Galaxy Watch 8 series review: Nails it, if you have a Samsung smartphone

Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 is a solid all-rounder, and the Classic is the stylish, premium pick. But both come with caveats, either pricing or ecosystem restrictions

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The Galaxy Watch 8 series, comprising the Galaxy Watch 8 and Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, is the latest from the South Korean electronics maker Samsung. It brings improvements in design, health monitoring tools, and AI-driven functions. It is also the first Galaxy Watch series to offer Google’s Gemini. The smartwatches are based on Google’s Wear OS 6 platform with Samsung’s One UI 8 Watch interface on top.

 

Two of our in-house consumer technology experts collaborated to test the Galaxy Watch 8 and Galaxy Watch 8 Classic for you. To take the testing up a notch, they reviewed the devices in different ecosystems. Aashish Kumar picked the Galaxy Watch 8 and paired it with the recently launched Galaxy Z Flip 7, whereas Harsh Shivam picked the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic and used it with the Google Pixel 9a and the OnePlus 13s.

 

They’ve penned down their observations about the devices below:

Design

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Hey, Harsh. We are twinning, aren’t we?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): What are you talking about, Aashish. Is it these Samsung watches?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): It was a rhetorical question. But since you have answered it anyways; Yes, I am speaking about the Samsung watches that we have been using for over two weeks now. I see that the one on your wrist is not much different from what’s there on mine, except it yours has a retro touch.

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): That’s right, but there is more to this one than meets the eyes. I will go into detail, but first, let’s take your views on the design.

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): See, the first thing I noticed was the design. You know how Samsung used to reserve that mix of circle and square-like bezels for the Ultra line? They’ve brought it down to the regular Watch 8 now.

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Oh, so the standard model looks Ultra-inspired now?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Kind of. My unit is in grey, and it did look nice. The silicone strap is soft, yet offers a snug and secure fit – maybe too snug. After wearing it for extended hours, my wrist actually turned white, like circulation was cut off. Did you face anything like that with the Classic?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Not really. My Classic had a strap with a leather-like texture on top but silicone underneath, so it was snug but comfortable. My only gripe was the white strap picking up dirt really quickly.

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Oh, the leather-like strap. That’s a classic move. But isn’t it more modern looking watch out of the two in terms of aesthetics?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): It is a modern watch by all means, but with a design inspired from retro watches. There is a metallic dial, tachymeter-style markings, and the white tone on the dial gave it a real analogue watch vibe. It looked a lot closer to a proper luxury timepiece. Enough about classic, what do you think about the Watch 8?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): It is minimal, but functional. It looks good with the variety of watch faces, but I wouldn’t say it had that premium edge. Wait, there is a crown on your watch?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): That’s called a rotating bezel, and it sets the classic apart from the regular one. Unlike other watches with faux crowns, this rotating bezel is actually functional. You can customise it, too. I used it to switch between tiles, but it also scrolls through apps. Plus, there’s a crown on the side, which works as a programmable button. Do you miss not having the rotating bezel on the Watch 8?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Not really. There is no mechanical crown on this one but the display bezels are touch sensitive and work just right to navigate the interface quickly. But tell me, did the Classic’s bulk bother you?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): A little. It is thick and heavy. It took me some time to adjust to the weight and thickness during workouts or runs. But when I wore it with formal clothes, it really did look sharp. Would you say the regular Watch 8 had any design edge over the Classic?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Apart from being lighter and less bulky, not really. The Classic clearly wins on premium looks. However, I would not trade features for weight, as I wore this for over two weeks, and being bulky would’ve irritated me.

Display

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): The panel on this one is bright enough outdoors, though in bright sunlight it struggled a bit. Have you faced any such issue with the Classic?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Not with the sunlight legibility, but I think the display on the Classic does not match its size and bulk of the watch – it looks smaller in-person. Did you feel your Watch 8’s display size was just right?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): I think so, yes. The glass on the screen is sturdy, too. I tossed it in my pocket with house keys, and feared it would get scratches, but it didn’t. But smudges were a pain, it picks up fingerprints very easily. Did you notice the same?

   

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Absolutely. Smudges are unavoidable. But the Classic’s raised bezel helped by adding a bit more protection against bumps and scratches. I didn’t worry about accidental knocks as much. Did the flat design of the Watch 8 make you feel more cautious?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): A little, yes. It always felt like I had to be more careful. But the extended cushions on the case and the strengthened glass on the display kept it protected even in times when I have been casual with it.

Ecosystem Experience

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Pairing the Watch 8 with the Galaxy Z Flip 7 felt almost seamless. Most of the basic apps were already preloaded, synced automatically, and I didn’t even have to log in again. The whole setup, including downloads and updates, took me about 10–15 minutes. I think you will have more to say on the ecosystem experience since you used it with the non-Samsung devices.

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): The experience, honestly, was not as smooth. With the Pixel 9a, I had to download multiple apps separately, sign into my Samsung account on each, and grant permissions one by one. It was straightforward, just more time-consuming.

