REVIEW: Samsung Galaxy Watch7 – Fitness Focus

The latest watch from Samsung is the Watch7 and is this the one we’ve all been waiting for? We haven’t even gotten our hands on the Galaxy Watch Ultra yet but we think what we have here is the one the vast majority should select. We are going to look at the design and build quality, OS software, Samsung Health and battery life. After all this, we are going to give our conclusion on whether it’s worth the current price.

Design & Build Quality

A distant memory are the days past where a circular smartwatch screen was what we are all dreaming off. The Watch7 comes in 40mm or 44mm sizes and a range of colours. Some sizes and colour combinations are not available but for this review unit we have the 44mm in silver.

The other colour options are green and cream which not only change the colour of the ribbed silicone strap but also the colour of the watch metal body and strap hardware. For the 44mm size you only have the green and silver colour options and whilst I think the green is nice, I like the neutral silver option to go with any outfit. 

On all silicone bands you also have some accent colour threads. These match the left and right colour tabs on the Galaxy Buds3 Pro. Fabric bands are also available and are easily swapped out with a simple click system. The fabric bands also have some accent colour stitching. 

The screen is protected by sapphire crystal and Samsung calls it a “floating glass design”. Screen sizes are 33.3mm and 37.3mm. We’ve only had the watch to review for a few weeks but found we weren’t hitting it off too many edges and nothing had scratched it even when wearing it in the gym. More on the health and fitness tracking aspect later.

It’s a Super AMOLED display with a 432 x 432 display with a colour depth of 16M. The weight of the body is only 28.8g and is made from aluminium. It’s also IP68 rated. Interacting with the watch is via the touch screen, the “digital rotating bezel” which is where you scroll your finger around the edge of the watch instead of using a rotating crown like on some other smartwatches.

There are also 2 buttons on the right hand side of the body, the home button which is highlighted with an orange accent and a shortcut button which you can programme to launch different actions like start a workout or activate your digital wallet. Overall, the Watch7 feels well built and thoughtfully designed so while it’s obviously not a drastic departure from previous designs, it’s still stylish and effective in what it offers. 

OS Software

Powering the Watch7 is a 3nm Penta-Core CPU (a step up from the 5nm Dual-Core in the Watch6), along with the latest Exynos W1000 processor, the same as the Galaxy Watch Ultra, with three times the speed and 30% more efficient performance than the previous generation. It has all the connections you may need from Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth v5.3 and GPS. In some markets it also has LTE connectivity. After 7 days it starts to understand what you are using the watch for and optimises the battery life.

The GPS is now dual frequency for the most accurate tracker ever on a Galaxy watch. It uses L1 and L5 signal bands to help track you through even the most dense city environments, The watch we were testing was running the One UI version 6.0 and Wear OS version 5.0 and I found it snappy and responsive. 

Samsung Health Functionality

The health and fitness tracking is probably the main reason I’d buy the Watch7. Yes it is more expensive to just a standard fitness tracker but the “smart” features I think justify the price. It wouldn’t be a Samsung product if it didn’t include a sprinkle of AI and the Watch7 is no exception. There is an “Energy Score” rating where it combines a number of metrics including sleep time, sleep quality, heart rate and previous day excursions to let you know how well you can perform today.

It’s a nice reference but I wouldn’t plan my whole day around it. I was a Whoop user for 2 years and found this metric tracking similar.

Sleep is very important to me and the Watch7 now also uses it multiple sensors and mic to be the world’s first Smartwatch to feature FDA-authorised sleep apnoea risk detection. The sensors on the side closest to your skin have also been upgraded. Samsung calls these their “BioActive” sensor array which includes 13 LEDs for different tracking along with the electrical bio-sensor ring running outside the LEDs.

For fitness tracking I use the Samsung trackers most of the time outside of the gym. It automatically picks up the many times a day I bring my dog for a walk and I was very impress with the cycle GPS tracking. For in the gym I use the Hevy app and the Watch7 allows me to leave my phone in my gym bag and tick off the different set and routines I have planned for the workout. I can easily change the weight and reps along with track the RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) after the set. 

The Watch7 has a heart monitoring package. The built-in PPG (photoplethysmogram) sensor monitors heart rate and heart rhythm. If it detects irregularities, it notifies you along with a prompt to take an ECG to examine your heart rhythm in more detail. It also has a blood press function but it needs to be calibrated with a full-size blood pressure monitor which I don’t own.

The last four Watch7 health features I want to quickly mention are the medication reminder and tracking feature, the Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA) sensor can measures your body’s composition using just two fingers. The “Cycle Tracking” powered by Natural Cycles which tracks your skin temperature while you sleep to predict your next period and ovulation and lastly it has fall detection. All very handy features in their own right.

Gesture control is something I didn’t use when I had the watch so can’t really comment on it. 

Battery

With so much on offer and with such a compact lightweight design, the Watch7 battery lasted a day to a day and a half on average for me. Depending on watch size the battery size is the same as the Watch6 with 425mAh or 300mAh.

Charging the Galaxy Watch7 is via a magnetic puck and has a USB-C connection. I usually did this when going for a shower or when I knew I was going to be sitting at my desk for a while. Sitting for too long along prompted a little vibration and reminder to move my butt (in a nice way). Guidance from Samsung claim up to 40 hours with Always on Display off and up to 30 hours with AOD on. I have it off and find a quick twist of the wrist activates it. 

Conclusion

At €359, it’s not a cheap purchase but in my opinion, as already mentioned, it lives up to the price. The latest Apple Watch starts at €449, so seeing as this is one of its main Android based rivals, it’s well able to justify the cost. I did find myself using features/apps outside of fitness related ones such as the Bring shopping list app along with Spotify during my time with the Watch7. Very handy and I managed not to have too many messaging apps notifications which, in my opinion, starts to overload the watch wearer. I’d be happy to recommend the Watch7. 

Samsung Galaxy Watch7 Pricing & Availability

The Samsung Galaxy Watch7 is available now from Samsung Ireland and other electronic retail outlets, starting at €329 for the 40mm model.