Samsung Galaxy Watch8 and Galaxy Watch8 Classic review

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Introduction and specs

Every other year, Samsung is introducing its new top-of-the-line Classic series smartwatches, alongside a modestly upgraded standard Galaxy Watch. But this year, the smartwatch portfolio has been reshuffled in the context of the Galaxy Watch Ultra. Now, the Classic appears to be a complement to the Ultra, serving as a stepping stone between the vanilla and the Ultra, if you wish.

Still, Samsung is promising significant improvements over the Galaxy Watch6 Classic. The Classic now adopts the cushion design that the company introduced last year, along with the Dynamic Lug locking system for the straps. It's marketed as both a design and a functional upgrade, since it helps improve the accuracy of the BioActive sensor.

To be fair, with the addition of the Quick Button to the rotating bezel, the Classic feels like it's closer to the Ultra. It's still a premium smartwatch.

Samsung Galaxy Watch8 Classic specs at a glance:

• Body: 46.4x46.0x10.6mm, 64g; Glass front (Sapphire crystal), stainless steel frame; Rotating bezel, MIL-STD-810H compliant*, IP68 dust tight and water resistant (immersible up to 50m/5ATM), ECG certified, Blood pressure monitor, *does not guarantee ruggedness or use in extreme conditions.
• Display: 1.34" Super AMOLED, 3000 nits (peak), 438x438px resolution, 327ppi.
• Chipset: Exynos W1000 (3 nm): Penta-core; Mali-G68.
• Memory: 64GB 2GB RAM.
• OS/Software: Android Wear OS 6, One UI 8 Watch.
• Rear camera: No.
• Front camera: No.
• Video capture: Rear camera: No.
• Battery: 445mAh; 10W wireless.
• Connectivity: LTE; eSIM; Wi-Fi 4; BT 5.3; NFC.
• Misc: Accelerometer, gyro, heart rate, barometer, altimeter, compass, SpO2, temperature (skin), BioActive, antioxidant index.

The Galaxy Watch8 Classic also employs a brighter screen, reaching 3,000 nits, and a more modern, energy-efficient chipset - the Exynos W1000 based on 3nm node. Moreover, the chip can handle some AI tasks, albeit simple, making the Watch8 Classic the first Android smartwatch to offer native support for Gemini AI.

Memory gets a huge upgrade, which is a nice bonus since AI requires more storage too, so this year's Classic is fitted with 64GB internal storage.

Sports and health aren't neglected in this year's iteration of the Galaxy Watch8 series. Samsung has developed a new personalized running coach, and the BioActive sensor can now measure an antioxidant index and vascular load.

Samsung Galaxy Watch8 specs at a glance:

• Body: 46.0x43.7x8.6mm, 30g; Glass front (Sapphire crystal), aluminum frame; MIL-STD-810H compliant*, IP68 dust tight and water resistant (immersible up to 50m/5ATM), ECG certified, Blood pressure monitor, Armor aluminum 2 frame, *does not guarantee ruggedness or use in extreme conditions.
• Display: 1.47" Super AMOLED, 3000 nits (peak), 480x480px resolution, 327ppi.
• Chipset: Exynos W1000 (3 nm): Penta-core; Mali-G68.
• Memory: 32GB 2GB RAM.
• OS/Software: Android Wear OS 6, One UI 8 Watch.
• Rear camera: No.
• Front camera: No.
• Video capture: Rear camera: No.
• Battery: 435mAh; 10W wireless.
• Connectivity: LTE; eSIM; Wi-Fi 4; BT 5.3; NFC.
• Misc: Accelerometer, gyro, heart rate, barometer, altimeter, compass, SpO2, temperature (skin), BioActive, antioxidant index.

Some of the hardware upgrades that we mentioned, however, aren't exactly new to the vanilla Galaxy Watch8. Still, the newer Galaxy Watch offers a brighter display, adopts the new cushion design, it's a lot thinner now and also gets the new health and sports features.

With the smartwatch market continuing to expand, Samsung is now facing tougher competition, so let's take a deeper dive and see what's with the new Galaxy Watch8 series.

Unboxing the Galaxy Watch8 and Watch8 Classic

The two devices come in standard retail packages containing the default straps and chargers.

Galaxy Watch8 Classic and Galaxy Watch8 retail boxes

Keep in mind that even though the watches support Qi wireless charging, they require proprietary Samsung chargers to work.