to get. Anything cheaper will be significantly worse to use. Though I do argue that the smart watch isn't a good device for blind people in general. It requires two hands to use to just get the time. Sighted users can glance. I can use just one hand with my iPhone and get the time far easier.

If you're just looking for a timepiece, the bradly watch is very nice. it's a disk with a couple of ball bearings that move through channels to show you the time. Aside from that, it's dumb. .

It is a simple watch that does exactly what one would expect. I think the only negative thing about it is the price.

I would also agree that smart watches are a novelty item, at best.

While it may not align precisely with OP's request, a straightforward braille watch could offer the best accessibility solution given the current limitations in watch accessibility. It's interesting to note some complaints about the Apple Watch Voiceover experience, although many users appear to operate it comfortably in various accessibility related videos and podcasts. Perhaps the newer Apple watches featuring Apple silicon offer an improved experience.
Despite being on the verge of purchasing an Apple Watch, these discussions have prompted me to reconsider. Currently, I rely on a locally-made, affordable braille watch from Tyten, which costs around 10 to 15 USD when converted to USD. This simple yet durable watch utilizes standard components, facilitating repairs at any watch shop. Over the past five years, it has served me faithfully, requiring only a battery replacement. Not only does it allow me to discreetly check the time without retrieving my phone, but it also maintains a professional appearance, doubling as a simple formal fassion accessory.

My ex used to have a beautiful braille wrist watch, that she used in her professional environment. She used to say pretty much the same thing; that she could discreetly check the time, and that it was a very stylish watch. I believe hers was gold, with a stretchy metal band, and about the only sound it made was a subtle click when she opened the glass piece to check the time. Similar I would imagine to the sound a typical pocket watch makes when you open the front. 🙂

I have only had one Braille watch, and it was when I was a kid. I was apparently to heavy handed and rough with it, because it stopped working rather quickly after I got it. I'm sure that like everything else, there are more premium ones, and then there are also the bottom of the barrel variety, which is probably what I had, but I've always had kinda fat fingers, even when I was a kid, and found that while trying to check the time, I could accidentally move the hands. After that I really never wanted another one. I will say, on the Galaxy Watch, I can turn Talkback volume all the way down, and then have the watch give me the time in vibrations. I could do the same with the Apple watch. That is nice as it does make it rather discrete when I need or want it to be.
I have never used either the Galaxy watch, or the Apple watch back when I had that, to their full potential. They have been mostly time pieces with a few perks. Having the stopwatch is nice for when I'm working out, which yes, can also be done on my phone, I will take the ocasional call on the watch but since I also have the Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, I find call quality to be better on those.
But on either side of the fence, I don't find myself doing a lot of the fitness tracking and all that stuff. Well, actually, I do more with the Galaxy watch, as it automatically recognizes that I'm doing something and starts the workout automatically, whereas on the Apple watch, you had to either start it yourself, or some way through it might ask if you were doing a certain workout which you could then confirm, but I would either never hear it over my music, or just plain didn't feel like fussing with the watch and losing any momentum I had in my workout. So, win for the Galaxy Watch.

Yeah, I thought apple watch would be better logging workouts. I set it at the start of my indoor cycles but I also went for a rather long walk today around the harbour here in Bristol and it didn't seem to realise I was huffing and puffing out in the sun. I wonder if holding someone's arm stops it from registering the steps. I'd assumed my phone might cover that to though.

It's nice to have but I don't know if I'd replace it unless something more interestig, such as a more powerful and reactive siri was on the board. I wear it more out of habit than anything else and I do like the more discrete notifications I get on it though, is it really worth the cost? Probably not. I'm on a 7, I think.

If I ever got an Apple Watch, it would likely be an SE model, to go with my SE iPhone. Thematic and all that. 😏

Some of us may have a little disdain for all the "trendy" tech, but that doesn't mean its completely useless. Ultimately it depends on your needs. If you need something to tell time, the braille or tactile watch will suit you just fine. If you want a device that has multiple functions, then by all means get a smart watch. 😀

I have the apple watch se2 bought this year, the eone bradley magnetic watch and what people call braille watch but is in fact just a tactile watch. The real braille watch costs about $700 and is (or was) the dotwatch by dotpad. The se2 is the best bet for blind people to buy their first apple watch. It's handy to have when it works but by no mean is it necessary at all. In fact if you have only the iphone then forget the watch. If you have a mac though it becomes slightly more interesting.