Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Summary

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active was launched in March 2019 alongside the Galaxy S10, more than six months after the Galaxy Watch. And just months later, Samsung released the Galaxy Watch Active 2, the Actice’s virtually identical successor but with a haptic digital dial and a more expensive price.

Undeniably, the Galaxy Watch Active is the Galaxy Watch’s pared-down version since it is lacking a few features. But it has a smaller design and is more affordable, making it an attractive deal for some users.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Release Date and Price

Samsung announced the Galaxy Watch Active in February 2019 alongside the Galaxy S10. It was available for in-store purchases one month later. The smartwatch’s launch price was $199.99. This is cheaper, compared to the Samsung Galaxy Watch at $329 when it was launched. For the larger 46mm model, the price could go up to $349.

With the Galaxy Active Watch, there is only one size available, which is 40mm. You will only have to select your favorite color. The device can be bought from retailers or from Samsung directly.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Design and Display

The watch still has the familiar circular design. Unlike the Galaxy Watch, the Galaxy Watch Active doesn’t have a rotating bezel. We think that this is Samsung’s attempt to create a sportier design.

On the wrist, the smartwatch feels a lot lighter and it is noticeably thinner without losing the Galaxy Watch’s premium look.

The lack of rotating bezel is kind of disappointing as it helps users navigating through the menus much easier. If you prefer a smaller smartwatch, this is one of the best choices.

The body of the watch is made of metal, making it look high-end and premium. On the right edge are two buttons. When you unlock the watch, it isn’t always easy to find these buttons. It would have been better that Samsung has made these buttons a little more pronounced.

For the Galaxy Watch Active, there are four colors to choose from: silver, black, blue, and pink. The pink band goes with a rose gold body. The rest of the watches have the same color 20mm straps.

All of the straps are made of silicone. They are comfortable to wear even when you are sweating. These bands feel similar to those you can purchase for the Apple Watch.

The straps can be swapped out, meaning you can use Samsung’s straps or straps from third-parties.

In the middle is a 1.1-inch display with a resolution of 360 x 360. If you have been used to using a larger smartwatch, this may feel a bit restrictive.

Regardless of the smaller size, it is still usable. The screen is bright. Unlike some cheaper smartwatches and a lot of fitness trackers, it is a full-color display.

Sometimes, users may have difficulty reading the screen from certain angles. The smartwatch is IP68 rated, meaning it can be submerged up to 5 meters underwater. So you can wear this smartwatch when taking a dip at the pool.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Specs and Performance

You will get top-end internals with the Galaxy Watch Active. The smartwatch is powered by an Exynos 9110 chipset at 1.15GHz. This is the same chipset used on the Galaxy Watch.

You will have 750MB of RAM. With this setup, the watch performs smoothly. And when comparing it to some watches running Wear OS and having the Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 2100 chipset, it is particularly faster. Whatever apps you are using, they load up quickly without any lag.

The watch offers 4GB of storage. But after downloading and installing the basic software, there is only 1.5GB of space left. That isn’t a huge amount of space to work with, especially if you want to download music to your watch. You may have to change the downloaded playlists quite often.

You can listen to music using Bluetooth headphones, without having to carry your smartphone with you.

For the Galaxy Watch Active, there isn’t a variant with LTE, meaning you can’t get internet or receive phone calls away from your phone. If you want that, it is better that you go with the standard Galaxy Watch.

The Galaxy Watch Active runs Samsung’s latest version of Tizen. Compared to watchOS of Apple or Wear OS, it isn’t as perfect but it has matured quite a lot.

It is an enjoyable experience to use the smartwatch. You can bring up your watch face by pressing on the top right button or tapping the display. By scrolling left, you can see your notifications.

For iPhone users, all notifications coming through your smartphone will appear on the watch. But you can’t do anything except for reading them. The widgets that you see on the smartwatch can be customized depending on your preferences. For example, you can put on one screen a fitness widget so you can easily start a quick workout.

To see all the apps that are on the device, pressing the bottom button will take you to a circular menu.

Over the last few years, Samsung has improved their-party app options. Spotify has been compatible with the Samsung Galaxy Watch family for quite some time. You can download playlists and listen to them directly from your smartwatch.

For Android users, you will need to have a device that runs Android 5 software or higher and has a minimum RAM of 1.5GB.

If you are iPhone users, you will need an iPhone 5 or higher with iOS 9 or above.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Fitness

The Galaxy Watch Active has a heart rate monitor that can not only monitor your heart rate but also your stress levels. Whenever your heart rate increases, it will tell you to monitor your stress and recommend breathing exercises.

There is also a blood pressure monitor. Via My BP Lab service, it can monitor your blood pressure.

Almost everything is covered with this smartwatch. Its GPS tracker can be connected easily and quickly.

The smartwatch automatically tracks 39 different activities including running and cycling. Once you are done with your workout, you can take a look at your stats n the watch’s display.

The watch can also track your sleep, giving you stats like REM and duration.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Battery Life

The smartwatch can last two full days. Constantly fiddling with the smartwatch will drain the battery. With limited usage, it may even last up to 72 hours. There is a low battery mode.

In the box, there is a wireless charging pad that can charge your smartwatch from 0 to 100% in around two hours. The watch also works with Qi wireless chargers. That means you can use your Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus to charge the watch.

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Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Full Specifications

Price
network
expand
  • Technology No cellular connectivity
  • 2G bands N/A
  • GPRS No
  • EDGE No
launch
  • Announced 2019, February
  • Status Available. Released 2019, April
body
  • Dimensions 39.5 x 39.5 x 10.5 mm (1.56 x 1.56 x 0.41 in)
  • Weight 25 g (0.88 oz)
  • SIM No
  • Samsung Pay MIL-STD-810G 50m water resistant (IP68) Compatible with standard 20mm straps
display
  • Type Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
  • Size 1.1 inches, 9.2 cm2 (~58.8% screen-to-body ratio)
  • Resolution 360 x 360 pixels, 1:1 ratio (~302 ppi density)
  • Protection Corning Gorilla Glass 3
  • Always-on display
platform
  • OS Tizen-based wearable OS 4.0
  • Chipset Exynos 9110 (10 nm)
  • CPU Dual-core 1.15 GHz Cortex-A53
  • GPU Mali-T720
memory
  • Card slot No
  • Internal 4GB 768MB RAM
camera
  • No
sound
  • Loudspeaker Yes
  • 3.5mm jack No
comms
  • WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
  • Bluetooth 4.2, A2DP, LE
  • GPS Yes, with GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS
  • NFC Yes
  • Radio No
  • USB No
features
  • Sensors Accelerometer, gyro, heart rate, barometer
  • Natural language commands and dictation
battery
  • Non-removable Li-Ion 230 mAh battery
  • Charging Qi wireless charging
misc
  • Colors Silver, Black, Rose Gold, Sea Green