Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 (Classic) vs Watch 3: what changes?
Take a shortcut:
- Watch 4 vs. Watch 3: versions and prices
- Operating system: Wear OS replaces Tizen
- Hardware: new SoC, new sensors
- Comparison of technical specifications
The Galaxy Watch 4 Classic is the successor to the Galaxy Watch 3 / © NextPit
Samsung Watch 4 (Classic) vs. Watch 3: versions and prices
The Galaxy Watch is available in two versions this year: the Watch 4 and the Watch 4 Classic.
The Classic model is the successor to the Watch 3 and features a mechanical rotating ring in addition to the touchscreen. By rotating this ring around the screen, the user scrolls through lists of apps, functions and settings. With its stainless steel case, the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic is also significantly heavier than the standard aluminum model.
The Galaxy Watch 4 is lighter and also uses aluminum in its construction. Its design is clearly based on the Galaxy Active models from previous years. There is only a virtual crown here: by sliding your finger over the touchscreen we scroll through lists and dialog boxes.
Model Overview: Galaxy Watch 4 vs Galaxy Watch 3
| Model | Galaxy Watch 3 | Galaxy Watch 4 | Galaxy Watch 4 Classic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sizes | 41mm / 45mm | 40mm / 44mm | 42mm / 46mm |
| Prices (BT) | – / R$ 2,099.00 | $250 / $280 | $350 / $380 |
| Prices (LTE) | R$ 2,599.00 / R$ 2,849.00 | $300 / $330 | $400 / $430 |
| Storage | 8 GB | 16 GB | 16 GB |
Although Samsung has not yet announced the price of the new series in Brazil, as well as abroad, the “Classic” model with the rotating crown will certainly have a significant increase in its price compared to the Watch 3. After all, the Watch 3 is already available for well below the launch price.
The Galaxy Watch 4 does not have a mechanical ring and is very similar to the Galaxy Watch Active 2 from 2019 / © NextPit
Operating system: Wear OS replaces Tizen
While the new software underpinnings are probably the biggest difference between the Galaxy Watch 4 (Classic) and the Watch 3, it’s hardly the most noticeable change to people at first glance. That’s because Samsung is putting its own One UI interface on top of Wear OS, so serious Samsung wearable fans won’t have any trouble navigating between the smartwatch’s screens. Under the hood, however, there are some interesting innovations.
Wear OS brings a new app drawer to the Galaxy Watch 4 / © NextPit
Apps: More Google on Wear OS
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 (Classic) offers access to the Google Play Store. So if you have installed an app on your smartphone for which there is a Wear OS version, it will automatically be installed on the Galaxy Watch. In this sense, the Watch 4 (Classic) comes pre-installed with a series of typical Google apps, including YouTube Music and Google Maps.
With Tizen, the choice is more limited because you have to rely on the Samsung Galaxy Store, but now that the OS is gradually being phased out, app developers aren't likely to put too much energy into Tizen versions in the future.
Voice assistants and payment: Watch 4 can say “Ok, Google!”
The move from Tizen to Wear OS brings a big advantage: Google Assistant is native to the system. While it was possible to use Google Assistant on Tizen Galaxy Watches through the Tizen app, the service never worked flawlessly. That should be much better now.
You also have more freedom when paying. While only Samsung Pay is available on the Galaxy Watch 3, the 4 series already offers Google Pay. This should make non-Samsung smartphone users particularly happy: you probably all use Google Pay, right?
Galaxy Watch 3 users are unlikely to receive the Wear OS update. / © NextPit
Tizen vs. Wear OS: Compatibility and Updates
One important thing to keep in mind if you're considering the cheaper Watch 3: Last year's generation won't get a Wear OS update. Ever. Samsung does, however, promise to continue providing security patches to older smartwatches — presumably for three years.
Another point: unlike its predecessor, the Galaxy Watch 4 does not work with iOS. Therefore, anyone who uses an iPhone and wants to buy a Samsung smartwatch will have to go for the 3rd generation. Would you do that?
Hardware: new SoC, new sensors
The Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic feature largely the same hardware. Aside from the aforementioned design, the battery capacity is the only exception.
BioActive sensor measures body fat percentage and more
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 (Classic) has a new sensor, which Samsung has dubbed “BioActive.” At the heart of the sensor are two electrodes integrated into the buttons on the side of the watch. If you touch them, the smartwatch can measure the impedance of your upper body and thus deduce your approximate body mass composition.
At the end, the watch displays your body fat percentage, muscle mass, hydration and so on. Since these values are only recorded for the upper body, the accuracy depends on how close your genetically determined personal distribution of fat reserves is. However, it is possible to record a trend even without medical precision.
