The Samsung Galaxy Watch is Still the MOST Stylish and Functional Smartwatch
A great looking and working smartwatch, the Samsung Galaxy Watch’s best feature (aside from its stylish looks) is a physical rotating bezel that gives you direct input to the watch’s interface.
- HEALTH & WELLNESS: Live a stronger, smarter life with Galaxy Watch at your wrist. Rest well and stay active with built-in health tracking and a Bluetooth connection that keeps everything at your wrist.
- BATTERY: Go nonstop for days on a single charge. The wireless charger lets you power up without slowing down. (Average expected performance based on typical use. Results may vary.)
- LOOKS GREAT: Available in two sizes and three colors, the Galaxy Watch offers stylish watch faces so realistic they hardly look digital. Plus, choose from a collection of interchangeable bands. Whether you’re meeting with clients or grabbing coffee with friends, the classic watch design will always fit the occasion.
- LTE (UPGRADE) PHONE FREEDOM: Leave your phone at home, you have the freedom to call text stream music and get notifications via cellular 5 You can even shop or grab lunch with Samsung Pay on your watch 6
- DURABILITY: Made to last Built with military-grade durability and water resistance lets you take on spills, splashes, unexpected rain and even swim workouts. Corning Gorilla Glass DX+ prevents the display from getting scratched.
- COMPATIBILITY: Pairs with both Android and iOS smartphones via Bluetooth connection.
- Included in Box: Galaxy Watch, Additional Strap(Large and Small included), Wireless charging Dock, Travel Adaptor, Quick Start Guide, User Manual (Warranty: 1 Year Standard Parts and Labor).
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phoneman.909 –
After upgrading from a Galaxy S7 to the Moto Z Force I was sad to find that my old Samsung Gear Watch would not pair with my new phone. I looked long and hard for a suitable replacement because I became very accustomed to my wearable technology watch. After multiple attempts to download apps and pair my old watch with my new phone I was rightfully concerned that the new Samsung Gear S3 Frontier would be very time-consuming and tedious to pair with a Moto Z, but I was completely mistaken. Once the watch was powered up it prompted me to download the appropriate Samsung Gear app, enter my email address and a memorable password and after a few short very simple to follow steps the watch and my new phone are paired and they’re working perfectly. I am extremely pleased with the fit and finish of my new S3 Frontier and how simple it was to mate it to a non Samsung phone. I had watched several YouTube videos of how to pair previous model Samsung SmartWatches to non Samsung or Galaxy phones and had anticipated a number of downloading and application steps two make the two communicate with each other but as I said before it was completely unnecessary and extremely simple. The watch is fairly expensive but well worth the money if you have become accustomed two wearable technology to stay up-to-date with what’s going on with your phone. I look forward to getting more accustomed to using it and I know it will be a very enjoyable experience. The one sacrifice of not having a camera on the watch as I did with the previous one is a feature that I will miss but it is by no means a deal-breaker as I am completely satisfied with my purchase. I highly recommend this watch for anyone having a non Samsung phone as an alternative to purchasing one made by Motorola if you purchased a Moto Z as I did. It Is by no means a watch to wear well swimming or diving and maybe one day manufacturers will step up and make something that is truly water-resistant enough for that kind of use but the water and dust repellency is more than adequate for daily life and besides I have plenty of other watches for scuba diving and swimming so there again definitely no deal-breaker and this will be my watch a choice for daily wear and all outdoor activities. At almost three bones it is a very pricey investment but as I said before if you are a fan of wearable technology I’m sure you will enjoy it as much as I’m sure I will.
