If you are looking for a small and light smartwatch that looks better than fitness sports bracelets, the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active is the right choice for you.
Priced at $ 200, the Galaxy Watch Active can work with both Android and iPhone phones. In fact, it's half the price of the Apple Watch and much cheaper than other Samsung watches, but still has a nice display, metal body and sensor. Provides heart rate, GPS and exercise and sleep tracking for its users.
Samsung has even promised that the Galaxy Watch Active will be the company's first watch that will enable you to measure blood pressure. (Of course, this feature will be released later and is not yet available).
So the question is, is the Galaxy Watch Active worth buying? And is there no hidden problem? We have spent the last week with this watch and it is time to share our experiences with you. Follow the review of Galaxy Watch Active with our blog.
Size
The first thing you need to know about the Galaxy Watch Active is that you are on the side with a small watch!
We've seen the success of many large smartwatches so far, but only a handful of small smartwatches have been able to deliver decent performance, so this size is definitely something that many users who have felt neglected by companies will appreciate.
The watch has a 1.1-inch screen, while its watch face size is 40 mm. This watch looks more attractive on smaller wrists and will also be suitable for many women, but it may not be very interesting to place it on the large wrist.
Bands
The Galaxy Watch Active comes with a sports silicone strap in a box that comes in small and large sizes. If you've seen the Apple Watch sports strap, you'll immediately notice the similarities: the ring design, soft silicone material, gives a very similar feeling, as well as a feeling of comfort when used. However, the buckle is of the traditional type, which of course creates a very good feeling, in addition to this material, it is made of metal and is very strong.
The good news is that you do not have a dedicated strap replacement system at this time, and instead you will use the classic fast system, which attracts our attention and allows you to easily strap on Swap for a few seconds. The size of the strap is 20mm.
In fact, replacing a silicone sports strap with an attractive leather strap was the first thing we did, and it can instantly make this watch much more beautiful and appropriate for your business environment. It's certainly not going to look like a luxury watch, but with the right strap, it can look great both at the club and in your office.
Screen (with display always on)
We need to say a few words about the Galaxy Watch Active screen. This gadget has a 1.1-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 360 x 360 pixels and Gorilla Glass 3 protective glass. However, what is not mentioned here is the feel, and since the screen is well placed, it is very comfortable to swipe on and feel good. The brightness of the display in the light is also quite good, and finally, the always-on display feature is available, which will display time to users continuously without the need to shake hands.
Of course, it should be noted that there is a large margin around the screen, which makes the screen look even smaller than it is, but after a few days of use you will get used to it and you will not notice it. .
Tizen and rotating frame removed
The Galaxy Watch Active, like other Samsung smartwatches, runs on Samsung's own Tizen platform. However, unlike other Samsung watches, this gadget does not use the rotating frame used to navigate menus. Thus, due to the small size of the screen, the process of selecting an application in the menu of this gadget can be quite difficult.
Of course, the question also arises as to how much users use different applications in their smartwatches? In fact, many users use their watch only to be aware of the time or a quick switch between pages to clear notifications or check the weather. So while the Galaxy Watch Active isn't as easy to use as Samsung's other watches with a removable bezel, it certainly won't be a problem for users.
Programs
One of Tizen's weaknesses that we often hear about is that the app store does not have large apps like the Apple Watch or even Google Wear watches.
And rightly so, but there are some essential apps that most people need on this platform: You can get Spotify for your music, Strava, Endomondo, and Map My Run for runners and cyclists. As well as apps like My Fitness Pal and Swim.com, so your basic needs will be covered.
Heptic: Not very functional
Another very important feature of a smartwatch is the vibration and small vibrations that serve as a reminder to do something or receive a notification to take a quick look at the watch. Touch feedback!
Well, this performance is not great on the Galaxy Watch Active, especially if you have used an Apple Watch before. Contrary to the good tactile feedback you receive with Apple's Taptic Engine, we see very distinct vibrations at this time. In fact, the Galaxy Watch Active does the same, but there is no refinement, and we think this is an important part of the connection between the smartwatch and the user that the Galaxy Watch Active lacks.
