The Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 should arrive in a few months, and speculation is running rampant. Leaks have suggested we'll see three different versions of it, but have conflicting information on whether we'll get a Watch 7 Pro, a Watch 7 Classic, or something brand new to the lineup.
Whatever Galaxy Watch 7 models we see, the current rumors point to another Exynos chip upgrade, plus a long-overdue boost to its storage space. But there's still tons that we don't know.
Samsung itself hinted earlier this year that we'll see new AI-backed data in Samsung Health this summer, which would correspond with the likely Galaxy Watch 7 release date.
Here's everything we know or suspect so far about the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7, including how it'll compare to the Galaxy Watch 6.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7: Availability
We've yet to see any Galaxy Watch 7 release date leaks, but Samsung has been very consistent with past launches: The Galaxy Watch 4 shipped on August 27, the Watch 5 on August 26, and the Watch 6 on August 11.
A January Z Fold 6 report indicated that the company intends to launch its newest foldables in the "second half of the year," meaning July at the earliest. We've also heard similar language about the Samsung Galaxy Ring, with a deleted LinkedIn post from a Samsung exec referencing the second half of the year.
While we don't know a specific launch date yet, it's fair to assume there will be a major Galaxy Unpacked event in either July or August, showcasing the Galaxy Watch 7, Galaxy Z Fold 6, Galaxy Z Flip 6, and Galaxy Ring.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7: Models
Samsung always sells its Galaxy Watch in two case sizes to target people with larger or smaller wrists, along with an LTE version for both if you want to make phone calls without your phone present.
Besides the base Galaxy Watch 7, we've heard several rumors that Samsung will return to a Galaxy Watch 7 Pro this year, following the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro in 2022 and Watch 6 Classic in 2023, keeping an alternating pattern from one year to the next.
We did hear back in late 2023 that Samsung was considering a Galaxy Watch Ultra with a microLED display, in the same vein as the Apple Watch Ultra 2. This seems less likely today, given Apple's recent microLED watch struggles, but Samsung could certainly use the "Ultra" label without needing new display tech.
Confusingly, a recent Watch 7 leak claimed we'll see a Watch 7 Classic, Watch 7 Pro, and a "new one," which suggests Samsung might not sell a standard Watch 7 at all. That new model could be the Ultra or the Galaxy Watch Fan Edition leaked by two sources earlier this year.
Ultimately, we can't say for certain yet how many Watch 7 models there will be; we'll wait for more leaks to give clearer information.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7: Price
The last three generations of Galaxy Watches started at $250, $280, and $300, respectively. Size upgrades ($30 extra) and LTE upgrades ($50 extra) have remained unchanged in cost across all models.
Whether due to inflation or because rivals like the Apple Watch ($400) and Pixel Watch 2 ($350) charge more for comparable devices, Samsung could easily continue this slow creep up in price with the Galaxy Watch 7 in 2024.
We hope it stays at $300 and up, but we also wouldn't be surprised if Samsung tried $330 with the Galaxy Watch 7. It just depends on what kind of upgrades Samsung offers to justify the cost.
As for the alleged Galaxy Watch 7 Pro, it could match the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro price ($450), but it's more likely that Samsung will inflate the price even higher — $500 is a fair guess — to match the inflated pricing of the base model.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7: Design and display
After Samsung shrunk the Galaxy Watch 6 display border compared to the Galaxy Watch 5 to maximize the display size, we doubt it can find room to make the Galaxy Watch 7 display any bigger without making the watch itself overly heavy. In other words, you can expect a 1.3- or 1.5-inch AMOLED display, plus a digital bezel along the edge for sliding through menus.
Samsung doubled the display brightness to 2,000 nits for the Watch 6, as well. It's possible Samsung could try to hit the same 2,600 nits of the Galaxy S24 series or the blinding 3,000-nit standard of the Apple Watch Ultra 2. If any model gets brighter, it's probably the Galaxy Watch 7 Pro.
We can also expect Sapphire Crystal display protection across all models, returning from last year.
As for the overall design, we'd expect the Galaxy Watch 7 to retain its flat, machine-cut look, while the Watch 7 Pro would switch from aluminum to titanium with an elevated bezel that sinks into the display, protecting against surface scratches.
We'd be remiss if we didn't mention the recent rumor that Samsung is "enthusiastically" planning a squircle Galaxy Watch, which would qualify as a major design change. But the rumor's timing has us assuming that there's no way Samsung could redesign the Galaxy Watch 7 quickly enough for this summer; a change to the Galaxy Watch 8 seems more likely.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7: Performance
Samsung used the Exynos 9110 with the first three Galaxy Watches, then the Exynos W920 for two watches, and finally, the Exynos W930 with the Watch 6. We initially assumed that Samsung would follow its usual trend and keep the Exynos W930 for the Watch 7, but signs now point to a rare, immediate upgrade.
A Korean news outlet reported back in October that the Galaxy Watch 7 would use the Exynos W940, a 3nm chip that allegedly "improves power consumption by 50%, performance by more than 30%, and reduces area by 35%."
Tipster Roland Quandt reaffirmed this rumor in January, stating that it has an internal name of "Exynos 5535" but that it should be renamed W940 for the official launch.
