"Who needs an expensive Rolex?"
Samsung Electronics unveiled the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, optimized for outdoor activities, and the Galaxy Watch 9, designed for everyday health management. As digital health shifts from reactive care to prevention, the company aims to put a personal physician on every user's wrist.
Samsung Electronics introduced both watches at Galaxy Unpacked 2026, held Wednesday (local time) at Old Billingsgate in London. Pre-orders open Tuesday through Samsung.com, online marketplaces and offline stores, with the official launch set for Aug. 7.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 47mm LTE model is priced at 969,100 won ($657). The Galaxy Watch 9 44mm LTE model is priced at 569,800 won, the Bluetooth model at 539,000 won, the 40mm LTE model at 529,100 won and the Bluetooth model at 499,000 won.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 comes in a single 47mm size in Titanium Silver and Titanium Gray. The Galaxy Watch 9 is available in two sizes — 40mm and 44mm. The 40mm model comes in KREAM and Graphite, while the 44mm model is offered in Silver and Graphite.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is built for durability and sport. It carries an 800mAh battery — a 35 percent increase over its predecessor — and runs on the Snapdragon Wear Elite platform, delivering faster processing speeds and improved GPS tracking accuracy.
Samsung also redesigned the internal structure to trim body thickness by 12 percent from the previous model, bringing it down to 10.7mm. The display supports up to 5,000 nits of brightness, ensuring clear visibility even in direct sunlight.
The watch achieves an IP69K dust and water resistance rating. A newly introduced trail running feature tracks elevation detail, climbing progress and ground conditions, helping users manage their pace and reduce the risk of injury.
The Ultra 2 also carries a 10ATM water resistance rating — meaning it can withstand water pressure up to 10 times atmospheric pressure — alongside IP69K protection and EN13319 certification, the international safety standard for diving equipment, making it safe to use underwater. From the moment a user enters the water, the watch records depth, time and water temperature in real time.
The Galaxy Watch 9 also runs on the Snapdragon Wear Elite platform for faster speeds and improved data processing. Its 390mAh battery offers a 20 percent improvement over the previous model, enabling extended monitoring even during sleep. A display reaching up to 3,000 nits allows users to check health metrics outdoors.
Samsung Electronics added a range of new health management features to the wearables, covering sleep, activity, cardiovascular health and recovery.
The "Vital Signs" feature monitors heart rate, heart rate variability, breathing rate, skin temperature and blood oxygen levels during sleep, alerting users when meaningful changes are detected. The "Heart Health Score" feature tracks trends in sleep, activity, body composition and vascular stress to generate an overall heart health score.
The "Daily Cardio Load" feature analyzes the strain placed on the heart through daily activity and exercise, then advises users whether to proceed with their planned workout or rest. The "Body Fitness Index" feature evaluates personal fitness indicators — including body composition and cardiorespiratory endurance — to provide insights for improving physical performance. A "Hearing" feature detects and warns users of harmful noise levels.
The sleep apnea detection feature, which became the world's first smartwatch function to receive FDA approval in 2024, has been upgraded to provide additional AI-powered insights into breathing disturbance levels during sleep. The AI-based sleep apnea detection capability on Galaxy Watch recently received an additional FDA approval.
Roh Tae-moon, head of Samsung Electronics' MX Division, called the new products "an important milestone in the digital health experience that will enable users to lead healthier lives through preventive health care," adding that "the new Galaxy Watch series will provide practical insights to support proactive health management."
ko@heraldcorp.com
