During the Galaxy Unpacked event, Samsung unveiled two new smartwatches: Galaxy Watch 6 and Galaxy Watch 6 Classic. These smartwatches have bigger and brighter screens, thinner bezels, a faster processor, refined sleep tracking, and various new workout tracking capabilities. The company has also brought back the iconic rotating bezel with the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic.
Powered by Wear OS 4, the Galaxy Watch 6 series brings several new software features and deeper integration with products in Samsung's ecosystem, including phones, tablets, wireless earbuds, and smart TVs.
Galaxy Watch 6 and Watch 6 Classic have bigger screens with 2,000 nits brightness
Samsung has equipped the Galaxy Watch 6 and Galaxy Watch 6 Classic with 20% bigger screens and thinner bezels. The new smartwatches have a peak screen brightness of 2,000 nits, matching the Apple Watch Ultra. The Galaxy Watch 6 has a 30% slimmer bezel than the Galaxy Watch 5. The Galaxy Watch 6 Classic has a 15% thinner rotating bezel than the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic.
The Galaxy Watch 6 comes in 40mm and 44mm sizes, while the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic has 43mm and 47mm variants. The 40mm version of the Galaxy Watch 6 has a 1.3-inch Super AMOLED display with 432 x 432 pixels resolution, while the 44mm version of the smartwatch has a 1.5-inch Super AMOLED screen with 480 x 480 pixels resolution. The 43mm version has a 1.3-inch Super AMOLED screen, while the 47mm version sports a 1.5-inch Super AMOLED screen. The Full-Color AoD (Always On Display) mode now supports automatic screen brightness, which helps you see better outdoors.
Both watches use Sapphire Crystal on the display for scratch protection. They are IP68-rated for dust and water resistance (up to 5 ATM) and MIL-STD-810H-compliant for shock resistance. The 40mm Galaxy Watch 6 will be sold in Graphite and Gold, while the 44mm Galaxy Watch 6 will be available in Graphite and Silver. The Galaxy Watch 6 Classic comes in Black and Silver options.
Exynos W930 offers faster performance and improved battery life
The Galaxy Watch 6 series comes equipped with a slightly faster Exynos W930 processor, 2GB RAM, and 16GB storage. The Exynos W930 has a dual-core CPU running at 1.4GHz, 200MHz faster than the Exynos W920 used in the Galaxy Watch 4 and the Galaxy Watch 5. Both watches will be available in Bluetooth-only and LTE models.
The 40mm version of the Galaxy Watch 6 and the 43mm version of the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic are powered by a 300mAh battery. The 44mm Galaxy Watch 6 and 47mm Galaxy Watch 6 Classic have 425mAh batteries. The devices support 10W fast wireless charging.
With the new processor, lower power consumption, and slightly bigger batteries, Samsung's latest smartwatches offer longer battery life. They have a claimed battery life of up to 30 hours with AoD turned on and 40 hours with AoD turned off.
Refined fitness tracking and detailed sleep coaching
The new smartwatches run Wear OS 4-based One UI 5 Watch software. It aims to positively impact your health by learning your habits, fitness, and activities. It understands your sleep patterns, helps you build a better sleep habit, and makes a better sleep environment. After measuring total sleep time, sleep cycle, awake time, physical recovery, and mental recovery, the smartwatches show you personalized tips to improve sleep quality and detailed feedback each morning. Samsung has developed these features with help from National Sleep Foundation. Sleep Mode integrates with the paired smartphone and SmartThings-compatible smart home devices in the home to create a perfect sleep environment.
The Galaxy Watch 6 series features an accelerometer, barometer, body composition analysis, compass, ECG, GPS, gyro, heart rate sensor, light sensor, and temperature sensor. With the help of all these sensors, it can track your activities and workouts. Body composition analysis measures various aspects of your body, including BMI, basal metabolic rate, body fat percentage, body water, skeletal mass, and more. This data is used to suggest personalized goals and nutritional tips (via the Whisk app).
Samsung's new watches also offer personalized heart rate zones, over 100 workout tracking options, and the ability to create custom workout regimes. The new Track Run feature records your runs on tracks, offering insightful data. They also have a new feature called Irregular Heart Rhythm Notification that can notify you about irregularities in your heart conditions. It can detect a heart condition called Atrial fibrillation (AFib) even when you're asleep.
Galaxy Watch 6 has improved Galaxy ecosystem features
With the One UI 5 Watch software, Samsung has added several new features for deeper integration with other Galaxy products. For instance, the new Camera Controller app offers new controls for zoom and camera switching. Real-time workout data from the Galaxy Watch 6 can be displayed on bigger screens, such as a Galaxy tablet or a Samsung smart TV.
The new watches can also help you switch wireless Galaxy Buds from one device to another using the Auto Switch feature. The Find My Phone feature can pinpoint your smartphone's location when you misplace it. The new Thermo Check app lets you check the temperature of your surroundings and objects. For example, you can check the temperature of the food you're about to eat or the temperature of the water before you swim. And this feature doesn't require you to touch the object physically.
Many popular apps like Audible, Google Calendar, Gmail, MyFitnessPal, and Peloton are coming to the Galaxy Watch 6 series (and previous Galaxy Watches). One UI 5 Watch also brings enhanced Gesture Controls to the Galaxy Watch 6.
Galaxy Watch 6 and Galaxy Watch 6 pricing, release date, pre-order offers
The Galaxy Watch 6 and the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic are available for pre-order starting today (July 26). The devices will reach store shelves on August 11, 2023. The pricing of the Galaxy Watch 6 series starts at £289 for the cheapest model and £459 for the priciest model. Detailed pricing is listed below.
Galaxy Watch 6
- 40mm Bluetooth: £289
- 44mm Bluetooth: £319
- 40mm LTE: £339
- 44mm LTE: £369
Galaxy Watch 6 Classic
- 43mm Bluetooth: £369
- 47mm Bluetooth: £399
- 43mm LTE: £429
- 47mm LTE: £459
Pre-ordering a Galaxy Watch 6 or Galaxy Watch 6 Classic gets you a £50 Google Play Voucher that you can use to buy apps, games, or subscriptions.