Tracking of sports activities
The Galaxy Watch Active, as its name implies, represents an active and active lifestyle, so it is actually a great help for your workouts.
One of the main features of this gadget is the automatic exercise tracker. This works much better than the Apple Watch, because every time you take a brisk walk for 10 minutes, it automatically records it in your workout, while in Apple Watch you will need to do this. Activate your gestures manually. (Apple wearable gadget has automatic workout tracking, but this feature only works for recording long workouts).
The Galaxy Watch Active will be very useful for runners because you will benefit from accurate tracking and GPS, so you can record your running on a map even in urban and densely populated areas, GPS performance is also very good.
With 5ATM water resistance, you can also use the Galaxy Watch Active in the pool and get accurate statistics of your swimming.
The list of all exercises supported by this watch includes: walking, running, cycling, swimming, treadmills, exercise bikes, weight machines and more.
Another category that can be very interesting is that you can also find your fitness exercises here: dumbbells, chest presses, deadlifts and everything else can be selected and tracked separately, which is really interesting .
Sleep tracker
Because this watch lasts for two days on a single charge, you will also receive sleep tracking automatically.
I'm one of those people who does not like to have something like a watch in my hand, but to do this review I slept in my hands for a few nights with the Galaxy Watch, which was very light and comfortable and certainly a much better experience than other watches Brought me a bigger smart.
The results you get are a summary of the times you are in deep sleep, light sleep, and REM (real time) sleep. My sleep tracking seemed quite accurate and interesting. Access to this information will help you control your sleep patterns and adjust if necessary.
You will also have a stress tester and breathing training courses. Most people do not meditate on a daily basis, but when you feel stressed, using these courses will be very effective, so we are glad that these features are present in the Galaxy Watch Active. Again, the only downside is that the vibration that is supposed to guide you through when and how to breathe deeply is very weak.
Battery life
Galaxy Watch Active is able to bring you a 2-day use experience. That way, if you wear it all day, sleep with it, and wear it again the next day, the battery will still charge you until you get home after work. Of course, if you work an hour with GPS and repeat the same day at the gym, you may not have that much efficiency, but for the average daily, this watch offers a 2-day battery experience.
You can charge this watch in two ways. One is to use the magnetic charger option included in the box. With this method, a full charge will take about two hours (reaching a charge of up to 60% in one hour).
Another way is the most attractive method of Essen: If you have a cell phone with reverse wireless charging capability like the new Samsung Galaxy series, you can enable this option and leave the watch on the back of your phone to start charging. It's interesting, isn't it? Theoretically yes, but not really much. This is because, firstly, finding the right place to charge the watch is not easy, and secondly, both the back of the phone and the watch are slippery, so if this is the case when your watch is charging, get a notification on your phone, The vibration caused by receiving this notification may move the watch from the charging point and stop the charging process, and thirdly, can you leave your phone without touching it for two hours or more during the day ?? Therefore, although this feature is an option for fast charging when necessary, but this gadget is not very suitable for everyday charging.
Conclusion
Was the experience of using the Galaxy Watch Active enjoyable? Yes! This watch is small, lightweight and comfortable and is suitable for people with smaller wrists.
The watch has a nice display with an always-on display, there's also automatic workout tracking, and its battery will last about two days on a single charge, so you can easily control and track your sleep as well.
The biggest obstacle for us was the touch feedback, which we did not feel good about, and also the lack of a rotating bezel, as it is not easy to touch and navigate between the menus of this watch with its small display. However, this is not an important issue in everyday use.
The Galaxy Watch Active is priced at just $ 200 and looks better than a sports strap and has faster performance than the Fitbit Versa. This smartwatch is not the most advanced and best watch ever made, but it certainly ranks among the best in terms of price.
positive points
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Small, light and comfortable
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Easy strap replacement
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Automatic tracking of sports activities
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Clear screen with always bright feature
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Accurate measurement of heart rate
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Great price
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Compatible with Android and iPhone
cons
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Not so good touch feedback
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Remove the rotating frame
