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Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 buyer's guide: Everything you need to know
It’s been a couple of years since Samsung released its first Galaxy Watch. In that time, the smartwatch landscape has drastically changed. Companies are adding ECGs and oxygen saturation sensors to their wearables, and features we once thought were a far-off future are now commonplace.
Alongside the Galaxy Note 20 lineup in August 2020, the company launched the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3. It’s lighter and much more powerful than the original and has additional health and safety features that will even give the Apple Watch more competition than before.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 at a glance
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is Samsung’s flagship smartwatch for 2020 and the successor to 2017’s Galaxy Watch. While 2019’s Galaxy Watch Active 2 is geared toward, well, active people, the Galaxy Watch 3 is more suited for those who want a smartwatch first and a fitness companion second.
Also, note that the Galaxy Watch 3 is no longer the latest and greatest from Samsung. Check out our Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 buyer’s guide for more information.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is for those who want:
- a versatile smartwatch
- an alternative to Apple Watch or Wear OS smartwatch
- a smartwatch that doesn’t skimp on fitness or smart features
- a wearable to work alongside your Galaxy smartphone
And it may not be a great pick if you need:
- a watch that will be supported for a few more years
- an inexpensive smartwatch
- decent third-party app support
- the most accurate fitness and health sensors
- the latest and greatest from Samsung
Is the Galaxy Watch 3 worth buying?
That depends. The newer Galaxy Watch 4 is better overall, of course. It’s also cheaper, comes with the promise of four years of updates, and packs more features. However, some of those features remain Samsung smartphone exclusives. You also can’t use it with an iPhone.
Despite this, the Galaxy Watch 3 is still one of the most fully-featured smartwatches you can get. It has a breadth of fitness tracking features, a good health app, fantastic hardware, equally good software, and onboard music storage with support for popular music apps.
It’s pricey, though, even in 2021. It started at $400 when launched, with top-end LTE models going up to $479. That’s a high price to pay for any smartwatch. Its price has come down a bit because the watch has been available for more than a year now, but some retailers still have it listed for its original $400 price tag.
Also, while the Galaxy Watch 3 has many fitness features baked in, it doesn’t track all that accurately. Its GPS and heart rate sensors are far behind what you’d find on a dedicated fitness watch. Notably, the Galaxy Watch 4’s heart rate sensor has been greatly improved over the Watch 3’s.
Be sure to read our full Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 review for all the details.
What reviewers are saying about the Galaxy Watch 3
I’ve already let you know what I think about the Galaxy Watch 3. Here’s what other reviewers around the web have said about the Galaxy Watch 3.
- The Verge’s Dan Seifert praised the Galaxy Watch 3’s rotating bezel and crisp display, as well as its easy-to-use software interface. Overall, though, Seifert drove home the point that the Galaxy Watch 3 isn’t the biggest upgrade compared to previous Samsung watches. He noted that the app selection is still bad and that fitness features are hit or miss.
- Engadget’s Cherlynn Low had good things to say about the Galaxy Watch 3, claiming that it’s the best non-Apple smartwatch. She said the watch is chunkier than the Active 2, which means it’ll be a bit more annoying to use while working out. She mentioned that fitness tracking has improved over previous watches. People on Android looking for non-niche devices like Garmin and Polar watches should probably check out the Galaxy Watch 3.
- TechCrunch’s Brian Heater said “not many can compete” with the Galaxy Watch 3 when it comes to smartwatches on Android. He also called the rotating bezel satisfying, which many other reviewers seem to agree with. Again, Heater noted the lack of third-party apps in the app store, as well as the Galaxy Watch 3’s bulky design.
What people like you think of the Galaxy Watch 3
We like to hear from you, our readers, when big product launches roll around. It’s clear people are opinionated about Samsung’s Galaxy Watch devices, so we issued a few polls to see how hyped (or how un-hyped) you were before and after the launch of the new Samsung watch.
When the Galaxy Watch 3 was just a rumor, we asked you how hyped you were for the watch. Unsurprisingly, the vast majority of AA readers said they were hyped to see Samsung’s next smartwatch. Out of 1,405 total votes, 83.6% said they were excited for the watch, while just 16.44% said they weren’t.
