Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 vs Galaxy Watch 9: Samsung's finest
The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 and the Galaxy Watch 9 are Samsung's best smartwatches ever.
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Both of Samsung's latest smartwatches have scored massive improvements, but the Ultra truly takes the cake. | Image by PhoneArena
Samsung's latest 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 an important cornerstone for Samsung's smartwatch efforts.
The big upgrade here is the battery, which is now a massive 800 mAh, nearly a third larger than the one on Samsung's first Galaxy Watch Ultra.
There's a regular Galaxy Watch 9, too, and this one has scored some upgrades as well, but not on the same level as the Watch Ultra 2.
How do the new devices compare?
Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 vs Galaxy Watch 9 (44mm) differences
- 10.7 mm thin vs 8.6 mm thick
- 47mm vs 40/44mm versions
- 1.52-inch vs 1.5-inch display
- 5,000-nit vs 3,000-nit display
- 800 mAh vs 445 mAh battery
- Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is LTE-enabled, LTE version of Watch 9 available
- $700 vs $380 starting price
Table of Contents:
Design & Sizes
Premium design language and a comfortable fit
The aluminum Galaxy Watch 9 is taking another path towards comfort: it is now just 34 grams, noticeably lighter than the Galaxy Watch 8.
Of these two, it's the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 that's thicker and heavier. Understandable, given its more adventurous and rugged spirit. It has an IP69 rating for exceptional water and dust resistance, as well as a 10ATM water resistance. This means that you can take it out for recreational diving. The Galaxy Watch 9 is IP68-rated and up to 5 ATM water-resistant, meaning you can definitely take it for a swim.
The Galaxy Watch 9 is available in two sizes, 40 mm and 44 mm, while the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is available in a single 47 mm size.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 packs a 1.52-inch display, while the Galaxy Watch 9 (44 mm) has a marginally smaller 1.5-inch one. The 40 mm version has a 1.3-inch screen.
The big upgrade here is the peak brightness: 5,000 nits for the Ultra and up to 3,000 nits for the Galaxy Watch 9 models. You can certainly see which one was envisioned to be more legible under the bright noon sun.
Colors for the Ultra 2 are Titanium Gray and Titanium Silver, while the 44 mm Watch 9 is available in Graphite and Silver. The 40 mm model comes in Graphite and Cream, a slightly more feminined feminine selection.
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.
The Galaxy Watch 9 is available with a silicone Sport band, a soft-touch Misty band, or a breathable Fabric band.
Software & Features
The best smartwaches
Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear Elite chipset, the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 and Watch 9 feature improved performance, responsiveness and much faster app launch times. Samsung has also improved almost all the health-tracking features of the device. Both watches runs Wear OS 7 with the One UI Watch 9 interface on top of it.
New here is the 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 and previous Galaxy Watch models.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 and Watch 9 also get a new Heart Health Score that provides you with approximate information about your heart's health status. Both wearables 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. No such functionality is available on the Watch 9.
As is the unfortunate tradition, you can't use the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 or the Watch 9 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.
As is the unfortunate tradition, you can't use the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 or the Watch 9 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.
Battery and Charging
That's honestly so Ultra
Samsung has finally given us a proper Ultra smartwatch with an excellent battery. We get a massive 800 mAh battery in the very thin Galaxy Watch Ultra 9, which is truly impressive. It should really boast a properly great battery life with the more efficient Snapdragon Wear Elite chip.
Meanwhile, both the 40 mm and 44 mm versions of the Galaxy Watch 9 have also scored slightly larger batteries, 390 mAh and 445 mAh respectively.
One thing is for certain here: the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is the one that will have the better battery life. I'd expect at least double in contrast with the base Galaxy Watch
9.
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. There's no Wi-Fi-only version.
The Galaxy Watch 9 comes in 40 and 44 mm versions. Each of these is then available with either Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi and LTE connectivity. Prices start at $350 for the 40 mm and $380 for the 44 mm version.
Specs
Here's how the two watches compare:
| Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 | Galaxy Watch 9 |
|---|---|
| Models 47 mm Wi-Fi + LTE | Models 40 mm 44 mm Wi-Fi + LTE |
| Processor Snapdragon Wear Elite | Processor Snapdragon Wear Elite |
| Software Wear OS 7 / One UI 9 Watch | Software Wear OS 7 / One UI 9 Watch |
| Battery 800 mAh | Battery 390 mAh 445 mAh |
| Sensors HR, Vitals, blood oxygen, altimeter, ECG | Sensors HR, blood oxygen, altimeter, ECG |
Summary
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is Samsung's answer to Apple's high-profile Apple Watch Ultra lineup, and as such, it sets the bar even higher. The significantly large battery and design refinements mean that the ball will be in Apple's court when it comes to any future upgrades.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 9 is aimed at the regular customer who just needs a good-looking and functional smartwatch to go along with their Galaxy phone. The subtle improvements here are definitely more par for the course for a mainstream device which is already in a pretty good spot.
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