Set on Samsung? Find the right fit for your wrist with this guide
It’s a terrible time to buy a Samsung smartwatch. The company has a host of new smartwatches around the corner, and by August 2024, the line-up will look totally different. So waiting is the best move you can make right now.
Samsung has already announced the Galaxy Watch FE, a new budget Wear OS smartwatch that will cost $200. It pretty much matches the Galaxy Watch 6 in most departments – and looks to be a strong contender.
And there has been a slew of leaks about the new Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 and Watch Ultra.
But in the mean time, here are the pick of our top pick Samsung devices, from our reviews.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 6
Samsung Galaxy Watch 6: specs and features
- OS: Wear OS
- Phone compatibility: Android
- Case size: 40mm / 44mm
- Battery life: Up to 40 hours/30 hours with always-on display
- Water rating: 5ATM
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE
- Display: 1.3/1.5-inch Super AMOLED
- Weight: 33g (44mm)
The standard Galaxy Watch 6 smartwatch comes in 40mm and 44mm sizes – so there’s something for most wrist sizes.
You get a 1.5-inch or 1.3-inch AMOLED display (depending on case size) and you’re unlikely to find a better display on any rival devices.
The Galaxy Watch 6 ships with Wear OS 4, the latest version of Google’s OS, and gets new sleep-tracking smarts and heart rate zone training modes. It adds to an excellent health and fitness suite of features, and also boasts ECG and blood pressure monitoring, but you’ll need a Samsung phone to make use of those.
> Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 vs Galaxy Watch 6 Classic
In our review, we were impressed with the performance of sleep, heart rate, and workout features.
So what stops this being a world-beating smartwatch? Well, battery life isn’t great, and will last just over a day with the always-on display enabled. An hour run will deplete the battery by around 20%, so you can experience significant battery anxiety.
The other thing to consider is that Samsung has already rolled Wear OS 4 out onto the Galaxy Watch 5. With minimal differences in hardware – it could be prudent to pick the last-generation Samsung smartwatch.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 review.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic
Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic: specs and features
- OS: Wear OS
- Phone compatibility: Android
- Case size: 43mm/47mm
- Battery life: Up to 40 hours/30 hours with always-on display
- Water rating: 5ATM
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE
- Display: 1.3/1.5-inch Super AMOLED
- Weight: 56g (47mm)
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic is the more premium-looking smartwatch of the Galaxy clan, and it’s all about the look and feel.
There are two sizes 43mm with a 1.3-inch AMOLED and 47mm with a 1.5-inch display, so it’s better suited to larger wrists than the standard Watch 6.
It’s everything that the Galaxy Watch should be – with a top screen, great health features and, of course, the rotating bezel.
The tactile control of the bezel really got under our skin, and it works perfectly with Wear OS 4. Scrolling through Tiles or notifications is a breeze, and it’s nice to not have to swipe the AMOLED display to move through menus.
The bezel makes for a more refined look in our minds and emulates a proper watch. There’s a faux leather strap that is good for getting sweaty and does a good job of looking like the real deal.
> Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 vs Watch 5
Fitness and heart rate data were pretty flawless for steady workouts, as was sleep tracking data, which has been revamped for Wear OS 4.
ECG and blood pressure make for a good health experience, but remember you need a Samsung smartphone for those featuress to work.
The only thing that doesn’t make the Watch 6 Classic an automatic recommendation is battery life. We got around 30 hours with the always-on display turned on, and an hour workout will deplete around 20%. So you could experience significant battery anxiety if you plan to use the new sleep-tracking features.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 Classic review.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: specs and features
- OS: Wear OS
- Phone compatibility: Android
- Case size: 45mm
- Battery life: 80 hours
- Water rating: 5ATM
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE
- Display: Super AMOLED
- Weight: 46.5g
Although the Galaxy Watch 6 has launched, the Galaxy. Watch 5 Pro remains a current member of the line-up – and controversially is still the best Samsung smartwatch available – at least in terms of pure features and performance.
We don’t think it’s the right pick for everybody, given the inflated asking price and the fact it’s only available a 45mm case size, but the added benefits mean it’s a very rounded smartwatch.
The battery life boost over the rest is probably the most noticeable improvement, and we found around 3-4 days of use is typical. That’s very good going for a smartwatch this feature-packed – and overcomes the key problem with the Galaxy 6 range.
> Samsung Galaxy Watch 6 vs Watch 5 Pro
What’s more, it’s already getting Wear OS 4 update, so it packs the latest sleep tracking features.
For those who want to track their outdoor exercise, we also found the 20-hour GPS battery life estimate to hold up.
We think there are better sports watch experiences to be had elsewhere, but the fact Samsung has also hit the health tracking features hard does help bolster the 5 Pro further. You’ll get support for blood pressure tracking, ECG readings (with a Samsung smartphone) and temperature tracking.
Read our Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro review.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5: specs and features
- OS: Wear OS
- Phone compatibility: Android
- Case size: 40mm / 44mm
- Battery life: Up to 40 hours
- Water rating: 5ATM
- Connectivity: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, LTE
- Display: Super AMOLED
- Weight: From 30g
Unlike the Watch 5 Pro, the Galaxy Watch 5 is now obsolete. But it is still a superb pickup if you can find a cheap deal.
Samsung is rolling out the Wear OS 4 update to the Watch 5 and Watch 4, so last year’s model is still getting the new sleep and heart rate training features. So you’re not missing much by swerving the latest Watch 6.
It comes in the same case sizes (40mm and 44mm) and the only real difference is that it has a marginally smaller display than its Watch 6 counterparts. You get 1.2-inch and 1.4-inch AMOLED here, compared to 1.3-inch and 1.5-inch on the Watch 6.
Battery life is still a single day, with 40 hours without the always-on display.
It has the exact same fitness, wellness, and health features as the Watch, with body composition, ECG, and blood pressure on board.
It suffers many of the same problems as the Watch 6, but also carries all of its best features too. So why pay more?
Read our Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 review.
Samsung Galaxy Fit 3
Samsung Galaxy Fit 3: specs and features
- Up to 13 days battery life
- 1.6″ large AMOLED display
- Tracks sleep and over 100 exercises
- Slim and lightweight design
- 5ATM water resistant
- Bluetooth 5.3 support
- Android only and requires a Samsung handset for advanced sleep chronotypes
The Samsung Galaxy Fit 3 hasn’t had a global release, and hasn’t yet made it to the US. However, after launching in Asia, it’s now in the UK and Europe. And to limit this even further, the Fit 3 is Android only.
It’s dominated by the 1.6-inch display with a 256×403 resolution, which is 45% wider than the Fit 2. You also get 100 watch faces to choose from
The case is made of aluminum, and comes in black, rose gold and silver colorways.
You get a chunky 13 days battery life, which is a big upgrade on the 6 days of the Charge 6, but around the same as the budget Fitbit Inspire 3.
There’s basic sports tracking with 100 different workout profiles, although there’s no GPS on board, so the tracking is fairly basic.
It will track steps, heart rate and sleep – and the Fit 3 also features snoring detection and will monitor blood oxygen levels (although it’s not a medical device.) Fall Detection and Emergency SOS are also on board.
And it’s water resistant to 50m with an IP68 rating – so it’s good for the pool and the shower.
Sleep tracking includes the chronotype sleep animals feature, which can help categorize your unique sleep habits. However, to get these you must pair the device with a Samsung Galaxy smartphone.
Full disclosure: we haven’t tested the Fit 3 yet as the device has been limited outside our geo until recently. We’re working on getting a sample for our full review ASAP.