When the Galaxy Watch 3 was just a rumor: Are you hyped for the Galaxy Watch 3?
Things got more interesting after the watch was announced. The $400 price tag was certainly one of the biggest talking points surrounding the Galaxy Watch 3’s unveiling, with many people saying the watch isn’t worth the premium price.
In reality, though, it seems like most people are pretty mixed on whether or not the Galaxy Watch 3 is a good deal. Check out the poll below; just about every option we posed received a nearly equal amount of votes. Many people think the Galaxy Watch 3 is worth the price tag, while others think it’s highway robbery.
Is the Galaxy Watch 3 a good deal?
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 hardware and design
The design hasn’t changed much from the original Galaxy Watch. There are still two sizes to choose from — 41mm and 45mm — and both come with nearly the same specs. The differences, as per usual, are found in the display and battery sizes.
Buy the 45mm Galaxy Watch 3 if you want a bigger smartwatch with a longer-lasting battery. This model has a 1.4-inch AMOLED display and a 340mAh battery, which Samsung says will get you about two days of use on a charge. The 41mm model is smaller and sleeker but has worse battery life. It comes with a 1.2-inch screen and a 247mAh battery, which Samsung says will get you about a day of use.
Both devices charge wirelessly and can be topped up by Samsung’s Wireless Powershare feature.
Samsung says the Galaxy Watch 3 is 14% thinner than the Galaxy Watch, 8% smaller overall, and 15% lighter. Not bad!
One popular feature that’s returning is the physical rotating bezel. Samsung had a hit on its hands (or wrists?) with the original Galaxy Watch’s bezel, which rotated for easier navigation through the software. The company removed it entirely from the Galaxy Watch Active, then added a pseudo-rotating bezel on the Active 2 that was “rotated” by touch.
Related: The best Samsung Galaxy Watch apps for your wearable
You can buy the 45mm Galaxy Watch 3 in Mystic Black and Mystic Silver colorways, and the 41mm Galaxy Watch 3 comes in Mystic Bronze and Mystic Silver. Samsung released a Galaxy Watch 3 variant made of titanium on October 2, 2020. It’s only available in the 45mm size, though.
You can get both sizes of the Galaxy Watch 3 with Bluetooth+Wi-Fi connectivity or LTE+Bluetooth+Wi-Fi.
Interestingly, Samsung is keeping these watches powered by its own Exynos 9110 SoC, which is the same processor that powered the first Galaxy Watch. It also upped the RAM from 768MB to 1GB and upping the storage from 4GB to 8GB.
Finally, they’re durable. All Galaxy Watch 3s are rated for MIL-STD-810G and IP68+5ATM.
In early February 2021, Samsung rolled out a useful update to Galaxy Watch 3 units that brought SmartThings Find support, a new Hand Wash app to time your handwashing, and more.
Samsung followed this up with a sizeable update in November 2021. It brought advanced fall detection settings with sensitivity tweaks, a new Group Challenge feature update, and a host of new watch face options.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 vs Galaxy Watch 4
The Galaxy Watch 4 series was announced in August 2021. There are two models available — the Galaxy Watch 4 and Watch 4 Classic — both of which run Wear OS instead of Tizen that’s found on the Galaxy Watch 3. That means users get access to a lot more apps, including those made by Google.
Read next: Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 vs Watch 4
The Galaxy Watch 4 series is better than its predecessor in many ways, as it offers better health-tracking abilities. It includes new sensors as well, including the BIA sensor that measures body composition. Samsung’s latest watch series also comes with improved hardware in the form of a faster chipset and a bigger battery. We also have to mention the launch price, which is cheaper compared to the one of the Galaxy Watch 3.
While the Galaxy Watch 4 offers more overall, it’s not the better choice for everyone. The biggest reason is that, unlike the Galaxy Watch 3, it doesn’t support iOS devices. To learn more about the differences between the two series, check out our comparison post at the link above.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 vs. Galaxy Watch: What’s new?
Okay, so the Galaxy Watch 3 doesn’t look too different from the original Galaxy Watch. A lot of the big changes are found under the hood.