k_primo5 –
I love this watch it looks great does a great job as a fitness tracker and has hundreds of watch faces available but that is also iys downfall if you have a nice fancy colored watch face be prepared to drain the battery in less than 8 hours. I had it fully charged went to bed with it on to measure sleep and didn’t make it through the night. switched to a boring dark colored no frills face and it’ll last 2+ days
kcinsandiego –
This is really an amazing “Dick Tracy” wrist phone that works well with or without your full phone. The battery life is adequate for a full day’s use with the watch face always on (at a dim setting) so you don’t have to keep doing the wrist flick thing. (You canNOT do that for a normal day with the LG Sport Watch’s less capable battery.) It’s cool to be able to change watch faces, but this watches Samsung-only Tinzen software system has limited selection and configuration flexibility compared to full Android Wear compatible watches. I am not a serious athlete and have not spent much time trying to learn or setup the fitness functions, but they mostly seem to be marginally functional or accurate. It has trouble reading the pulse consistently. It randomly calculates, steps, calories, “Floors climbed”, inactivity periods, etc. The Samsung pay does not happen to be compatible with my credit card. The voice command interpreter is pretty finicky. In summary, I love the watch/phone as mentioned above, but the rest of this technology has a lot of maturing to do.
ferrmc_wxbvuit –
Overall, I like the watch. I purchased a black metal strap, as the plastic one provided just didn’t quite feel right. Personally, I never wore watches, so it’s taking some time to get used to it in general. It works great with my Note 4, never had an issue syncing, etc. The apps seem pretty limited right now, so if I had to do it again, I might just go with a watch that uses Google software. I really wanted something that could just stream my navigation through the watch, but that isn’t the case here. I tried the stand-alone app once and it didn’t work… just wouldn’t stay connected, so the directions were useless. This was a main feature I was looking for and is the reason for 4-stars instead of 5-stars. It’s great for steps, quick texts, reading incoming messages (smaller ones) and so forth. I probably haven’t began to use all the features yet, so there is much to learn. Overall it looks great and is a nice extension of my phone.
matthewrenato –
I previously had a Gear S2 sport, and I really wanted something that looked better for wearing to work and whatever. This is definitely all of that. It looks great, the screen size is perfect, and the Tizen OS is leaps and bounds ahead of Android wear. The full color always on display is very nice too. And the battery with the always on, on, lasts me about 40 hours. Gets me from wake up one day, to bedtime the next. The only real gripe I have with this watch, and the reason it is 4 starts instead of 5, is the fitness software. On this one piece, Android wear wins by a long-shot. Samsung health on the watch is fine, except for the exercise piece. Most of the selections, running, other workout, etc. do not use heart rate to calculate calories. I am using elliptical for my strength training so I have that… It seems like a no-brainer to have the most accurate method of determining calorie expenditure. Also, it needs tracking and rep counts for strength training and such. Google Fit Workout does this incredibly well. Anyway, software can always be improved! So, I’m hopeful for some upgrades. Either way, buy this watch! It is amazing!
Ryan Nicholas Howe –
I have owned previously the samsung s7 edge and with it I had the samsung gear s2 smart watch. At the time I was pleased with both the phone and the watch, but not blown away by the watch. I then had switched to apple for a few years and owned the 7+ and the iPhone X along with the nike Apple Watch series 2. I enjoyed the X but I feel that it didn’t truly live up to the hype, however I did grow extremely accustomed to my Apple Watch. I decided to jump ship after reading great reviews about the S9+ and man were they right. Absolutely adore the phone, but then came the problem of needing a new watch. I decided to wait it out a few months knowing that Samsung was going to be releasing their first new watch since the s3. Best decision I’ve ever made. While I cannot speak for the S3, I can say that the galaxy watch has made me forget about my Apple Watch already. Love the features, the build screams quality and durability and its more masculine in my opinion then the Apple Watch. I did not think I was going to like the silver but I wanted the 46mm instead of the 42mm and I am glad I got it. Its stunning in person, pictures don’t do it justice you must see it to truly appreciate it. The black band was nice but not my style, so I purchased an authentic samsung s3 band in orange/red that easily hooked up to my galaxy watch. Im very pleased with Samsung. I feel that ever since the whole “battery incident” with the note a few years ago, they really stepped it up and are providing a superior product to apple. Thanks samsung for the great watch.
