Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic review: Stuck in the middle

Best Prices Today: Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic

The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic sees Samsung reprise a smartwatch design it chose to put to one side when it launched the Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 7 in 2024.

Whether it was the reaction from Classic fans or it was always the plan to bring it back in 2025, the Samsung smartwatch with the popular physical rotating bezel returns and it’s not just all about the bezel.

Along with that signature trait, Samsung also takes some design inspiration from its 2024 wearables while embracing Google’s latest Wear OS software and its own One UI additions to make this a formidable package.  

Design & Build

• New ‘cushion’ design
• Physical rotating bezel
• New strap lug connectors

Before getting onto the bezel, there’s a bit more to address with the look of the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic.

The big talking point here is Samsung’s decision to incorporate the cushion design introduced on the Galaxy Watch Ultra that sits behind that attention-grabbing twisty bezel.

It looks like a combination of two ideas – one that’s there to appease and the other to add some uniformity

I liked the move to this ‘squircle’ look for the Ultra and having recently tested the regular Galaxy Watch 8, I think it works well there too.

As for the Classic, which comes in just black or white versions, the overall aesthetic feels a bit more jarring. It looks like a combination of two ideas – one that’s there to appease and the other to add some uniformity, and the result is something that’s pretty awkward.

The bezel has been the feature that’s largely carried the Classic look in the past and while it’s satisfying as ever, twisting between two fingers to adjust volume or scroll through screens, I’m not sure the combination of the two looks really works – you may disagree, of course.

It’s a watch that you definitely know is there at all times, that’s for sure.

At 63.5g, it’s a touch heavier than the Watch 6 Classic, with that stainless steel carrying a bit of heft. If you prefer something that sits lighter on your wrist, the Galaxy Watch 8 might be the one for you instead.

Samsung retains the two large pusher buttons running down the right side of the case and takes another design feature from the Galaxy Watch Ultra in the form of its Quick Button.

The take on Apple’s Action button gives you one-button access to features like the onboard stopwatch, camera controller, torch or you can simply disable it. If you disable it, then it’s basically a button that can’t be used for anything else.

Flip the watch over and you’ll find Samsung’s BioActive sensor array and the buttons used to release each end of the watch strap. The strap uses a new lug system designed to improve comfort and make it easy to swap out the watch strap.

I’d actually say the strap can actually be quite tricky to release, set inside this new case design. I can’t say I really noticed that it added anything on the comfort front either.

Screen & Audio 

• 1.3-inch Super AMOLED display
• Up to 3,000 nits brightness 
• Wi-Fi and 4G models

The Watch 8 Classic packs a 1.3-inch, 438 x 438 resolution display, so that’s actually a downgrade in size and resolution compared to the Watch 6 Classic’s high-resolution, 1.5-inch display.

It does seem that introducing that cushion design, despite being a 46mm body, has impacted the amount of screen you now get to tap and prod at. This isn’t ideal id you’re looking for a combination of rotating bezel and big screen.

It’s a good display nonetheless. Samsung rarely puts a bad one in its smartwatches. It’s nice and bright with a maximum brightness of 3000 nits. There is the option to use an adaptive brightness mode and which ensures the screen is at its brightest when it’s most needed.

You also have the option to set to always-on display mode, while you additionally get the option to wake up the display using the rotating bezel, making sure it’s well integrated into your daily interactions.

There is a 4G version of the Watch 8 Classic, which will require more of your money. In return, you’ll be able to make calls, stream music and download apps without needing your phone nearby.

The onboard microphone and speaker array don’t equal what I’d call a stellar performance. It’s not the clearest, nor the loudest to use for calls or to listen to audio.

Software & Features 

• Runs on Wear OS 6.0 
• Google Gemini AI onboard
• 64GB storage

The Watch 8 Classic features Samsung Exynos W1000 3nm processor from the Galaxy Watch 7 to take care of performance.

You’re also getting 64GB of storage which is double the Galaxy Watch 8 and four times that of its predecessor.

Of the storage, 49GB of it is available to soak up with apps, watch faces and music. The software thankfully runs slick and doesn’t leave you waiting achingly long to boot up apps.

These changes have made a huge difference and are what Wear OS has needed

The most noticeable changes lie with the software where you’re getting a combination of Wear OS 6 and Samsung’s own One UI 8 Watch laid on top.

This brings user interface tweaks like the ability to view similar Tiles (widgets) on a single screen as a stream. So, all the health-focused features can be viewed in one place. When you’ve got an app running and it’s not at the forefront of your attention, Samsung has brought over the Now bar from its phones to your watch face screen to give you quicker access.

