GIZMODO's Victoria Song immediately reviewed the Galaxy Watch 3 unveiled at the Unpacked event held early this month.
It has been a few years to find a smart watch that can be used on Android, which can be recommended with confidence that it is not inferior to Apple Watch.I finally found it.Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is such a smart watch.
This should not be surprising for Samsung fans.Until now, all Samsung Sumawos were sophisticated, functional and ambition.The first Galaxy Watch, Active and Active2 had the drawback that the accuracy of heart rate monitoring was not good for stepmar, GPS workout, and Active.Apparently Samsung took the criticism seriously, as all three points have been dramatically improved.That's amazing.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3
What is this?: Samsung's latest flagship, smart watch
Price: Bluetooth version 41mm model is $ 400 (about 42,000 yen), and 45mm model is $ 430 (about 45,000 yen).The LTE version is added $ 50, and does not include the usage fee for each carrier company.
Favorite place: Samsung finally corrects the accuracy of fitness algorithm!The ECG (ECG) function has just been approved by the FDA (Food Pharmaceutical Bureau).Added many health functions.More smaller, lighter, and thinner than the predecessor Galaxy Watch.Keep a physical rotating bezel.There are many points to like!
I don't like it: Samsung Pay is limited to Samsung smartphones.Bixby is alive.The battery remains 2 days.
Healthcare sensor is very enriched
The accuracy will be deeper later, and Samsung has accomplished more than simply improving the fitness algorithm in Galaxy Watch 3.As a flagship smartwatch with a healthcare function approved by the FDA, Apple is also a member of Apple.The company announced at a Unpacked event that the ECG function that could detect atrial fibrillation was approved by FDA.In the United States, only Apple was made.(Since the ECG function has not been implemented yet, I have not tried this review).
It also has a blood pressure meter function, but it is necessary to measure with the traditional armpings first.This feature is now available only in Korea, and is still under FDA review processes.Nevertheless, the only smartwo equipped with an FDA -approved blood pressure gauge is OMRON, so it is noteworthy that it is installed.
That alone is enough to compete with Apple Watch, but Samsung is working harder with some new features.
Galaxy Watch 3 is a measuring widget of blood oxygen concentration (not yet installed on Apple Watch), advanced running indicators, stumbling detection function, video workout with the Samsung Health app, gesture control, and enhanced sleep tracking.Equipped with algorithm.
There were some modest and easy -to -use improvements, such as displaying images from messages, chat history on the watch, and using smart replies.At the moment, only the Wear OS is already a hand -washing timer introduced in Watchos 7, which will be released in the fall.
I'm happy with the smaller body from the first generation
The specifications were increased to 1GB and the storage was doubled to 8GB.The sensor and processors have not changed much from Active2.However, Galaxy Watch 3 was 14 % thinner, 8 % smaller, and reduced 15 % compared to the first Galaxy Watch.Galaxy Watch 3 was quite hoped for health updates, accuracy improvement, some new features, and miniaturization.I'm glad I can use it for more than a week, so Samsung is finally done.
After using the 41mm model (45mm) for a week, I realized that the design of smaller, thinning, and lighter was a big difference.Although the first Galaxy Watch was sophisticated, it was a bit thick and heavy, and my wrist was intimidating.It was good to wear it on a daily basis, but I was worried about the weight during running and cycling.Galaxy Watch 3 is still a little thicker than the ideal, and it's definitely more rugged than Fitbit Versa 2 and Apple Watch, but it's not an obstacle.It is comfortable to wear.I wasn't in the way during the exercise, and I didn't wake up in the middle of the night to remove the watch.
Just because the size is small does not mean that the screen is stuck.1.The 2 -inch display moves and has a good visibility, and has a trademark rotating bezel.
The rotating bezel is the most easy to use
Speaking of rotating bezels, I was relieved because it was abolished by Active and changed to digital bezel with Active2.
It is still the most intuitive screen switching method in all smartwatches, and I am satisfied with it.Nevertheless, I am grateful that the terminal for reviewing was a bezel that spin smoothly instead of gear -style notch.The masculine is modest and beautiful, and it seems that Samsung has finally graduated from the gear motifs that had been added to the majority of watches before 2018.If you like a notch with a notch, please have a 45mm model.I'm glad that there are options to appeal to many people.
Galaxy Watch 3 is wonderful as a smart watch for everyday use.Push notifications have never been a problem, but in Galaxy Watch 3, there are improvements in the chat and smart replies mentioned above, so it can be said that it was more sophisticated than the predecessor model.
The product of the app is not enough
However, some of the "problems" of the predecessors have not been completely resolved.The product of the third party app is boring.In the Samsung store, the Apple Watch and Google Wear OS are more abundant, although the number of Fitbit's application is as small.It doesn't mean there is nothing.Samsung is a big victory by automatically integrating Spotify as a widget, and premium accounts can download offline playlists to watch.
Strangely, Galaxy Watch 3 also supports Microsoft Outlook.There are various running apps such as Mapmyrun and Strava in the Uber app.If you use the Samsung Internet app, you can watch YouTube videos on the watch.I don't know why I want to do that, but I can do it (and the playback of the video is more crisp than Active2)
Some of the new features were a bit confusing.
If you fall a terrible fall, you will not be able to operate, despite the fact that you will contact the designated four people, despite falling down to the sofa and bed many times.It may be good to prevent malfunction, but I can't say how much it works in an emergency because I don't want to get a big deal for a smart watch review.
