Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 preview: what we expect

Published: Jun 25, 2024, 8:38 AM

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*Photographed: Galaxy Watch 6

Intro

The summer Galaxy Unpacked event is a'coming — no official invites are out yet, but July 10th has been mentioned multiple times. We definitely expect the next-gen Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Galaxy Z Fold 6 to be the headliners of the show, but the Galaxy Watch 7 is also in the cards. Samsung has been updating its smartwatches annually, and leaks about the next model haven't stopped pouring out, so something is definitely cooking.

What's new? On the outside, we expect it to look very much like the Galaxy Watch 6 before it — a circular timepiece with a touch-sensitive bezel to interact with the UI. Under the hood, we expect to get a nice spec bump in both performance and internal storage. Plus, we've been hearing about Galaxy AI features making it to the Watch — we'll see how that pans out.

Supposedly, the true star of the show will be a rumored Galaxy Watch Ultra, the upcoming archnemesis to the Apple Watch Ultra. But the Galaxy Watch 7 should still have enough bang for those that don't want to spend exorbitant money on a titanium smartwatch.

Galaxy Watch 7 new features

New Exynos W940 processor — 3 nm, 30% faster
36 GB, up from 16 GB
Galaxy AI features
15 W charging, up from 10 W

Table of Contents:

Design and Sizes
Bands
Software
Battery and Charging
Models and Prices
Specs
Summary

Design & Sizes

Since we expect the Galaxy Watch 7 to be very similar to the Watch 6 from last year, we suppose it will measure around 42.8 x 44.4 x 9mm (1.69 x 1.75 x 0.35in) and weigh about 28.7g (1.0oz) to 33.3g (1.1oz) for the 40mm and 44mm models, respectively.

The bezel around the circular watchface will be touch-sensitive again — the mechanical rotating bezel used to be exclusive to the Watch "Classic" variation before. This year, we suspect it will be reserved for the Galaxy Watch 7 Ultra.

Screen sizes are expected to stay at 1.3 inches for the 40mm model and 1.5inches for the 44mm one. AMOLED panels, of course — that is Samsung's signature MO.

The previous two generations had a 2,000 nit peak brightness — quite visible under the sun. No word on any upgrades here, but we wouldn't say it's an area that needs immediate improvements. The rumored Galaxy Watch 7 Ultra will supposedly be able to hit 3,000 nits, though.

For protection, there is little doubt that we will get IP68 certification, just as before, protecting your watch from the elements... and sweat.

Bands

The Galaxy Watch 6 came with a new band-latch mechanism, which was still somehow compatible with older Galaxy Watch bands. So, even if there's a change this year — Samsung seems to be invested in making Galaxy Watches backwards-compatible with your old bands. Some users definitely love accessorizing and have made huge collections of them!

Software & Features

Galaxy AI on your wrist?

Galaxy Watches have been rocking Wear OS for a while now — Samsung and Google came together, mixed up Tizen with Android, and came out with a smartwatch platform that took the best of both worlds. But you know, Samsung must be Samsung, so the Wear OS on Galaxy Watches has an extra skin on top, called One UI Watch.

So, the software we expect to see here is One UI Watch 6 (which is already in beta) on top of Wear OS 5. Samsung has also hinted at Galaxy AI features for the Watch 7 — no concrete details, but early reports talk about AI-powered sleep insights, workout optimization, and motivation. Truth be told — Samsung Health has been doing a lot of that in the past, so are we looking at an "AI" moniker slapped on top of already existing machine learning algorithms? Is it all the same? Waiting for the reveal...

Here are the features that Samsung has officially talked about thus far:

A new "Energy Score" will provide daily insights into your overall well-being.
Galaxy AI will recommend personalized workout routines
Runners and cyclists can use the "Race" feature to compare their performance on favorite routes
Detailed "Sleep Score" metrics
Running performance with features like "Aerobic Threshold (AT) / Anaerobic Threshold (AnT) Heart Rate Zone,"

Battery and Charging

The battery in the Galaxy Watch 7 is reportedly the same size as before — 300mAh (40mm model) and 425mAh (44mm model). However, the Exynos W940 is built on a 3 nm process and is supposedly increasing battery efficiency by up to 50%.

The Galaxy Watch 6 was comfortably hitting about a day-and-a-half of use, with Always On Display and all other perks on. We hope to see 2 days this year around!

Charging speed will also supposedly increase by 50%, now drawing 15 W, up from 10 W. Probably the new Qi2 charging standard making a mark here?

Models and Prices

As in the past, the Galaxy Watch 7 will come in two sizes: 40mm and 44mm. You will also have a choice of cellular-equipped Watch 7 models, so you could go on a run without your smartphone bogging you down.

Hopefully, there will be no price increase (no leaks suggest such). With that in mind, here are the expected Galaxy Watch 7 prices:

Galaxy Watch 7 (40mm): $299.99 Wi-Fi only; $349.99 Wi-Fi + Cellular
Galaxy Watch 7 (44mm): $349.99 Wi-Fi only; $379.99 Wi-Fi + Cellular

Specs

Here's a table of the core Galaxy Watch 7 specs:

Specs	Galaxy Watch 7
Size and Weight	40mm: 38.8 x 40.4 x 9mm, 28,7g 44mm: 42.8 x 44.4 x 9mm, 33.3g
Processor, RAM, Storage	Exynos W940 (3nm), 4GB RAM, 32GB storage
Software	Wear OS 5 with One UI Watch 6
Battery and Charging	300/425mAh battery capacity 15W wireless charging
Sensors	Accelerometer, gyro, compass, heart rate, barometer, skin temperature, blood oxygen, altimeter, ECG, geomagnetic, light

The processor here is a big deal. Jumping to a 3 nm process from 5 nm should yield both performance and energy efficiency boosts. The expected Exynos W940 would be the first time Samsung uses a 3 nm processor in any of its devices — even Galaxy S phones still have a 4 nm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.

Summary

The Galaxy Watch 7 will have a pretty nice spec bump, but we wouldn't say you should rush upgrading from a Watch 6. However, it seems to be headed in the right direction, and people that have been holding off on Android smartwatches because they are not-so-great may feel inclined to give it a second look!

We expect the full reveal soon, and we can't wait to test and review it ourselves!

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Preslav, a member of the PhoneArena team since 2014, is a mobile technology enthusiast with a penchant for integrating tech into his hobbies and work. Whether it's writing articles on an iPad Pro, recording band rehearsals with multiple phones, or exploring the potential of mobile gaming through services like GeForce Now and Steam Link, Preslav's approach is hands-on and innovative. His balanced perspective allows him to appreciate both Android and iOS ecosystems, focusing on performance, camera quality, and user experience over brand loyalty.