Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 Review

Design and screen

• Familiar rugged cushion design
• Slimmer, comfier build
• Exceptionally bright AMOLED screen

The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 might look familiar on the surface – and that’s because, generally speaking, it is. It sports the same ‘cushion’ design as the original Galaxy Watch Ultra, as well as recent models of the standard Galaxy Watch, with a square base and a circular screen sitting on top. It’s certainly a distinctive look that, I imagine, is much like marmite; you’ll either love it or hate it.

Either way, it’s durable, rugged nature remains clear; it retains the shockproof titanium body from the first-gen Ultra, and sticks with the three side buttons with housing that raises from the side to add extra protection from side impacts and scuffs – the kinds of impacts you’d get from endurance-focused sport that the Ultra 2 is tailored towards. 

It has also upped the already-solid IP68 dust and water resistance to IP69K, protecting it from dust and hot water jets as well as submersion in water up to 100M, with a 10ATM rating. The latter is particularly important for this generation with an exclusive new pro diving mode – but I’ll get to that a little later. 

Despite doubling down on durability, the Watch Ultra 2 has slimmed down, addressing one of the main complaints about the original Ultra and its 12.1mm width, but at 10.7mm, it’s still not exactly the most slimline of watches. 

I find it can snag on sleeve cuffs and the like, but aside from that, I don’t really notice it when it’s on the wrist. It may be a little too cumbersome for those with daintier wrists, however, coming in a single 47mm size with a not-insignificant 1.52-inch screen.

That said, I didn’t really have any complaints about the Ultra 2 sat on my wrist; surprising considering I’m used to slimline trackers like the Fitbit Air. I didn’t even really notice it when I was asleep – though I imagine that experience will very much vary from person to person. 

I think that, at least partly, that comes down to the redesigned straps with this year’s smartwatch. It’s not just the body itself that’s slimmer; the accompanying marine band I was provided for review is also 1mm slimmer than its predecessor, with air pocket structure on the inside to help with air circulation. 

I imagine the fabric of the trail band will be the most comfortable of the bunch – that’s usually the case – but I’ve been pretty happy with the in-box strap. I also like that it has a dual-tooth strap design; I’m sure there’s some durability reasoning, but really, it just looks fresh. 

Really, though, you’re buying the Ultra 2 for its screen; as already noted, the circular AMOLED panel measures in at 1.52 inches, making it one of the bigger screens you’ll find on a wearable right now. That already makes it well suited to endurance sports, with the ability to display a lot of information and metrics on a single screen, but the real upgrade here is the max brightness; at 5000nits, it’s the brightest on any smartwatch right now. And it’s noticeable in day-to-day use too.

We’ve had some pretty hot, sunny weather here in the UK over the past few weeks, but the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 hasn’t struggled at all. Even in dazzling midday sunshine, the Ultra 2 manages to seriously boost the brightness of the panel, making it easily legible from a distance. 

Just how the watch manages to outshine the sun, I’m not sure, but it’s a massive achievement and one that’s sure to benefit those that do outdoor sports in particular. Even then, just having a brighter screen to make it easier to check the time or read a notification in direct sunlight is nice to have. 

Performance and software

• Snapdragon Wear Elite boosts overall performance
• Wear OS feels slick
• Hands-free Gemini is useful

The big change with this year’s Galaxy Watch 2 comes beneath its surface. Rather than utilising Samsung’s Exynos chipsets, it – along with the regular Watch 9 – has made the jump to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Wear Elite chipset.

That, of course, translates to an uptick in general performance, and the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 rarely disappoints in that department. 

Swiping through Samsung’s custom One UI version of Wear OS is a treat; everything feels rapid and instantaneous, whether you’re tapping on notifications to get more information or opening the Workout app to track a run. Third-party apps play just as nicely, with Spotify near-instantly loading up on the watch when I start playing music on my connected phone. 