I wonder if gesture control also failed a little.Did you hold the fist and open it and answer the phone?yes.Was it easy to use?No.But I understood that it would be useful for user auxiliary reasons and when I was not open during cooking.The workout in the video was quite good using the Samsung Health app.I had a little boring workout, but when the type of exercise changed, I was able to tell me by vibration, I was able to stop the video from the watch, and I was able to confirm my heart rate from the workout video.It was good.
Regarding that point, Apple's attitude to sell Samsung devices and platform ecosystem is very similar to Apple.It goes without saying that this watch has many functions that can be used with Android than iOS, but if you use it full, it is a smartphone made of Samsung.For example, Samsung Pay cannot be used as an iPhone user and a non -Samsung Android device.You can't download Google Pay and Google Assistant, so you have to use Bixby.
I couldn't output Samsung Health workout on the TV screen because I had released Samsung's smart TV, so I tried it on Galaxy Note20 Ultra.Even though there are such precautions, I believe that Tizen will move more quickly than Wear OS and bring a good smash experience overall.
The battery life has not changed much among generations.In one charging, it will decrease even more if you do a lot of workouts using GPS for about two days, use the cellular version, or turn on the screen at all times.The battery tended to consume about 10 % in 30 minutes running with GPS, and the drive time was about 56 hours.The 45mm watch has a large battery, so it may be a little longer, but not many.Still, it's better than Apple Watch, which requires charging every night.It's the same or better as most Wear OS watches.
Fitness tracking accuracy is finally improved
One of the success of Samsung in Galaxy Watch 3 is that the company's weakness, fitness tracking, has been modified.I tried five running and seven walking, but the accuracy has certainly improved.Galaxy Watch 3 heart rate measurement was always equivalent to Apple Watch Series 5, and the Polar H10 chest strap was less than 5 beats per minute.In the 5 runs using GPS, the difference between Galaxy Watch 3 is 0 of the running app and Series 5..Within 1 mile.I tried the conventional Samsung watch 0.This is a dramatic improvement, given that it was 35 miles or 15-20 %.Galaxy Watch 3 is 0 compared to Series 5 in 4 runs.5 Miles, 0 compared to iPhone.Reported about 9 miles.Regardless of the running distance, this happened.Short and 1.2 miles, long and 3.He reported the same distance even in 5 miles running.The important thing here is that Galaxy Watch 3 recorded consistent results in multiple running.If you use it for training, you can trust your progress.
The same happened in the pedometer.12,236 steps on Series 5 and 4.8 on the day when the mile records, Galaxy Watch 3 is 1702 steps and 4.Display with 56 miles.Conversely, when I tried Active2 last fall, it was displayed that I walked 29,934 steps and 13 miles, and it was a measured value of 6 miles, 11,000 steps used for the comparison.The difference of about 1000 steps in the daily step count is acceptable, and the measured value of Galaxy Watch 3 is within that range.It is a big progress compared to Active2.
I also liked the new advanced running indicators.Evaluation based on data points such as left and right asymmetry, grounding time, optimal flight time, regularity, vertical vibration and rigidity.Each indicator has three levels of evaluation depending on how the user runs.So what are these indicators specifically?The company provides an article in the Samsung Health app that briefly explains.For example, left and right asymmetry refers to the time in which each foot is in contact with the ground, and if the degree of left and right asymmetry may be high, it may lead to fatigue and injury.It resembles a regularity indicator to measure the consistency of the movement of the body while driving.On the other hand, the grounding time and the optimal flight time compare the time of the flight time and the time on the ground.Both are good rules that are running efficiently.The same is true for vertical vibration that measures the "upper and lower movement of the center of gravity".Finally, the degree of rigidity analyzes how much power is applied to each step, which can also be a measure of fatigue.
These are good indicators for running forms that are difficult to improve yourself.I thought it would be nice to give Samsung apps for effective exercise to improve the bad running indicators.For example, every index was a good result, but it seemed to be a very hard runner.To improve it, the app proposes running practice.He recommended ankle jump, and there was a brief explanation about the method and a guidance on the number and period.
Sleep tracking is also an area where Samsung has improved.Galaxy Watch 3 was accurately recorded for a week that I had been waking up at midnight.However, I am a little confused about the sleep score.Every night, 30 to 50 points out of 100 points, but the application is not explained how the score is calculated.The sleep stage was almost the same as Oura Ring, but RING was generously evaluated the degree of recovery.Anyway, Samsung's sleep tracking is not perfect, but it is more detailed than the one that can be obtained in the Apple Watch, which has a sleep tracking function of Watchos 7 this fall.
The best smart watch now
Say again.This is the best non -Apple smart watch I've used.
Long batteries, more advanced sleep tracking, accurate indicators, classical designs, rotating bezels, and now implemented ECG functions, and even iOS users may want to consider Galaxy Watch 3 (mentioned above)As I wrote, the function is limited for iOS, such as not being able to reply from the watch to the text message).
In terms of price, it's similar.Galaxy Watch 3 is 41mm, $ 400, 45mm from $ 430, the same as $ 400 Apple Watch GPS model.The cellular model is $ 450 and $ 480, which is a little more affordable than the Apple Watch LTE model (although there is a carrier fee).The Wear OS watch that I think is best is SUUNTO 7, but it is even higher at $ 500 and has no cellular model.Fossil's cheaper Wear OS watch is stylish, but cannot compete in terms of function.
The only reason that a non -Samsung Android user wants a Wear OS watch from Galaxy Watch 3 is NFC payment and Google Assistant.But if the two points are not the priority in smartwatches, Galaxy Watch 3 will be the best Android smartwatch that you can buy at the moment.
summary
Source: Samsung, Reddit,
