Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 review: The quintessential smartwatch is here

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 8 is not just another yearly refresh. It’s a deliberate rework of what a smartwatch should be in 2025. Lighter on the wrist, brighter on the eyes, and clever enough to actually make a difference in daily life. Priced at ₹32,999 for the 40mm model and ₹35,999 for the 44mm, it strikes a nice balance between premium design and everyday practicality.

Design: Comfort Meets Craft

Slip the Galaxy Watch 8 on your wrist and the first thing you notice is how effortless it feels. The new case design is subtly reshaped, curving closer to the wrist while shaving off enough thickness to make a difference. The Armour Aluminium frame feels refined and sturdy, while the lighter weight means you can comfortably wear it all day, workouts, showers, and sleep included.

Samsung has also tweaked how the straps connect, introducing Dynamic Lugs that improve fit and stability during exercise. If you’ve used older Galaxy Watches, this one feels noticeably more polished. The overall design language is minimal but still unmistakably Samsung.

Display: A Serious Brightness Boost

The Watch 8 keeps the same display sizes, 1.3 inches on the 40mm and 1.5 inches on the 44mm, but boosts brightness to a stunning 3,000 nits. That’s brighter than many phones, making it easy to read under direct sunlight. The AMOLED panel produces deep blacks and rich colours, while thinner bezels give it a cleaner, more modern appearance. Touch sensitivity is excellent, and the subtle vibration feedback makes navigation feel tactile and responsive.

Software and Smart Features

Running on One UI 8 Watch over Wear OS 6, the Watch 8 finally feels as intelligent as it looks. The new Now Bar adds quick access to running tasks like timers, workouts, or navigation, while redesigned app cards make glancing through notifications feel fluid and intuitive.

Perhaps the biggest step forward is the inclusion of Google Gemini, which is now built in. You can ask it to start a workout, send a message, or find a nearby restaurant without touching your phone. It’s fast, conversational, and surprisingly natural in how it handles multi-step commands.

Hardware and Performance

Under the hood, Samsung’s new Exynos W1000 processor built on a 3nm process powers the watch, paired with 2GB RAM and 32GB storage. Everyday performance feels fluid, whether you’re switching apps, syncing music, or tracking runs. There’s also dual-frequency GPS (L1 + L5) for sharper accuracy in cities or on hiking trails, something long overdue on Samsung’s base models.

Health and Fitness

Samsung continues to lead the Android pack in health tracking, and the Watch 8 pushes it further. There’s now a Running Coach that evaluates your fitness level after a 12-minute run and tailors a personalised training plan. It also adds sleep apnea detection and a quirky antioxidant index, which measures carotenoid levels through your thumb to estimate dietary health.

Alongside these new tricks, you still get the essentials: heart rate tracking, ECG, body composition, stress measurement, sleep analysis, and automatic workout detection. Most of these work seamlessly, though ECG and blood pressure readings still need a Samsung phone for calibration.

Battery and Charging

Battery life has always been Samsung’s weak point, but this time the gains are noticeable. The 325mAh cell can easily stretch to two days of use, including sleep tracking and workouts, or around 30 hours with the always-on display active. It’s not a marathon runner, but it’s consistent and reliable. Charging, however, remains slower than ideal, taking about 90 minutes for a full top-up.

Verdict: Small Tweaks, Big Difference

The Galaxy Watch 8 is not trying to reinvent the smartwatch; it’s perfecting it. The design feels refined, the screen is gorgeous, and performance is snappy. Health tracking remains best-in-class on Android, and the improved endurance makes a difference in real-world use.

It’s the first Samsung watch in years that feels like a genuine leap forward rather than a light refresh. For anyone still wearing a Galaxy Watch 5 or earlier, this is the right time to upgrade. The Galaxy Watch 8 feels practical, balanced, and polished, the kind of smartwatch you’ll actually want to wear every day.