jimgard –
Very fast, has all the apps, works with my phone, and battery life is fantastic (3 days)
KMichelle –
I’ve been wanting a smart watch for a while now and finally decided to pull the trigger. My biggest criterion were that it had to be reasonably sized, reasonably priced, have GPS, and be able to have offline maps. I really liked the look of the Gear S3 Frontier and the Galaxy watches (let’s be real – the new 42mm Galaxy watch in black is basically the Frontier’s little brother), and I LOVE the rotating bezel.I tried out both the S3 Frontier and the Galaxy watch and came to the following conclusions.1) Look – the style of both watches are very similar (which you can see from the product photos).2) Size – the 46mm Frontier watch is obviously larger than the 42mm Galaxy. The watch band on the Frontier is thicker and has a slightly wider style that made it look larger than it actually is. I ended up buying a smaller band similar to the style on the Galaxy to remedy this. For me, the 42mm Galaxy wins on size. The screen was only slightly smaller, but the watch as a whole was much smaller (as you can see from my comparison pictures). The thickness of the two watches is about the same.3) Rotating Bezel – I found the bezel on the Frontier was easier for me to use. It’s slightly taller than the one on the Galaxy, and the notches on the side are bigger. The Galaxy bezel fit into the face of the watch a bit more smoothly, so you have to rotate it from the top of the watch, whereas on the Frontier you can rotate it from the side or top.4) Navigation – navigation through the different widgets and apps was very intuitive on both watches. You can use the bezel or touchscreen to move through items, and the two buttons on the side to select and navigate.5) Maps – ultimately this was the item that tipped the scale in favor of the Frontier for me. There’s an app you can download called HERE WeGo which provides directions from your location to your destination. Very similar to how Google Maps works. However, it also supports an offline functionality where you can download maps of an area (state / province / etc.) so you have them available without being connected to your phone. The downside to this is that it doesn’t have a satellite or topographic view, but I tested it out locally and the trails I took were all on there. So if I go hiking somewhere and get lost, I have a general idea of where I am – I can see it on the map. When I tested HERE WeGo on the new Galaxy watch it doesn’t function unless you’re connected to the phone, because you can’t download offline maps to the Galaxy. I checked with their support team and they said they will consider it for the future (but that doesn’t help me now).Ultimately I ended up keeping the S3 Frontier and returning the Galaxy. The Galaxy won on size and waterproof rating, but I just couldn’t justify spending almost double on the Galaxy when it wouldn’t meet one of my biggest criterion (the offline maps). It’s no Suunto or Garmin or Casio, but for the price point it meets my needs as a GPS watch.
Jordan –
A couple of quick notes before I get into the review:-I’m reviewing the 42mm version, which I’ve had for about 3 weeks now.-Apple vs. Samsung comparisons are overblown; both are good watches, but obviously you should match your watch to your phone-I don’t think there’s a better smartwatch available at the moment, but I’m only giving this watch 4 stars because I don’t think smartwatch technology has fully matured at this stage; I’d say there are no 5 star smartwatches at the momentBottom line: The Galaxy Watch does almost everything I was hoping for, and does it pretty well-My settings: AoD on with a simple face, brightness 3, location off, HR every 10 min, voice activation off; I use the watch whenever I’m away from home – appx 11hrs/day-With those settings and that usage pattern, I get through 2 days on a charge with a bit to spare-Reading and responding to notifications is smooth-Overall, I’d say the exercise tracking is pretty good, not great-Step counting seems accurate for walking at a reasonable pace, but inaccurate for slow walking or a mix of walking/standing (such as when moving through a museum)-I mainly use S Health for HR tracking, which works well for steady state cardio but less well for weight training. I’m not sure if it’s thrown off by rapid fluctuations in my HR, moving around a bit on wrist during exercise, or what, but it often loses track of my HR, lags behind spikes and dips, and doesn’t seem to reach true peaks-For weight lifting, S health isn’t that useful; it can’t count reps on that many exercises and doesn’t allow for custom workout design-I use an app (gymrun) that allows custom workout design; it doesn’t track HR or count reps, but you can manually enter reps and use S health (on ‘other workout’) to track HR-I was hoping that the Galaxy Watch would allow me to leave my phone in my locker at the gym, and that I’d be