The Galaxy Ultra has a very specific audience in mind. Like the Apple Watch Ultra before it, and the Garmin Fenix range of devices, the latest Galaxy watch offering is more for the sports enthusiast than your everyday user.
It can withstand temperatures up to 55 degrees, and has a water resistance rating of up to 10 ATM water pressure so you can take it through some extremes – within reason. It also works at altitudes of up to 9,000m – untested in this review – and has a claimed battery life of up to 100 hours. Add in some multisport tracking, health monitoring such as activity and sleep, alongside Galaxy AI insights, and you have quite a lot going on inside one watch.
It will, inevitably, be compared with the Apple Watch Ultra. Not only are they pitching for the same market, but they also share a similar name, although Samsung has used the Ultra tag on its mobile devices before.
The new Ultra stands out from the Galaxy line-up. It is more rugged than the standard Galaxy Watch, and instead of the round watch face we have come to expect, it has the round face set inside a more square “cushion” made of titanium to make sure it will survive a few impacts. The glass is sapphire crystal, which is supposed to be more durable, and it comes with an easy-to-grip action button, in addition to the usual touchscreen controls.
The whole thing is powered by a new 3nm processor, which makes the new watch a speedier experience than before.
[ Apple Watch Ultra 2: Evolution not revolutionOpens in new window ]
Samsung has put a bit of extra thought into this. It has redesigned its bioactive sensor to make it more accurate when it comes to measuring body composition and heart rate. The latter pans out, staying within a couple of heartbeats of both an Apple Watch and a chest-worn heart rate monitor, even during more strenuous workouts. I raise an eyebrow at the body composition, although the less said about that the better.
There is a decent range of sports you can track on the watch, too, including differentiating between track running and treadmills, and you can add everything from canoeing and horseback riding to skipping and martial arts. You can create your own workouts too, either on the watch or through your phone.
The new watch also comes with Galaxy AI, but that has a caveat. While the Galaxy Watch Ultra is compatible with any Android phone that has Android 11 or newer installed, the more advanced features require a Galaxy handset.
That includes the AI, which powers features such as energy score and suggested replies to messages, and some of the more advanced health monitoring features – the double pinch gestures that allow you to control certain functions hands-free (similar to the Apple Watch double-tap gesture) and the ECG and sleep apnoea monitoring. As of the time of writing, the latter was unavailable.
This is not unusual. Apple’s Watch, for example, only works with the tech giant’s own phones, and it has been a while since Samsung’s watches were compatible with iOS.
There are other sacrifices you should note. The redesigned biosensor has led to the elimination of reverse charging from Samsung Galaxy devices, so you will have to use the included charger or suffer the consequences. And the straps are not compatible with older Galaxy Watch devices, thanks to what Samsung has tagged as its new “dynamic lug” system, so the choice is currently limited.
Good
Although the design is chunky, it doesn’t feel too bulky on your wrist. It feels reassuringly durable, and even the circle within the square-ish face looks good. Side by side with last year’s Classic, for example, there isn’t a huge size difference.
At night, the Samsung watch faces change over to a night view – red digits on the back background – which makes it easier to view. And you can put the watch into sleep mode, so you can eke out more power overnight and still get all those sleep insights.
Bad
There is only one size option, at 47mm. And although it doesn’t feel overly chunky, the watch is still quite large for smaller wrists.
While the Ultra has the 10ATM water resistance, the device isn’t really suitable for more high-pressured watersports such as diving. Samsung says you can submerge the watch in water for 10 minutes at depths of up to 100m, but it does better for shallow water activities such as swimming or snorkelling. Compare that with the Apple Watch Ultra, which can be used for recreational diving to 40m depths. The Apple device is €200 more expensive, though.
Everything else
Battery life is an improvement over last year’s Watch 6 models, but if you want to use all the extras – always-on display, tracking exercise, monitoring blood oxygen – that will reduce battery life. Using the power-saving modes will help eke it out, and the Ultra does better than previous Galaxy wearables, but it would be nice to not to have to worry about charging over a weekend, for example.
You get the choice of three colours: dark grey, silver and white.
Verdict
Samsung’s Galaxy Ultra offers a more rugged option for Android Wear fans. Best paired with a Galaxy handset.
