Every smartwatch is full of innovative new tech but what the new Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra2 does exceptionally well is make that information both easily accessible and digestible through updates to the display screen. Ultra2 has been built for the person who spends a good deal of time on trail runs, on dives and on demanding outdoor pursuits, but it deserves consideration even if extreme activity is not a regular feature of your week. There are a number of improvements here that matter in ordinary daily use — brightness, the larger battery inside, several design refinements, the way the watch now sits on the wrist, and the new software and health features, particularly around sleep.
I happen to be the sort of person who wears a smartwatch to bed, largely to take advantage of features such as Vitals, which, as it turns out, takes a considerable while to build up a usable set of data. More on that later.
Galaxy Watch Ultra2 takes trail running further. Every course is precisely tracked. But first, get your energy score for the day. Picture: The Telegraph / Mathures Paul
In terms of build, Samsung has made the watch 12 per cent thinner. One would assume that a change of that order makes little difference in practice, but on the wrist it certainly does. Put the Ultra2 on and it is noticeably slimmer than the previous generation, and you register the difference immediately. The remarkable part is that Samsung has not only made the watch appreciably thinner, it has also fitted a bigger battery inside it.
The buttons have been reworked as well. The orange accent is a little more prominent than before, and the buttons at the top and bottom stand out more clearly too. The layout has changed, and the buttons themselves are slightly thicker and easier to identify by feel, which is another detail I came to appreciate. Taken together, these changes give the watch a more polished character. It is not merely the reduction in thickness; the Ultra2 simply looks better all round.
Another point of interest is the band, which now contours more closely to the wrist. When you fasten it, it tapers to the wrist more effectively than the band on the previous generation did. The overall bulk and weight have come down, and that counts for a great deal on a device you are expected to wear every day.
From ECG to blood pressure and Vitals, there are plenty of metrics the Ultra 2 can measure. Picture: The Telegraph / Mathures Paul
The real upgrades
Battery life on the Ultra2 is exceptional. After charging it overnight, I woke to find 86 per cent remaining. That is impressive on its own, and it was achieved while the watch was handling heavy notification traffic throughout the day — I receive Slack notifications at what feels like minute intervals. On top of that, I have been wearing the Ultra2 to bed for Vitals readings, which draws further on the battery.
On average, the watch has been returning around three days of use, draining roughly 29-30 per cent a day in my experience, and that is with the always-on display enabled. Anyone with lighter usage patterns could extend that considerably by switching off notifications.
If you intend to use it as a genuine outdoor watch, expect closer to two days, because sustained GPS use is demanding. That, of course, is precisely why Samsung has fitted such a large cell in the first place. As an everyday smartwatch, however, 2.5 days is achievable even while tracking routine health metrics and ordinary workouts such as runs and walks, thanks to the 800 mAh battery.
The other significant differentiator this year is brightness, which now peaks at 5,000 nits. The figure sounds excessive until you use the watch outdoors. It makes a tangible difference when you are reading notifications in daylight and want to respond to them quickly, and equally when you are checking health data mid-run.
There are plenty of watch faces to choose from. Picture: The Telegraph / Mathures Paul
What is worth noting is that the Ultra2 does not throttle appreciably. It holds that 5,000-nit peak for a good full minute before it begins to dim, which is more than can be said for a number of phones — take one out in the Calcutta summer and it will start dimming almost immediately in direct heat. The Ultra2 comes through it. So this is a watch that offers not only strong battery life and strong brightness, but also good thermal behaviour from the new Snapdragon chip inside.
Durability is the other consideration. The case is thicker than that of the Watch9 for good reason, since the metal is not left directly exposed at every point. There are rubber bumpers around the outside, and these account for its shock resistance. The result is an exceptionally rugged watch. You can knock and bang it against almost anything without picking up scuffs or scratches. You could drop it on concrete, and there is a raised bezel around the front, which means the display itself is well protected from scratches. When I wear this watch, I do not think about it at all, because I know that whatever the day involves, damage in ordinary use is unlikely.
Galaxy Watch Ultra2 is rated IP69K, 10 ATM and EN13319 certified; it’s not just dust and water resistant, it’s dive-ready. Picture: The Telegraph / Mathures Paul
Health features
I have been using the health and sleep features, and have begun working through some of the basic fitness tools as well. There is a good deal of substance here. Daily cardio load, the running coach and the new Vitals feature are all present, and each of these can be added to the tiles on the Ultra2.
The Energy score becomes available after a single night of wear. It reports your score for the day along with a sleep score, and the data is genuinely useful. Despite being larger than a conventional smartwatch, the Ultra2 does not weigh the wrist down during sleep.
Vitals, however, requires a baseline, and that baseline has to be established over a seven-day period. Because I was switching between the Ultra2 and the Galaxy Watch9 during the review, I did not realise that Samsung Health does not fully synchronise this data. Even if you select the sync option within settings, it will not carry across between watches and phones. For most users this is unlikely to matter, since few people run two watches and two phones in parallel.
The antioxidant index is another feature worth examining. Going by my own reading, I need to eat rather more broccoli. It is a genuinely interesting addition.
Blood pressure and ECG are both available, and I tested them. The first time you use the ECG feature, you are required to take three measurements against a proper ECG device, which assists with calibration. Once that is complete, you can monitor blood pressure from the Ultra2 itself. The ECG feature, it should be said, has been part of the range for several years now.
The strap is sturdy and comfortable to wear for days. Picture: The Telegraph / Mathures Paul
There is also a Blood Glucose feature, though it essentially allows you to record measurements taken by conventional means rather than take readings itself.
All of these features serve a useful purpose in helping you keep track of your general condition. Heart health is another worthwhile addition, aggregating a range of scores — sleep, various activities, blood pressure and BMI among them — all of which feed into the Samsung Health app.
Where could Samsung improve matters? The Ultra2 would hold wider appeal if it were offered in a smaller 44-45mm version, which would sit far better on slimmer wrists.
This is a watch to buy if you are an outdoor enthusiast, but it is equally a watch an ordinary user can buy and still draw a great deal from. The 5,000 nits and the 800 mAh battery are the headline improvements, and I would argue that brightness and battery life are the two most important attributes of any smartwatch, particularly depending on the climate you live in, since they determine both outdoor readability and how long you can go between charges. Samsung has made a number of other worthwhile improvements besides, and One UI 9 is excellent throughout.
If you’re already in the Samsung product ecosystem, the Ultra2 remains an easy alternative to a Garmin. And if you’re the owner of a previous-gen Galaxy Watch, the Ultra also stands out as the best-in-class current model and it’s well worth considering the upgrade.
Galaxy Watch Ultra2 is the world’s first up-to-5,000-nit display on a smartwatch. Picture: The Telegraph / Mathures Paul
At a glance
Device: Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2
Price: Upwards of Rs 64,999
High notes
** 5,000 nits peak brightness
** 800 mAh battery, around 2.5 days of use
** More tactile buttons
** Better-contoured band
** Minimal thermal throttling
** Rugged case with rubber bumpers and raised bezel
** Wide health suite, including Vitals, antioxidant index, blood pressure and ECG
Muffled notes
** No smaller watch case option
** Vitals needs a seven-day baseline