able to use the watch to (1) play music, (2) track my workout, and (3) connect to wifi so I can send/receive texts/emails-The good news is that the watch is capable of doing all of that with no lag – even when running music + wifi + S health continuous HR monitoring + gymrun-The bad news is that the watch can’t connect to captive portal wifi (networks that require you to visit a website and accept terms), and that the watch burns through appx 30% battery in an hour if you do all of that-The floors-climbed counter is mixed; it’s sometimes quite accurate but sometimes misses floorsStyle, comfort, and build-I’m a male of above average height, and the 42mm watch face is right size for me; there are online watch face size calculators based on wrist size – you’d have to have quite large wrists for a larger watch to look ‘appropriate’-Of course style is subjective and some prefer a larger face, but for me, 42mm is as large as I was willing to go, and the availability of a 42mm version was a huge selling point-The watch looks good overall; it’s not the world’s best looking watch but certainly something that’s well worth wearing anywhere from the gym to the office to a night out-The watch is thicker than I anticipated; from the side, it looks quite chunky-It’s very comfortable; I don’t notice it during the day, even when typing; it doesn’t get in the way while lifting weights-Build quality seems good so far – no dents or scratches, but it hasn’t seen hard knocksHardware-This is where the Galaxy Watch really shines, in 2 areas in particular: the SoC (chip that powers the watch) and the rotating bezel-I don’t think I’ll ever use a watch without a rotating bezel; it’s the best way to interact with a smartwatch by far – it allows you to navigate without blocking/smudging the screen or maneuvering both hands to spin a tiny wheel on a side button-The SoC blows away everyone but apple; wear os watches are 2+ generations behind-As a result, battery life is excellent (by current smartwatch standards) and apps run smoothlySoftware-This is most people’s biggest complaint – not so much the OS but the limited app availability-Tizen OS is actually quite intuitive, fluid, and customizable-Lack of apps does not bother me – aside from the use cases I described up top, I’d rather use my phone for any other apps anyway-But google integration is not perfect and many apps are not available; if this is something you care about, do some research about what is/is not available on the watch
madsenjensen09 –
display technology is best in class, Samsung Health App has given me a new tool to help me with physical activity
mizcheevos –
Bought as an anniversary gift for the Hubbie, He absolutely loves it. I haven’t heard any complaints so far . As with most new devices have to go online to get instructions and information. set up was easy and product works as promised. EASY TO NAVIGATE. Speaker has good volume color and graphics are excellent!
strca7178_fixeo… –
Great watch looks beautiful Doesn’t last as long as I thought it would be that’s okay it lasts 2 days at least The band it comes with is uncomfortable so definitely get a new one Overall I’m happy Thanks for the low price!
stevkrul_0 –
Watch is practically brand new, even still had the protective stickers on it. Only reason I’m giving 4 stars is because it’s missing the one of the replacement straps. Overall great purchase for the price
bluesteel4210416 –
I have been wearing watches since i was a kid. I have owned Tissot, Movado, and Invicta. These were all great watches in their own way. I started working as a Product Specialist for a local Dealership. I was getting tired of taking my Note8 out of its holder everytime i would het a text or phone call to see who was calling. I did my research and based upon my needs i felt this was the best fit for me. I was right! Being able to look at my phone for a text message that comes in or to see who is calling me is much more convenient and easy for me now. The speaker on the Samsung Galaxy 46mm I have is crystal clear and my wife believes even better then when i am talking to her on my cell phone! Great watch and depending on how i set mine up i am getting 3-4 days on one charge for the phone. Buy it, you won’t be disappointed👍
barry8892 –
I love this watch. Some of my favorite features are it’s extended battery life and it’s waterproof capabilities. Not to mention it’s good looks. I love the look and design of this watch ( I purchased the 46mm watch). And I love the way it looks on my wrist. The easy removable wristbands, the multiple watch faces and the sporty elegant look makes it the perfect watch for me or anyone else who is looking for a watch for the active person that want a watch gives you all the function of a sports watch and the ability change wristbands and watch faces to dress it up and give a professional look as well. I would recommend this watch to anyone. Great watch! Great look! Great price!