When using the bioActive sensor to measure body mass, you need to touch your fingertips to the side buttons of the Galaxy Watch 4 / © NextPit
Sleep monitoring with snore recorder
Like virtually all smartwatches – and the Galaxy Watch 3 too – the Watch 4 (Classic) tracks your sleep. What's new, however, is a continuous SpO2 measurement, which is useful for diagnosing nocturnal breathing pauses, for example. The Watch 4 series also has snore detection and can even record nighttime conversations if you want.
With the Galaxy Watch 4 you can record your evening “concerts” / © NextPit
Processor & battery: longer runtime thanks to 5nm SoC
Battery life was one of the biggest criticisms of the Galaxy Watch 3 – if you really use the watch intensively, you have to charge it every day. We're used to this with smartphones. But smartwatches should be able to be used at night for sleep tracking, right? So you need some “charging time” during the day.
The Exynos W920 brings hope to those looking to buy the Watch 4. The SoC, manufactured on the 5nm process, has an extra power-efficient Cortex-M55 that replaces the two stronger A55 cores in standby mode. However, this is not all positive because, as you can see in the table below, the battery capacity has not increased significantly, nor has the efficiency improved due to Wear OS.
Battery: Galaxy Watch 4 vs Galaxy Watch 3
| Model | Watch 3 | Watch 3 | Clock 4 (Classic) | Clock 4 (Classic) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Size | 41 mm | 45 mm | 40 / 42 mm | 44 / 46 mm |
| Capacity | 247 mAh | 330 mAh | 247 mAh | 361 mAh |
| Execution time according to manufacturer | 43 h | 40 h | ||
As is typical for Koreans, there is unfortunately no particularly fast charging technology. According to Samsung, it takes about 30 minutes to charge the battery with an expected battery life of 10 hours. Smartwatches from Fitbit, Garmin, Huawei and others can easily last a week on a single charge. So Samsung still has a long way to go in this regard.
The Watch 4 comes in different sizes. The classic model is slightly larger and has a mechanical crown! / © NextPit
Screen: more resolution, more amazing?
The new Watch 4 models have received slightly improved displays. Although AMOLED panels are still used here, the resolutions have increased slightly. In practice, this should only be noticeable on the larger model. There is a slight improvement in the glass above the display: Gorilla Glass DX+ is used here, on the Watch 3 it was still the “normal” DX.
All technical data for the Watch 3, Watch 4 Classic and Watch 4 can be seen in the following table.
Specs: Galaxy Watch 4 (Classic) vs Watch 3
| Model | Galaxy Watch 3 | Galaxy Watch 4 | Galaxy Watch 4 Classic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sizes | 41mm / 45mm | 40mm / 44mm | 42mm / 46mm |
| Dimensions | 41mm: 41.0 x 42.5 x 11.3mm 45mm: 45.0 x 46.2 x 11.1mm | 40mm: 40.4 x 39.3 x 9.8mm 44mm: 44.4 x 43.3 x 9.8mm | 42mm: 41.5 x 41.5 x 11.2mm |
| Weight | 41mm: 48g 45mm: 53g | 40mm: 26g 44mm: 30g | 42mm: 47g 46mm: 52g |
| Screen | 41mm: 1.2″ (360×360) 45mm: 1.4″ (360×360) | 40mm: 1.19″ (396×396) 44mm: 1.36″ (450×450) | 42mm: 1.19″ (396×396) 46mm: 1.36″ (450×450) |
| Processor | Exynos 9110 (10nm) | Exynos W920 (5nm) | |
| Storage/Memory | 8GB ROM / 1GB RAM | 16GB ROM / 1.5GB RAM | |
| Operating system | Tizen OS 5.5 | One UI Watch 3.0 (Wear OS) | |
| Battery | 41mm: 247mAh 45mm: 340 mAh | 40mm: 247 mAh 44mm: 361 mAh | 42mm: 247mAh 46mm: 361 mAh |
It is worth mentioning here that all models are protected against dust and water ingress according to IP68 and MIL-STD-810G protection standards. However, as always, caution is advised. Samsung claims water protection up to 5 ATM and thus theoretically up to a diving depth of 50 meters. However, when jumping into water, for example, higher partial pressures can occur at the surface and water can penetrate the housing.
All models also have GPS, WLAN, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC and a Bluetooth or LTE version. All models offer a pulse sensor, ECG, barometer, gyroscope, accelerometer and ambient light sensor.
This is what the Galaxy Watch Active 2, the predecessor of the Galaxy Watch 4, looks like / © NextPit
Conclusion
On paper, the Galaxy Watch 4 (Classic) offers a more exciting overall package, and I have to say that our first impressions of the new watches were very good indeed. Whether the smartwatch is convincing in practice and can become a clear purchase recommendation over the Galaxy Watch 3, we will show in our detailed test. The Watch 4 will have to prove itself, especially in terms of battery life.