Samsung has rethought the design of its smartwatches and decided to go all-in on the squircle shape that debuted with the Galaxy Watch Ultra. This generation brings two new models, a thin vanilla watch and a Classic with a rotating bezel. There’s no new Ultra, just a new color and a storage bump for the original.
The so-called “cushion design” makes the watches more comfortable to wear and it even leads to better health tracking by improving the fit and making the watches more stable on your wrist. The new Dynamic Lug system also helps by reducing the gap between your wrist and the watch. The only downside is that now you need custom wrist straps instead of the industry standard ones that previous models used.
Galaxy Watch8 Classic, Watch8 and Watch Ultra
The Samsung Galaxy Watch8 is 11% slimmer, making it the thinnest Galaxy Watch yet at just 8.6mm – for comparison, the Watch7 was 9.7mm. It has a clean look and comes in 40mm and 44mm sizes with 1.34” and 1.47” displays, respectively. The displays are circular, despite the not-so-circular shape of the watch itself.
The displays are now 50% brighter and are able to reach 3,000 nits for superior outdoor visibility. They run the latest One UI 8 Watch (based on Wear OS 6) out of the box. There are several new features like “depthless notifications” (grouped to make them easier to read), commonly used apps can be pinned to the top and there are widgets that offer at-a-glance info.
The Watch8 also has a larger battery – 325mAh and 435mAh on the 40mm and 44mm sizes, respectively, up from 300mAh and 425mAh on the Watch7. Fast wireless charging is supported.
The new models are powered by the same Exynos W1000 3nm chipset that was used last year. On the Watch8 it has 2GB of RAM and 32GB storage to work with.
Samsung Galaxy Watch8 is available in Graphite and Silver
The Samsung Galaxy Watch8 Classic brings back the rotating bezel, which offers a more tactile way to navigate the UI. There’s also a new Quick Button on the side, which offers instant access to the most commonly used apps.
The Classic comes in only one size, 46mm, and measures 10.6mm thick. This is only 0.3mm slimmer than the Watch6 Classic, but the upside is a larger battery – 425mAh.
However, it’s disappointing to see that the screen is only 1.34” – the same size as the small 40mm Watch8. The Watch6 Classic had a 1.3” screen on the 43mm variant and a 1.5” screen on the 47mm model.
Like we mentioned above, this watch is powered by the Exynos W1000. However, the 2GB of RAM are now paired with 64GB of storage – the same capacity as the Watch (2025) Ultra and four times as much as the Watch6 Classic had. This is great if you are using offline maps and music, for example.
The Galaxy Watch8 Classic is available in Black and White
The new models have an advanced Bioactive sensor to track biometrics (heart rate, SpO2, etc.). Thanks to the refined design, you can get accurate measurements even during active movement. One UI 8 Watch brings new health tracking features: Bedtime Guidance, Vascular Load, Antioxidant Index and a new Running Coach. For outdoor activities, the dual GPS offers precise tracking.
New health tracking features in One UI 8 Watch
The Samsung Galaxy Watch8 is available in Graphite and Silver and comes in 40mm and 44mm sizes. The Galaxy Watch8 Classic comes in Black and White and only in 46mm size. Both are available for pre-order starting today and will be out on July 25.
New Titanium Blue color for the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra
The Galaxy Watch Ultra got a minor refresh with a new colorway called Titanium Blue and a bump from 32GB storage to 64GB. Check out the prices for the new Watch8 series below.