banjobanjo215 –
I’ve had this to almost two weeks now. It replaced a Mobvoi TiWatch Pro. Everything is so smooth with this watch. I had gotten frustrated with how slow the Wear OS watch could be. I like how Samsung Pay only requires a password for the Pay feature vs Wear OS that requires a system wide password be entered every time the watch is back on your wrist. The Galaxy watch also has a much more accurate heart rate sensor. Despite being a little big heavier the Galaxy watch is more comfortable with the included watch band. I’m getting 50-100% better battery life from the GW as well. I prefer the apps an notifications on the TicWatch Pro though. If Snapdragon ever creates a processor that makes Wear OS equally as snappy as this watch I will switch back. Until then I’m enjoying the Galaxy Watch.
6886gh –
I’ve got the bluetooth only model that seems to do everything the 4G lte does providing your within bluetooth range or your phone including using it for calls from from watch. Don’t have to pay my cell carrier extra money monthly for a new connection that way. It’s very handy for notifications, messages and calls but call quality on a watch is never going to match a phone. Handy things I enjoy is tracking my heart rate, detailed sleep history including REM times, it tracks total steps taken, calories burned, elevation climbs all summarized daily basis plus history. It does a boat load of other various functions and there are apps available that you can add. Software integration with my S10+ phone is nothing short of stellar. Bought the bigger 46mm version due to the bigger screen and excellent battery life. Looks big even on my large wrist but I’d definitely get the bigger one all over again. Saw a very thin woman with small wrists wearing one a couple of days ago. Looks huge on her but there is a smaller version available. In spite of the large size and weight this is extremely comfortable to wear and have no issues leaving it on all night. Samsung supplied black silicone band is very thin and flexible.
cesar1312 –
The watch arrived as described: open box with all accesories included. I definitely recommend this! This is a short description of what I got: The galaxy watch works perfectly fine, the only thing I noticed until now was a louder noise (just a little bit louder) when rotating the bezel compared with a brand new galaxy watch (something that doesn’t bother me, if you don’t pay attention you won’t notice it). Also, it has one minor scratch (really minor) on the side of the watch, barely visible and nothing to worry about. Besides that, this is a perfect deal and totally worth it (those $100 extra for a brand new galaxy watch aren’t worth it). Finally, the watch looks brand new and works like one, with an extra charger 😉
cruiserman –
My wife and I had Fitbit Ionics, and within a month after the warranty ending hers stopped working. I had been eyeing the Samsung Galaxy watch especially because I have a Samsung phone and I thought that it should integrate well with it being from the same manufacturer. One of the other things that I had been waiting for is longer battery life in the watches. When they hit 3+ days is when it finally made some sense to me. I have had my Galaxy watch for over a month now, and I like it. However, I immediately ordered a protective glass screen protector at the same time as buying the watch and also an oiled leather watch band because I don’t really care for the hot sweaty rubber ones that come with most of these style watches. I am still learning all of the idiosyncrasies of the watch, but as I do so far each time I have liked it a little better.
dixokiman –
The Galaxy Watch came in great condition with the original wristband but the USB cable and charging cradle is obviously a low quality aftermarket solution. The cable actually came undone at the head after not even a week of use. Considering that I saved about $100 on this vs buying it new, I’m not too upset but I certainly can’t say I have any faith in the charging dock and will be ordering an official Samsung one soon.
