Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 vs Galaxy Watch 8 Classic: Form over function
The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 and the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic might look like two very similar smartwatches, but they are quite different from one another.
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Premium smartwatches never looked this good.. | Image by PhoneArena
Samsung's newest ultra-premium flagship smartwatch, the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, was freshly announced alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra on July 22, and the wearable is already shaping up to be one of the best smartwatches released in the past couple of years.
Samsung achieved that by taking a good hard look at the Galaxy Watch Ultra formula and perfecting it in the best way possible––by upgrading the key features that actually matter. We get a much thinner and more comfortable build along with a massive battery that would increase the time between charges.
At the same time, the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 remains that masculine and rugged smartwatch that looks best on an adventurer's wrist.
How does it compare against another high-profile and fairly recent Samsung smartwatch, the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, a wearable that looks more like a proper dress watch than anything else and has the beloved rotating bezel?
Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 vs Galaxy Watch 8 Classic differences
- 10.7 mm thin vs 10.6 mm thick
- 1.52-inch vs 1.3-inch display
- 5,000-nit vs 3,000-nit display
- 800 mAh vs 445 mAh battery
- Snapdragon Wear Elite vs Exynos W1000 SiP
- Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is LTE-enabled, LTE version of Watch 8 Classic available (+$50 vs Wi-Fi model)
- Titanium Gray, Titanium Silver vs Titanium Sliver, Titanium Gray, Titanium White, Titanium Blue
- $700 vs $550
Table of Contents:
Design & Sizes
Premium design language and a comfortable fit
Coincidentally, this brings its thickness to the same level as the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, which is 10.6 mm thick. The case of the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is slightly larger, measuring 47 mm across. The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic size is 46 mm, so it's slightly more compact.
Weight-wise, the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is 2 grams lighter than the Watch 8 Classic at just 61.5 grams. Samsung has achieved that by slimming down the thickness and weight of the bands, achieving this slight but nonetheless beneficial weight reduction.
The display size of the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is 1.3 inches, but due to the larger case and slightly thinner bezels, the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 has a larger 1.5-inch screen. Aside from the size difference, the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 also features a much brighter 5,000-nit OLED display in comparison with the 3,000-nit one on the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic. This difference will be best noticed under very bright ambient daylight conditions.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is more rugged than the Watch 8 Classic. It's IP69-rated and has a water resistance of 10 ATM, while the Watch 8 Classic is IP68 ad 5ATM-certified.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic has the functional rotating bezel and a trio of buttons on the right-hand side, while the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 only comes with three buttons on the side, no rotating bezel in tow.
Bands
Same styles, but functional upgrades
To achieve a lighter and more comfortable watch build, Samsung has slimmed down the watch bands of the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 by a millimeter, which has led to a significant 25% weight reduction. At the same time, the bands look and feel the same as the ones on the first Galaxy Watch Ultra.
There's Marine, made of breathable silicone that is perfect for intense all-day sports and activities, as well as diving. Next, we have Peakform, a more casual and elegant band that mimics leather. Finally, we have Trail, a fabric band suitable for sleeping and comfort.
What about the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic?
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is available in four distinct bands: Sport, Athleisure, Fabric, and Hybrid.
Software & Features
The best smartwaches
Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear Elite chipset, the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 features improved performance, responsiveness and much faster app launch times. With the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, Samsung improves almost all the health-tracking features of the device. The watch runs Wear OS 7 with the One UI Watch 9 interface on top of it.
Samsung introduces a new Vitals app, which sounds––and functions––much like Apple's own Vitals app. It acts as an early-warning panel for any health-related issues or problems, but most users will use it as a dashboard for their fitness insights. While the app has the same name and does the same thing as Apple's app, it does that by monitoring different metrics.
While Apple's Vitals app tracks your heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temp, blood oxygen and sleep duration, Samsung's Vitals measures your heart rate and heart rate variability, respiratory rate, skin temp, and blood oxygen.
It drops the sleep times for HRV, which could be a bit more accurate for most people. The Vitals app requires an established baseline of at least seven days before it gives you a proper reading. The data will be available in a new widget that you can put as a tile or on your watch screen, but it won't pester you with daily notifications, which is a user-friendly approach.
Currently, it's unclear if the Vitals app will arrive on the older Galaxy Watch Ultra.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 also gets a new Heart Health Score that provides you with approximate information about your heart's health status. The wearable will also monitor your daily cardio load, which could be helpful to runners. The same applies to Fitness Index, another metric that uses your VO2Max, heart rate, step count, and activity time to tell you whether to push or rest.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 supports diving and acts as a diving computer, showing depth, dive time and water temperature. Speaking of water, the smartwatch will show you a hydration notification when it detects you might be sweating too much. The latter is an estimation, as the watch doesn't have a sweat sensor.
As is the unfortunate tradition, you can't use the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 with an iPhone. What's more, while you can pair it with any Android phone, some specific features like ECG and blood pressure monitoring will only work when the watch is paired with a Galaxy phone.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic boasts similar features, though it's unclear if any of the new features will land via a software update.
As is the unfortunate tradition, you can't use the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 with an iPhone. What's more, while you can pair it with any Android phone, some specific features like ECG and blood pressure monitoring will only work when the watch is paired with a Galaxy phone.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic boasts similar features, though it's unclear if any of the new features will land via a software update.
Battery and Charging
Now that's a proper battery upgrade
Samsung has really outdone itself with the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2's battery. The latter has been increased to an 800 mAh cell, a massive upgrade over the 590 mAh battery of the first Galaxy Watch Ultra. Such a battery should sing pretty happily when paired with the more efficient Snapdragon Wear Elite chip.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic comes with a battery that's nearly twice as small, at just 445 mAh. Paired with the less efficient chip, this one definitely wouldn't fare well in terms of battery endurance in comparison with the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2.
In my experience, the first Galaxy Watch Ultra lasted two and a half days with regular use, so I'd expect significantly more from the new Galaxy Watch Ultra 2.
Models and Prices
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 will be available in a single 49 mm size for $699, a $50 increase over the first Galaxy Watch Ultra, which sold for $649.
The device is once again available in a single, 47 mm size and with LTE on board. Don't expect to find the Galaxy Watch Ultra in a Bluetooth-only variation.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic was available in a single 46 mm size. A Wi-Fi version was available for $500, while the LTE-enabled version was $550.
Specs
Here's how the two watches compare:
| Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 | Galaxy Watch 8 Classic |
|---|---|
| Models 47 mm Wi-Fi + LTE | Models 46 mm Wi-Fi + LTE |
| Processor Snapdragon Wear Elite | Processor Exynos W1000 |
| Software Wear OS 7 | Software Wear OS |
| Battery 800 mAh | Battery 445 mAh mAh |
| Sensors HR, Vitals, blood oxygen, altimeter, ECG | Sensors HR, blood oxygen, altimeter, ECG |
Summary
While the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 aims to redefine the ultra-premium smartwatch space, the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is more of a traditional smartwatch that would feel natural on your wrist at a cocktail party and not so much during a hike.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is a wearable done right. It has scored notable upgrades that definitely make sense and don't feel like an afterthought.
Which one should you pick? Largely depends on your usage needs. One would feel suitable during an outdoorsy adventure while the other one is a feature-packed albeit slightly less impressive in terms of hardware specs.
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