Samsung Galaxy Watch: Excellent long life battery

Samsung is releasing the new smartwatch primus with the Galaxy Watch. In the test, the wearable passed the strong competition in the form of Apple Watch Series 4 and Co. The Samsung Galaxy Watch impresses with its excellent operation and very good battery life, but the features are weak.

 

Samsung Galaxy Watch Review

In the test, the Samsung Galaxy Watch presented itself in a largely familiar design. Contrary to the competition from Apple and Fitbit, Samsung sticks to the opinion that a smartwatch has to look like an analog watch.

With the Galaxy Watch, Samsung is again relying on Tizen OS and the bezel. The Galaxy Watch comes in two different sizes, with a 42 and 46 millimeter case.

While you get the 42mm model in rose gold or midnight black, the 46mm watch is only available in silver. Contrary to the relative thickness of the Smartwatch and the Galaxy Watch is almost 13 mm deep, it is still not very bulky and looks like a normal watch.

Test data for Samsung Galaxy Watch R810

 

Samsung has got the hang of it and scores with operation

As mentioned earlier, Samsung remains loyal to its Tizen OS smartwatch operating system. There is one main reason for this: the rotating bezel. The Google Android Wear system does not provide any support for this intuitive operation with the rotation.

There are also two buttons on the edge of the clock for primary and secondary functions. The lower of the two buttons acts as a kind of home button, which can, however, also be assigned with other actions and thus increases functionality. With a turn of the bezel, you can access various menus, such as the calendar, the fitness features or your installed apps.

With the latter, however, the Samsung Galaxy Watch still draws the short straw compared to Apple or Android Wear: You won’t find nearly as many applications in the Samsung App Store as in the competition.

Speaking of competition: the Samsung Galaxy Watch does not struggle with iOS and other Android smartphones and is compatible with phones from iOS 9.0 or Android 5.0 (Lollipop) and at least 1.5 GB of RAM.

 

Off-road adventure and stress detection: Samsung is stepping up its fitness level

For many, smartwatches only have a right to exist thanks to their fitness features. That is why Samsung is also relying on an expansion of the features with the new model. The Galaxy Watch automatically recognizes 40 different sports, is waterproof up to 50 meters and is shock-resistant.

In addition to the usual sensors such as heart rate monitors or pedometers, Samsung also packs a barometer and altimeter. In addition to GPS, these also provide outdoor fans with tools for off-road adventures.

Similar to Apple and Fitbit, Samsung integrates a meditation function into the watch, which is supposed to recognize the stress level or mood. A detailed sleep analysis is also at the start and nowadays this is standard.

 

Endurance runner with small equipment weaknesses

Despite the extended fitness features, the Samsung Galaxy Watch scores in the battery rating. In the the endurance test, the 42 mm smartwatch from our test achieved almost 37 hours of battery life.

Depending on usage, this time can be extended to up to two and a half days, not quite the three days specified by the manufacturer, but still very good. According to the manufacturer, the 46 mm wearable should even last four days.

In terms of equipment, however, the Galaxy Watch shows weaknesses – not only because of the reduced selection of apps. Where an Apple Watch Series 4 also scores with an eSIM or Bluetooth 5.0, the Galaxy Watch makes compromises.

The Apple Watch Series 4 also has 16 GB of flash memory, while the Samsung Galaxy Watch has to be content with a meager 4 GB which is already largely occupied by Tizen. In addition, Bixby still dreams of being able to do as much as Siri and Alexa and continues to crawl around as a second-class voice assistant.

Nevertheless, the criticism of this flaw is lamenting at a high level. The Samsung Galaxy Watch is a strong smartwatch especially for those who rely on timeless design and good fitness functions.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Pros:

• Perfect operation thanks to the bezel
• Long battery life
• Compatible with standard wristbands
• Successful fitness features

Samsung Galaxy Watch Cons:

• Equipment is not perfect
• Choice of apps
• No improvement from voice assistant Bixby