polidoc –
This watch is very responsive and has a small, but good selection of Tizen apps. It also looks like a high end watch and therefore looks much nicer than the Apple watch. The only problem I have with it is that Samsung and Verizon have not come up with the software changes to make this watch work as a stand alone phone on the Verizon or even Sprint networks. The guy in the Verizon store said that the S3 had the same problem, but it has now been resolved. He anticipated this too will be fixed in a relatively short time. Meantime the calls made through bluetooth on my Iphone are very clear to people I call. Very advanced watch with lots of features.
was6 –
Great looks and features.
rockeyparts –
What can I say the galaxy watch is a great watch .long battery life. If your looking for the best watch you have found it. Now git one .
austimur6662010 –
Watch is rated worldwide as one of the best,and it lives up to it’s reputation. I received the watch in very good condition,I took the band off and used a q tip and alcohol to give a good cleaning, then I replaced the band with a black stainless steel one. Now it looks like a brand new watch ,and it is fully functional, I am very pleased with this purchase.
victo_ge –
Everything is great with is smart watch. Its convenient to check texts and calls. Also the health apps are very informative. The audio sounds good and the music is easy to control. Got the 3year warranty in case so its oeace of mind .
dehuml_0 –
Great looking smart watch that works for me. This is a big step up in abilities and functionality over the previous Fitbits. Got super annoyed with Fitbit issues on hardware and software after 7-8 years of using their products. Decided to look at other products from fitness trackers to limited smart watches to full on smart watches. After researching my options, I decided to go with the Galaxy Watch, even though it was 2 years old and probably getting a refresh in late 2020. The Galaxy Watch features are nice, with some decent customizations. Almost any app can have a notification and interaction on the watch. Many 1st party watch faces as well as numerous 3rd party ones. The battery life is about 4-6 days, depending on settings. The case is a nice weight and the included band is not fancy but works/feels nice and has a nice quick change connection. Even though I don’t have LTE connected to the watch, it was worth it to 1. have the extra RAM and storage and 2. if I want to add data, I can. I disabled Bixby, I have no need to talk to my watch (also avoid it on the phone by never pressing the dedicated button), and replaced it with Samsung Health App. S Health is nice but is taking some time to get comfortable with it, after years using Fitbit. Workout routines seem decent and it almost immediately notices you are starting a run or activity. I wish you could customize the AOD more. Some apps are not installed by default, like a timer or stopwatch, but are easily added from the Galaxy Store. Since this watch was decently popular, there appears to be plenty of cases, bands and other items to customize the look and feel of the watch.
dougclemensen –
This watch is easy to pair and offers a ton of features as well as a comparatively battery life, but in purely aesthetic terms, it’s a disappointment. Both the case and the strap are just plain odd. There’s an inexplicable bulge on the left side of the case, the control pushers on the right are all but invisible, and the rotating bezel (which is functionally a great feature) is low on tactile feedback. The notched rubber strap, which overlaps the lugs, is not only ugly but much too long for the average wrist. The 42 MM version of this watch has a much more satisfying look, but it’s small, feels flimsy on the wrist, and sacrifices battery life. Why Samsung didn’t produce a 44 MM version confounds me.
johnny_zone –
I’ve only used the watch for a few days so far, but it is great. I came from a simple Fitbit-type of band that just didn’t have enough features. It received notifications, but you couldn’t do anything with them. I bought this watch refurbished to save some cost, and I’m glad I did. It was in like new condition and works perfectly. The watch has an unreal amount of features. Notifications are so handy. Not only do I receive text/email notifications, but I can respond to them using the watch! Since it has a microphone, I can talk-to-text. It has been very accurate so far. You can also customize almost everything with this watch. Clock style, widgets, brightness, use Wi-Fi or not, alarms, NFC, etc. I’m looking forward to getting more used to it and its features and integrating it into my daily life.
nightfallwolf26 –
This is a very good wash I would highly recommend it is awesome lots of cool and awesome features love it to death
elsuperovni –
This watch is awesome, great battery, super great quality, totally customizable.
matospr2015 –
Very nice watch with a lot of futures. Very great battery. Looks and wear beautiful.