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Were all the features supported by the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic supported when paired with non-Samsung devices? I am talking about health features like SPO2, ECG, or Blood Pressure readings.

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Not really. The Classic worked with the Pixel 9a and OnePlus 13s with the Samsung Health app available on Play Store to download. However, the watch has a set of features enabled through its built-in Samsung Health Monitor app. These features displayed a message saying it required a Galaxy phone. That meant I couldn’t measure things like ECG and blood pressure. SPO2, stress and heart rate monitoring are available but only while tracking workouts or during sleep. 

  Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): That’s a big limitation. On my Flip 7, I could access all of those at any time, right from the watch. Did you at least get the advanced workout metrics?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Yes, workout tracking still gave me detailed readings—SPO2, VO2 max, heart rate zones, and during sleep, skin temperature. The core data was there, but the flexibility wasn’t.

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): And how about Gemini?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Gemini was actually pretty good once set up. I used it for quick info, alarms, and YouTube Music playback. But it only works if the paired phone runs Android 16. That’s why it worked on the Pixel 9a but not on the OnePlus 13s, which is still on Android 15. How was your experience with it?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Similar. It handled tasks well, though some features like live camera and screen access still stayed on the phone. I couldn’t help thinking how cool it would be if these watches had a tiny camera built in.

Health and Fitness

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): The Watch 8 can track just about everything—BP, ECG, SPO2, vascular load, antioxidant index, stress, heart rate, body composition, even sleep studies. Using it with a Samsung phone gave me access to all of these any time I wanted. How much of that were you able to use with the Classic on the Pixel?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Quite a bit, but not all. Since Samsung Health Monitor was restricted, I couldn’t simply tap the watch for ECG or BP. But during workouts and sleep, I still got SPO2, VO2 max, heart rate zones, and even skin temperature. Sleep tracking also worked fine.

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): And how reliable did you find the tracking?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Mostly solid. For instance, when I paired the watch with Pixel Buds Pro 2, I’d get real-time audio prompts during workouts—every kilometre it gave me distance, average heart rate, and speed. After long workouts, the watch even estimated sweat loss and suggested how much water I should drink.

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): That’s impressive. Did it give you sleep recommendations too?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Yes, after logging about a week of sleep, it identified patterns and combined them with my schedule to suggest when I should sleep and wake up. Pretty useful.

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Were there any misses?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): A couple. The “energy score” felt off—it sometimes rated me higher on nights I slept less, even though my activity stayed the same. Maybe it factors in extra data, but results weren’t always consistent. Also, when the watch auto-detected activities like walking, it didn’t automatically turn on GPS. I had to start workouts manually to get location data.

Sleep and activity tracking data from Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Interesting. On my side, everything worked smoothly. SPO2, ECG, BP, heart rate—all measurable anytime. For BP, I had to calibrate once with a proper machine, but after that it worked fine. And features like stress monitoring, body composition analysis, and VO2 max gave me detailed insights I’d normally only get from expensive medical devices.

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): How about sleep tracking accuracy for you?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Detailed, but not exactly accurate. It tracked sleep duration, deep sleep, and time in bed, but it often underestimated how long it took me to fall asleep by around 45–50 minutes. So yes, useful but not flawless.

Health data from Samsung Galaxy Watch 8

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Did you face any other issues?

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): Unfortunately, yes. After wearing the Watch 8 continuously for a day and a half, I developed burn marks where the sensors sit. My skin turned red and stayed irritated for more than five days. It could just be me, since you didn’t face it with the Classic, but still concerning.

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Yeah, I didn’t have that problem at all, but I will always be cautious now of wearing the watch for extended hours.

Conclusion

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): If I sum up my time with the Watch 8, I’d say it did leave a positive impression. The new design language, borrowed from the Ultra line, gave it a fresh look. Battery life averaged about a day and a half, and charging it fully took around two hours. The health tracking features were its strongest suit, even if I still personally prefer a classic analogue watch for everyday wear. At Rs 32,999, it’s priced okay, but if Samsung had trimmed it a little, I think a lot more people would’ve been tempted.

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): I’d agree. The Watch 8 Classic looks stunning—it’s definitely for people who love that premium analogue style. Between the metallic finish, the rotating bezel, and overall build, it really stands out. Performance was solid too, with a day’s worth of battery life even with GPS and sleep tracking on.

 

But here’s the catch: it starts at Rs 46,999, which is a big step up from the standard model. And at that price, I don’t think Samsung should still be locking ECG and blood pressure features to just Galaxy phones. For something pitched as the “Classic,” I’d expect full access no matter which Android phone I use.

 

Aashish Kumar (Galaxy Watch 8): So in short, the Watch 8 is a solid all-rounder, and the Classic is the stylish, premium pick. But both come with caveats, either pricing or ecosystem restrictions?

 

Harsh Shivam (Galaxy Watch 8 Classic): Exactly. Choosing one really depends on whether you’re already in Samsung’s ecosystem and how much you value that premium design.

Samsung Galaxy Watch 8: Unboxing

Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic: Unboxing