You can expect plenty of familiarity with the Samsung Galaxy Watch7, owing mainly to how the smartwatch tracks health and fitness metrics. You won’t get a physical rotating bezel option—there is no Classic option this time—but you do get much of what works well with any of Samsung’s flagship smartwatches.
That’s why it’s no surprise the Galaxy Watch7 is a highly iterative update, bearing the same look and feel of the past two models. Despite that, there are some gems within the software that help make this a more effective wearable every day.
Design of the Galaxy Watch7
Samsung doesn’t need to radically change the Galaxy Watch7 design. Sure, it looks like a clone of the Watch6 but that’s more an ode to what works than a lazy attempt to bring something new. The Watch7 comes in 40mm and 44mm sizes to fit a fairly wide range of wrist sizes. The 1.5-inch AMOLED touchscreen still dominates the watch, with the edges maintaining haptic feedback to emulate the physical rotating bezel of the Classic models. Since it keeps the mechanism introduced in the Watch6, you can use straps from that watch with this one as well.
Some great changes do apply here. Samsung adds improved dual-band GPS for tighter tracking outdoors in denser spaces, like major cities and forests. It also wisely doubles the internal storage to 32GB, leaving more room for both apps and offline music from compatible streaming services.
Unlike the past years when the regular Galaxy Watch also came out with a different Classic version (that came in larger sizes), Samsung chose to release the Galaxy Watch Ultra as the alternative instead. A rugged watch built for the outdoors and more demanding training regimens, the Ultra is not for casual users.
Not that the Galaxy Watch7 isn’t tough. Like the Watch6, it offers durability and resistance features that make it reliable for everyday use. The smartwatch has an aluminum body with IP68 protection and 5ATM waterproofing. That means you can submerge it in water (including salt water) down to 50 metres (164 feet) for up to 10 minutes. It can also handle wide temperature fluctuations from –20° to 50° Celsius.
Setup under Galaxy Wearable and Samsung Health apps
Samsung splits setup, device management, and activity tracking between two apps: Galaxy Wearable and Samsung Health. You set up the Galaxy Watch7 like any other Samsung wearable through the Wearable app. You don’t need a Samsung phone to use this watch, as any Android phone will do. No iPhones, though.
I put more of an emphasis on these details in this review because they make using the watch easier. For example, once you’re up and running with the latest software and firmware, you can customize the interface a fair bit. Add or switch watch faces, align the app screen how you like, add or remove tiles and more. There are various adjustments for incoming notifications routed from your phone and the ability to add cards for Samsung Wallet to pay for things from your wrist.
While you can already set some of these up on the watch directly, the app makes it much simpler because you can see more information at one time. You can set the home button to launch a favourite app when you double-press it.
The Watch7 also includes gesture controls. A double pinch of your thumb and index finger can answer calls, dismiss alerts, launch apps, control music or take photos. Enable it in the app and you can initiate a tutorial on the watch to learn how to get it right. I’ve tried it and while cool, it can be prone to mistakes because you have to double-pinch just right—and only when the feature works with what you’re doing.
Wear OS and Samsung’s One UI features
Wear OS and Samsung’s One UI combine for a pretty smooth user experience. Install apps from the Google Play Store directly on the watch, and even store music offline from apps like Spotify and YouTube Music if you subscribe to either of them. Google Maps has its own tile that you can add, while Gmail and Google Calendar are now standard.
Doubling the storage to 32GB makes a big difference in adding a variety of apps. That includes third-party fitness and exercise apps under the Health and Wellness section. You won’t get as tight in integration compared to Samsung Health but there’s plenty to work with if you’re using Strava, Peloton, AllTrails, Seven, or something along those lines.
It’s also easy to pair the watch with earbuds or headphones, which also don’t have to be Samsung pairs. Granted, you get some extra perks if they are Galaxy Buds, like onscreen controls and quicker pairing—but it’s an otherwise open field. With built-in GPS and extra storage, it’s probably never been easier to leave your phone behind during a run or workout. Even more so if you choose the LTE variant that gives the watch its own data plan.
Exercise tracking on Galaxy Watch7
If you do use the Galaxy Watch7 with a Samsung phone, you get two exclusive features. One is called Energy Score, aggregating data from your steps, calories burned, workouts, sleep quality, and overall activity to extrapolate how you’re doing on a daily basis. The other is called Wellness Tips that suggests what you can do based on your Energy Score.
All of that is on top of what is a pretty robust package that largely stays the same. The Watch7 can track over 100 workouts, automatically tracking about seven of them. For the others, it’s best to manually start them on the watch to keep tabs on the entire workout.
Samsung does well in maintaining accuracy with both heart rate tracking and key metrics like distance and pace. If you’re a runner or cyclist, you’ll appreciate the positive tweaks here. The company is trying to make it more personalized, which is why the watch puts you in a zone based on your heart rate. As before, the idea is to assess how all that aligns with a particular fitness goal.
Body Composition also comes into play as an aggregator to estimate your muscle, fat mass, body water, and body mass index. There’s still not much insight into how to shift these, and I’m not entirely convinced the figures are accurate as they don’t jive with the numbers I get from other products tracking similar metrics. If you want to learn more about how workouts or dietary changes can help you reach different levels, you’ll need to find that information elsewhere. What the Galaxy Watch7 tells you is a baseline. If you’re in the red, then it may be time to get a second opinion.
Health tracking features
This ties right in with the health tracking features that, again, aren’t all that new. The skin temperature sensor and SpO2 sensor constantly track you while you sleep to gauge both body temperature and blood oxygen levels. You can see those numbers anytime of the day, so in case something’s off, you don’t have to wait till morning.
The ECG (electrocardiogram) is still a great feature, as is the blood pressure monitor (BPM), though the latter requires a more elaborate setup. The problem is you can’t use them without a Samsung phone because the Samsung Health Monitor app won’t work on other Android phones. Moreover, extended sleep data and insights are held only for Samsung phones as well.
A newer feature is Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs), which tracks metabolic health. AGEs are compounds that develop in your body when protein and fat molecules are oxidized by sugar molecules. In other words, it also tries to get a sense of your biological aging process based on diet and lifestyle. The worse you eat and less you exercise or sleep, the more AGEs accumulate. Samsung Health explains it further and includes guidance on how to mitigate that.
As for sleep apnea, there’s no smoking gun here but you can glean insight based on the various scores and graphs in the Sleep section. Snore detection returns via the phone’s microphone when you set it beside you (with the mic pointed at you).
All told, there’s a lot to go through in the Samsung Health app, though it’s not exhaustive in every respect. I’m lucky in that, I sleep well every night and the app never flagged anything concerning for me. I don’t exercise as much as I should, which was readily apparent in the activity tracking details.
Galaxy Watch7 battery life
With a new Exynos processor and the same battery size, nothing’s changed. The typical battery life of the Galaxy Watch7 is 40 hours. But, it will barely get through a full day if you’ve used it to track exercise with GPS and sleep over the course of a day. Use GPS moderately and you can stretch it to two days. A good rule of thumb is to charge it when you’re stationary, like sitting at a computer or having a meal, for instance. It can fill up relatively quickly up to 80%. The biggest battery drain is the always-on display, so be mindful when using that feature.
Final thoughts
There’s no question the Galaxy Watch7 is a very iterative update. I don’t see an overly compelling reason to upgrade from the Watch6, though you might consider it if you have a model older than that. It’s a solid smartwatch that can appeal to both casual and active users who may focus on different features or needs. You do get more out of it with a Samsung phone but don’t let that get in the way if you like what you see here.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch7 is available now in cream or green for the 40mm and green or silver for the 44mm.