It’s not just faster though; the Wear Elite also brings support for hands-free Gemini support, a feature already offered by Google’s own Pixel Watch 4. It essentially allows you to raise the watch and instantly ask a question without pressing and holding any buttons or uttering any wake words.

It does make for a much more natural experience for quick queries, and as ever, the Gemini experience is top-notch. Just like on a phone, it can handle general queries and questions, as well as open apps, get directions and perform actions (like adding calendar events, reminders and alarms) on your behalf. 

There aren’t any major software changes on offer, but that’s not really a criticism; I think Samsung’s custom One UI skin for Wear OS is actually better than the stock experience. 

I love how notifications are grouped together by app, making it easier to browse notifications from the wrist, and I continue to be a fan of how you can group multiple tiles into a single screen, reducing the need to endlessly swipe between tiles to get the information you need. It’s a very customisable experience, and one that, really, Google itself needs to learn from. 

Elsewhere, it boasts full support for third-party apps via Google Play, and although it certainly prefers you use Samsung Wallet for payments, Google Wallet also works. With the caveat that you need to manually open the Wallet app before paying, that is. 

There is, of course, always room for improvement, and there are a few tweaks I’d love to see in a future update – simple tweaks like automatically entering the sleep mode when it detects I’ve fallen asleep, and improvements to the gesture support – but, overall, the Watch Ultra 2 offers a top-notch smartwatch experience that few Android-based makers can top. 

It’s just worth noting that, like all Wear OS watches, it doesn’t work with iPhones; you’ll need an Android smartphone for this one, and for the best experience, a Samsung phone – but that matters more in the health and fitness department than general use. 

Health and fitness tracking

• Excellent dual-GPS accuracy
• New pro tracking modes
• Samsung Health AI insights lag behind rivals

One of the key benefits of the Snapdragon Wear Elite chipset is boosted GPS performance during outdoor workouts, and when combined with the Ultra 2’s dual-GPS setup, the results are very impressive. 

To put it to the test, I went on a walk around London’s Canary Wharf, an area beset with tall skyscrapers and rivers, two elements that tend to confuse GPS. When using wearables like the Pixel Watch 4, it’ll occasionally drift off-course, veering into the river, but the Watch Ultra 2’s GPS stuck to me like a magnet. 

The lines are straight, only veering in areas where I, say, crossed the road, and not once have I seen it get it completely wrong. And that’s in what I’d describe as a challenging signal area; in my local area, the GPS locked on within a second or two of starting a jog, and it stuck with me the entire time. 

Now, that’s great for all kinds of outdoor exercise, but it also ties in perfectly with a new Watch Ultra 2-exclusive tracking mode – trail running – with support for custom GPX routes with turn-by-turn and elevation tracking. While I’m not much of a trail runner myself, I can certainly see the appeal for those that do explore off the beaten path. 

It also gets a new professional diving mode, made in conjunction with leading diving equipment company Mares to track elements like depth, time and temperature – though that’s not coming out until later this year. 

As with the original Watch Ultra, the exercise tracking experience is top-notch. You get a range of metrics specific to the type of exercise you’re doing, with much of it visible on the watch itself post-workout – no need to delve into the Samsung Health app on your phone. There is, of course, a more detailed breakdown on the phone app if you do want to delve deeper.

What I love about this year’s wearable is that it now provides real-time hydration guidance by estimating how much water you’re losing to sweat during exercise. You do need to burn at least 70 calories over at least half an hour to get the recommendation, and you won’t get a dedicated notification post-workout telling you exactly how much water to drink (a missed opportunity, if I’m being honest), but the data is there in the post-workout breakdown. 

I’m not sure just how scientific it is, and whether it’s taking elements like weather into consideration, but it’s a good ballpark figure to aim for if nothing else. Hydration is important, kids. 

Now, that’s only half of the experience; like most smartwatches, the Watch Ultra 2 also tracks your general health and sleep. And there’s plenty new on that front for this year.