The Galaxy Watch 3 can track 40 activities, such as running, swimming, and more. It supports automatic activity tracking for seven of those activities, while 33 need to be started manually. During running activities, the watch can give you real-time running analysis and feedback, including asymmetry, contact time, flight time, regularity, vertical, and even how balanced you are while running.
Of course, the new Samsung watch is also equipped with built-in GPS and an optical heart rate sensor. Samsung tells us these are the same sensors that appeared in the Galaxy Watch Active 2. Unfortunately, the new watch struggles with the same issues the Active 2 did.
Samsung included a pulse oximeter in the Galaxy Watch 3 for recording on-demand VO2 max estimates. You can also see a summary of your SpO2 data in the Samsung Health app.
Sleep tracking is getting a big boost, too. Samsung partnered with the National Sleep Foundation to bring better sleep tracking and analysis to its new watch. The Galaxy Watch 3 can measure sleep cycles (light, deep, REM) and your total time awake. It’ll also calculate a sleep quality score based on your sleep stages and movements, available in the Samsung Health app.
If you’re wearing your watch to bed for sleep tracking, people who own the 45mm model with the bigger battery might be better off — sleep tracking does use up some juice! If you have the 41mm model and wear it all day, you may need to top it up before going to bed. Otherwise, you might run the risk of it dying in your sleep.
The pulse oximeter is only able to be used for on-demand readings and general health purposes. It won’t record during sleep tracking, so the Galaxy Watch 3 will not detect signs of sleep apnea like competing products from Fitbit and Withings.
The Galaxy Watch 3 is getting another nice safety feature: trip detection. If the watch’s accelerometer senses that you’ve fallen, you have the option to send a custom SMS to up to four predefined contacts. This will be very helpful for runners who are out on their own or for older users who live alone.
Samsung is also touting the Galaxy Watch 3’s built-in ECG and blood pressure monitoring. On September 23, 2021, Samsung announced that it enabled ECG functionality on the Galaxy Watch 3 and Active 2 smartwatches. You can read more about that here. The company then rolled the feature out to 31 additional countries in late January 2021.
If you happen to own a Samsung TV, the Galaxy Watch 3 will actually be a pretty decent workout companion for staying active at home. You can select a workout on your Galaxy Watch 3 and follow along with a Samsung-made workout video on your television. Samsung says users can select from up to 120 different workout videos.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 specs
| Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 | |
|---|---|
Display | 45mm: 1.4-inch AMOLED 41mm: 1.2-inch AMOLED Corning Gorilla Glass DX |
Dimensions and weight | 45mm: 45 x 46.2 x 11.1mm 53.8g (stainless steel), 43g (titanium) 41mm: 41 x 42.5 x 11.3mm 49.2 |
Colors and materials | 45mm: Mystic Black (stainless steel or titanium), Mystic Silver (stainless steel) 41mm: Mystic Bronze (stainless steel), Mystic Silver (stainless steel) |
Battery | 45mm: 340mAh 41mm: 247mAh WPC-based wireless charging |
Processor | Samsung Exynos 9110 Dual-core, 1.15GHz |
RAM | 1GB |
Storage | 8GB |
Connectivity | LTE (available in select models) Bluetooth 5.0 Wi-Fi b/g/n NFC A-GPS/GLONASS/Beidou 7 |
Sensors | Accelerometer Gyroscope Barometer Optical heart rate sensor ECG Ambient light sensor |
Durability | 5ATM + IP68 MIL-STD-810G |
Software | Tizen OS 5.5 |
Compatibility | Android: Android 5.0 or higher & RAM 1.5GB or above iOS: iPhone 5 and above, iOS 9.0 or above |
What about the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2?
The Galaxy Watch Active 2 is still a solid sports smartwatch. It’s thinner and more workout-friendly than the Galaxy Watch 3. It only has a touch-enabled rotating bezel, though, instead of the much-preferred physical bezel on the Galaxy Watch 3.
If you find yourself using your wearable for tracking workouts, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to consider the Galaxy Watch Active 2 if you can find it at a discount. However, the Galaxy Watch 3 does offer a solid suite of workout features, and the Galaxy Watch 4 is even better at tracking fitness.
Where does Samsung and Google’s Wear OS partnership leave the Galaxy Watch 3?
