I don’t climb, swim, run, or dive off cliffs. I check the time. No one would describe me as “ultra,” I’m arguably not the target market for the new Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra. But I’ve been wearing it for almost two weeks (ever since Paris and Galaxy Unpacked), and I have some thoughts.
Don’t misunderstand me, though; I am not the person to review this $649 / £599 / AU$1,299 adventure-seeker smart timepiece seeking to join our best smartwatch list, but I am a watch fan and have, for the better part of 14 days, put aside my Apple Watch Series 9 and all the fun analog watches I started wearing again earlier this year so that I could experience what has to be the largest wrist gadget I’ve ever put on my wrist.
This qualifies me, I’d argue, to make a few observations about Samsung‘s first Galaxy Watch Ultra.
It’s big, it’s bold, it’s heavy
At 47mm wide by 12.1mm thick and 60.5 grams, this watch is a wrist statement. There’s never a time where I forget it’s on my wrist. Sometimes, I feel it resting on the space between my wrist and the back of my hand, a nudging reminder that this watch is low on subtlety and high on performance (even if I’m not).
It’s not for sleep
You could wear it to track your sleep, but I guarantee that if you roll over on that large titanium body, you will feel it in your wrist and any other part of your body pressed against it.
This is a shame because I’d like to test out the new sleep apnea feature (I have a bit of it), but I can’t afford to have a small brick on my wrist disrupt my sleep nightly.
The display is ginormous and dazzling
At 480 pixels by 480 pixels and 335 ppi, the Samsung Galaxy Display dwarfs virtually any smartwatch I’ve worn before, even the Apple Watch Series 9 (484×396 at 326 ppi). Naturally, the real comparison should be made with the Apple Watch Ultra but my experience with that adventure clock is limited to a quick tryout last September when Apple launched the Watch Ultra 2.
By the way, I get that many people see an almost uncomfortable level of similarity between the two Ultra watches, but I can also see the differences. One is the unusual shape of the Galaxy Watch Ultra, which is a perfectly round face in a squarish body. Apple Watch Ultra takes its cues from the rectangular shape of its non-ultra forbearers.
In any case, I think the Galaxy Watch Ultra screen, with its non-existent blank space between the display and hardware bezel, is a real triumph. I love looking at it, changing out faces (which offer a clarity that makes them look almost like real analog faces), and how its always-on screen is viewable from any angle.
The Bezel is a wonder
Over the years, Samsung has had physical rotating bezels, touch bezels, and even no bezels on its Galaxy Watches. In the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra, they have the best touch bezel I’ve ever used. First of all, it’s subtle. Instead of a wide band that looks like a design element, this looks like a classic chronograph bezel. Running my finger around the edge spins me through watch features, delivering a little haptic bump for each one.
The band system to beat all others
Samsung’s Dynamic Lug system for adding and removing the band is one I’d love to see on every smartwatch. It’s so simple, sure, and satisfying to use. All it takes is a button press and a pull to remove. This makes attaching the band even easier: just push the band into the slot, and it snaps into place. I only wish I had more watch band options to try.
Low Energy
One of the marquee features of the new Galaxy Watch Ultra is the new Energy Score. It’s an amalgam of various health metrics, including heart rate, sleep, and activity, and, as I learned, it is not the kind of measurement you can compare with others (no: “Hey, what’s your Energy score? Mine is…”). Basically, it’s a score about how well your human batteries are charged for the day ahead, and if the energy score is low, Galaxy AI is supposed to offer tips for raising it.
The problem is that I never sleep with the watch – because I want to sleep – and even if I did, it needs 7 days of data before it can deliver a score. Even after a solid week of wearing it, I have no energy…er…score. Perhaps I’ll get one if and when I start wearing the Galaxy Ring, which I assume is much more sleep-friendly.
Familiarity breeds more familiarity
The art of the smartwatch is now almost as fixed as that of the traditional analog watch. So much of what I discovered and can do with the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra is obvious to me because I’ve been doing it or something similar to it before on the Apple Watch Series 9 and various other smartwatches.
Yes, it notices when I’ve been sitting for too long, prompts me to move, and, of course, commends me when I do so. In the world of smartwatches, there may be no other way to do this. I envision a future where people won’t ever stand up without their wearable telling them to do so.
When I summon my favorite workout with the Quick Button (yes, just like the Apple Watch Ultra’s Action Button) running the workout, pausing, and ending it doesn’t look much different from what Apple offers.
The Watch is similarly astute about recognizing workouts. Unlike the Apple Watch, it doesn’t ask about tracking it, though; it just does it.
Activitives aren’t circles, but instead heart outlines that you close just like circles.
When I wanted to grab a screenshot, I didn’t have to guess how to do it; I just pressed the top and bottom buttons. This is a combination of smart design and familiarity.
Battery life is off the charts
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Days and days of battery life, that’s what you can expect with the Galaxy Watch Ultra, even without turning on the power-saving mode. As I write this, it’s been more than a day since I charged the Watch Ultra, and I have more than two days left on the charge. if I enabled power-saving, I’d have four days.
One thing I do find odd is that the watch gave me no warning it was running out of power. It simply shut down. I prefer a little visual cry for help like the Apple Watch gives you.
I don’t know if the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra will be my long-term smartwatch. I do appreciate its bold looks but have never – even in my analog days – been a fan of a giant watch. Still, this looks like a solid entry into the ultra-watch space. If I ever become an Ultra Man, maybe I’ll wear it full time.