While the core concept of using Samsung’s capable BioActive sensor to track metrics like HR, blood oxygen, movement, and the like to better understand your health isn’t new, Samsung has refreshed how that information is displayed this year.

That includes elements like Vitals, which tracks respiratory rate, skin temperature, heart rate, HRV and blood oxygen and alerts you if you drop out of range, potentially highlighting periods of stress on the body or the beginning of an illness. 

There’s also a Heart Health Score that combines information like vigorous activity time, sleep, weight and vascular load, and a Daily Cardio Load that advises how much you should push yourself to avoid overtraining and potential injury. 

It’s great to see, and really helps with digesting the sometimes overwhelming amount of metrics tracked by the watch, but really, this is Samsung playing catch-up – plenty of rivals have had something similar to most of these features for quite some time. 

Sleep tracking remains a core strength of Samsung’s wearables, offering deep insight into my sleep patterns and advice on how to improve the quality of sleep I’m getting. It also tracked the stages of sleep and overall sleep time quite closely with my Oura Ring 5, which I feel best aligns with how I generally feel day-to-day. 

That all comes alongside a wide range of health and wellness features we’ve already seen, including niche elements like antioxidant tracking and body composition, adding to what is already a very capable smartwatch. The catch is that ECG, blood pressure and sleep apnea detection will only work when connected to a Samsung smartphone – a slight frustration if you’re rocking an Android phone from another brand. 

That all comes together in the Samsung Health companion app, which recently got an AI-focused upgrade that Samsung claims makes the app more proactive, offering personalised advice based on your metrics – but it’s not exactly what I’d call deeply personalised. 

Instead, it’ll offer what I’d deem rather generic insights, like whether you slept longer or shorter than usual, whether you walked more steps, or whether you should push yourself with more intense exercise. It doesn’t even mention a type of exercise, rather ‘your preferred activity or sport’ – a bit impersonal considering it has the data for the types of exercise I undertake in the app. 

It would’ve been fine a year or two ago, but with Google’s Fitbit Air and Health Coach really delivering a truly personalised experience, Samsung’s offering here feels a little lacklustre. 

Battery life

• Larger 800mAh battery
• Two-day real-world use
• Charging remains fairly slow

One of the key upgrades with this generation’s wearable comes in the battery department. At 800mAh, it’s a whopping 35% uptick on the original Galaxy Watch Ultra’s 590mAh cell, making it not only the biggest battery in Samsung’s wearable collection but also much of the competition.

That said, I’d still temper expectations about just how long this thing can go on a single charge. Yes, it’s a bigger battery, but it’s also powering a much brighter screen, so it’s not a day-and-night change compared to the original in my experience over the past week or so.

With all optional features turned on – elements like the always-on display, constant heart rate tracking, and more in-depth sleep tracking features – the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 would comfortably last me two days, but not much longer. That’s with a healthy mix of notifications, occasional use of Gemini and two or three automatically tracked walks and jogs. 

Now that’s not terrible, but it’s also not quite up to the longevity of wearables like the OnePlus Watch 3, which lasts between three and five days in its Wear OS mode, despite having a smaller battery. 

There is absolutely the ability to push the Watch Ultra 2 further, up to three or four days between charges, but in doing so, you’ll need to disable the aforementioned battery-hungry features like constant HR tracking and the always-on display. But then you’re compromising on the overall experience – not ideal when you’re paying so much for the wearable in the first place. 

Of course, performance will vary depending on what you’re doing with the watch, so it’s possible that your mileage may vary. But if you were hoping for a watch that’d last for days on end, the Watch Ultra 2 isn’t really that.

Charging remains unchanged, and with a larger battery to power, it took around an hour and a half to get a full charge. Again, that’s not egregiously long, but it’s also slower than what you’ll get from the likes of the Pixel Watch 4. 

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Should you buy it?