Given Samsung's focus this year on AI processing, we wonder if this chip upgrade will have any sort of NPU improvement as well. For now, though, this is only speculation. We also assume it will keep the same 2GB of RAM as the last generation, though it looks like Samsung may finally give us more than 16GB of storage, according to one rumor.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7: Likely specs
Purely based on Samsung's patterns with past Galaxy Watch models, we can already guess areas where the Galaxy Watch 7 and Watch 6 will be either identical or very similar.
Samsung should stick to aluminum for the standard Galaxy Watch 7, with either stainless steel or titanium for a hypothetical Watch 7 Classic or Watch 7 Pro. All Watch 7 models should keep the same MIL-STD-810H rating against shock damage and their typical IP68 dust and water resistance.
You should also see the same BioActive sensor for heart rate, ECG, and body composition readings, along with the return of blood oxygen and temperature readings for sleep tracking. Although Samsung is working on non-invasive blood glucose monitoring, the tech shouldn't be ready for several years. Otherwise, it's not clear what new health tech Samsung could offer.
Beyond that, the Galaxy Watch 7 will undoubtedly bring back Samsung's wireless charging puck with at least 10W charging speed, the latest Bluetooth standard, and all of the global navigational satellite systems like GPS and GLONASS.
As noted previously, we hear that Samsung may double its Galaxy Watch storage to 32GB, a long-overdue change given that Apple, Google, and other Wear OS brands all offer that amount of storage.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7: Software
In the closing minutes of Galaxy Unpacked, Samsung revealed many health, fitness, and software features coming "later this year," presumably alongside the Galaxy Watch 7 launch.
For starters, Samsung will introduce "new smart sleep analysis indices" and more in-depth "health patterns." Previous Galaxy Watches warned you about low blood oxygen levels overnight, but the Galaxy Watch 7 will use the BIA sensor will have a "Samsung sleep apnea feature" to alert you if you're dealing with the condition.
The Samsung Health app will use your Galaxy Watch 7 sleep data to develop a "My Vitality Score," which is similar in practice to Garmin Body Battery or Fitbit Daily Readiness scores. Your Vitality score will "monitor your physical readiness and mental preparedness," helping you decide if you're getting enough sleep or if you're ready to work out.
You'll also get "insight messages," which Samsung also called "Booster Cards," to tell you why, specifically, your Vitality score is low in order to change your habits in the future. We should find out more about the new health features as the Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Ring get closer to launch.
We've also heard that Samsung will jump to Wear OS 5 in 2024, though we don't know any specifics yet about its upgrades over Wear OS 4.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 7: Wishlist
As an Android smartwatch, the Galaxy Watch 6 was a top-of-the-line device. But in certain areas like fitness and battery life, it left plenty of room for improvement.
As the person who reviewed the Galaxy Watch 6, here's what I want from the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7, as well as a hypothetical Watch 7 Pro, to see a more exciting release this time around.
Bounce back in battery life
The last three Galaxy Watches offered 40, 50, and 40 hours of estimated battery life, respectively. You'll notice that the Watch 6 fell back a pace, most likely because its higher clock speed and increased RAM draw more power than its small battery capacity can handle.
Even though this number is well above Apple's 18-hour battery life, the Galaxy Watch 6's real battery life falls to 30 hours or below once you start using more intensive features. Any battery leeway Samsung can squeeze out would be welcome.
Samsung managed to shrink the Watch 6 a millimeter to 12mm, making it among the skinniest Android watches. I suspect some Watch 7 buyers would accept a slightly thicker design in exchange for another 10–15 hours of battery life — though others would prefer a more petite design. It'll be interesting to see how Samsung proceeds.
Offer better GPS tracking
In my review, I explained how the Watch 6 couldn't properly track your GPS movements, even in areas with no tree cover that would explain signal problems. So when a Garmin watch says you've hit a certain distance, the Galaxy Watch 6 will still measure you further back, forcing you to run further or harder than you intended.
Unless Samsung can fix its tracking problems, the next solution is to offer All-Systems tracking — which uses GPS along with GLONASS, GALILEO, or other satellite systems simultaneously to triangulate a signal — or dual-frequency GPS. The latter uses both L1 and L5 satellite frequencies that target your position from multiple angles, bypassing any signal obstructions and giving the watch more location data.
These systems are really useful...but also draw more battery life. So ideally, Samsung will offer better battery life so that the Galaxy Watch 7 has the capacity for better tracking. Or, at the very least, the Galaxy Watch 7 Pro should have dual-frequency tracking to compete with the Apple Watch Ultra for accuracy.
Double its storage
Samsung has stuck to 16GB of storage for its watches for years, while the Apple Watch and Pixel Watch both offer 32GB. In fact, once you take the pre-downloaded software into account, the Galaxy Watch 6 actually has closer to 6GB of free space left for apps, watch faces and music.
The leaked rumor that the Galaxy Watch 7 will receive 32GB of memory has us relieved and hopeful. It should give Samsung watch fans more leeway to stream onboard music or try out more apps without having to delete others first, putting it on par with the Pixel Watch 2.
Use Galaxy AI to make the Watch 7 more exciting for fitness
The Galaxy Watch 6 is a great Android watch, but it has plenty of issues as a fitness watch. The Watch 7, and especially the Watch 7 Pro, have plenty of room for growth, and Galaxy AI may be the solution.
In addition to the My Vitality Score helping you figure out your energy level or sleep quality, it could also recommend workouts based on that score and your VO2 Max data. Samsung could also copy Google & Fitbit by using algorithms behind the scenes to give you more accurate heart rate data when the watch doesn't have a perfect fit on your wrist.