In May 2021, Samsung announced that it would partner up with Google to develop Wear OS. Three key focuses were outlined: battery life, performance, and the improvement of the app ecosystem. As expected, the Galaxy Watch 4 series runs Wear OS instead of Tizen. But where does this leave the Galaxy Watch 3?
Samsung does not plan to upgrade its current Tizen OS watches to Wear OS. This means the Galaxy Watch 3 and Samsung’s legacy watches will continue running Tizen. With that in mind, you should skip the Galaxy Watch 3 if you’re concerned about its long-term support.
See also: What you need to know about Wear OS
What are some good Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 alternatives?
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 will not be the watch for everyone. Here are a few of our recommended Galaxy Watch 3 alternatives:
- Samsung Galaxy Watch 4: We strongly recommend buying the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 or Galaxy Watch 4 Classic over the Galaxy Watch 3. They have more apps, better fitness tracking, longer software support, and higher-end hardware, not to mention the cheaper price points.
- Apple Watch Series 7: This one’s a no-brainer if you have an iPhone. For iOS users, the Apple Watch Series 7 is hard to beat. It trounces the Galaxy Watch 3 with third-party app support and rivals it in terms of fitness and smart features. It’s a seriously great wearable.
- Garmin Venu 2: If you want a smartwatch that prioritizes accurate fitness and health stats, the Garmin Venu 2 is a good option. It’s one of our favorite fitness watches of all time, thanks to its long feature set and relatively affordable price. It’s not as “smart” as the Galaxy Watch, but it’s likely the better fitness wearable.
These smartwatches are on sale quite often. Be sure to check our best smartwatch deals hub for discounts on today’s popular wearables.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 accessories
So, you’re looking to buy a Samsung Galaxy Watch 3, but you’d like to customize it with some accessories. Luckily, there are lots of first- and third-party accessories to choose from.
Samsung sells leather, metal, and silicone watch straps on its website. Many of the first-party options on Samsung.com are listed for older Galaxy Watch devices, but they should work with your new Galaxy Watch 3.
Not interested in spending the extra dough on a first-party strap? The Galaxy Watch 3 is compatible with most standard watch straps you can buy today. Just make sure you buy the right size. The 41mm Galaxy Watch 3 is compatible with 20mm straps, while the 45mm Galaxy Watch 3 is compatible with 22mm straps. Check out the links below to see popular options on Amazon.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 pricing and availability
Want to get your wrists on one? The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is available from Best Buy and Amazon. Here’s how much each variant costs (excluding sale prices):
- Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 (41mm, Wi-Fi): $399.99 | £399.99
- Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 (41mm, LTE): $449.99
- Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 (45mm, Wi-Fi): $429.99 | £419.99
- Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 (45mm, LTE): $479.99
In India, the Galaxy Watch 3 41mm is priced at Rs 29,990 (~$400) and Rs 34,490 (~$460) for the Bluetooth and 4G variants respectively. The Galaxy Watch 3 45mm Bluetooth and 4G variants are priced at Rs 32,990 (~$440) and Rs 38,990 (~$520).
Keep in mind that these are launch prices. Since the watch has been on the market for more than a year now, you can get your hand on it for less.
Top Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 questions and answers
Q: What happened to the Samsung Galaxy Watch 2?
A: Good question. Samsung likely chose to go with “Galaxy Watch 3” to keep it more in line with its other Active line of smartwatches. Launching a “Galaxy Watch 2” after the Galaxy Watch Active 2 has been out for so long might confuse some people.
Q: Does the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 have MST?
A: Unfortunately, no. Samsung confirmed that the Galaxy Watch 3 does not support MST technology with Samsung Pay — only NFC. It’s a bummer, and we hope Samsung brings back this wonderful feature in a future smartwatch.
Q: What watch straps work with the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3?
A: The 41mm Galaxy Watch 3 is compatible with traditional 20mm straps, while the 45mm variant works with 22mm straps.
Q: Does the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 work with iPhones?
A: Yes, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 works with iPhones. As always, the experience will be much better with a Samsung phone, but you can access most of the watch’s features with an iPhone.
Q: What networks are compatible with the Galaxy Watch 3’s LTE variants?
A: The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 supports several LTE bands used by T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T in the US. Visit this page for a full list of networks supported in other global regions.