These changes have made a huge difference and are what Wear OS has needed.

Swipe through the main app screen and you’ll see some familiar suspects in terms of staple smartwatch features. From a Samsung point of view, there’s Bixby, dedicated apps for the music player and media controls and a SmartThings app.

On the Google side, you’ve got access to the Google Play Store, a well-optimised Google Maps app and you now get Google Gemini which no doubt you’ll use 100 times more than Bixby.

Gemini is the big story. Out goes Google Assistant and in its place an AI-powered smart assistant that instantly feels more useful. Unlike previous assistant support, whether Google or Samsung’s, the ability for Gemini to handle more advanced queries instantly makes it a more useful assistant.

I asked about everything from things I should wear for the day based on the weather, to what I can make for dinner with some leftover pastry and spinach. The responses were actually useful. The problem is that Gemini isn’t going to be unique to Samsung’s smartwatches and soon you’ll find it cheaper watches like the Google Pixel Watch 4.

What hasn’t changed is that you really need three different apps on your phone to put all of the Watch 8 Classic’s features to good use. That’s Samsung Wear, Samsung Health and the Samsung Health Monitor app for those with Samsung smartphones.

Fitness & Health Tracking 

• Antioxidant index feature
• Personalised running coach
• New bedtime guidance

Whether you want to track workouts, keep a closer eye on your health or simply want to be told if you’ve had a good night’s sleep, the Watch 8 Classic should have a feature here for you.

As a fitness tracker, it’ll count your steps, and many of the onboard watch faces can display your progress. The automatic workout tracking can pick up when you’re out for a walk among other activities, and display animations to remind you to stay active.

Comparing daily step counts with other trackers and the 8 Classic generated step totals in the same ballpark. They never felt overly high or low in comparison. I would say, as far as motivating me to move more, Samsung doesn’t really do anything hugely different from other smartwatches.

For sleep tracking, it’s a pretty comprehensive experience and also a richer one if you own a Samsung smartphone. For any Android user, you’ll be able to see sleep stats like sleep scores, sleep stages, including the REM sleep stage and also monitor blood oxygen, skin temperature and heart rate.

I’ve been wearing it alongside the Oura Ring 4 and both provided similar sleep times and sleep scores. Digging into the sleep stages data and the Samsung tended to record slightly shorter times spent in that important REM stage that’s tied to memory and learning. Information like average heart rate was usually 1-2bpm out from the Oura as well.

Beyond that, you can now get guidance on when to go to sleep, once the watch has captured a few nights of sleep, it’ll suggest a bedtime window. These windows never felt wildly generous with those windows and for some bad sleepers could be useful.

You’re also getting Samsung’s recently introduced sleep apnea detection feature, which like Samsung’s great ECG and blood pressure features, can only be accessed and used on a Samsung Galaxy phone via the Samsung Health Monitor app.

You can choose to enable or disable the sleep apnea feature and it will use the rear watch sensor to track blood oxygen levels after tracking over two nights of sleep. Just be mindful that turning it on does have an impact on battery life.

That’s not the end of the health features. A new vascular load metric will tell you more about the stress put on your vascular system – that’s the system responsible for the transportation of blood throughout the body.

If the load is high, that could be a sign of potential health issues. Thankfully, mine remained steady with the baseline you need to set by taking your watch to bed for three nights.

Another new feature is the Antioxidant Index, which wants to make sure you’re getting enough of those antioxidants that can be associated with the slowing down of ageing and generally living a healthier life.

Capturing a reading is done when you take the watch off and place your thumb on the Bioactive sensor on the back of the watch for a measurement that just takes a few seconds. You’ll then be scored between 0-100.

If you’re hitting a high score, that’s good. If it’s below 75, you’re not hitting the WHO’s daily recommended amount of fruit and vegetables. My score was regularly in the 50 range, which meant my level was low and The Verge pointed out it can be ‘fooled’ with a Cheeze-It, so take it with a pinch of salt. Having to take the watch off to do the measurements quickly became tedious.

I’m a pretty experienced runner and the plans recommended to me didn’t really align with my current running ability at all, which is worrying

On the sports tracking front, Samsung serves up plenty of sports modes and does offer the desirable dual-band GPS. That’s designed to give outdoor tracking an accuracy boost. You’re now getting a new personalised running coach that will become more personalised once you’ve completed a test to run as far as you can in 12 minutes.

After that, you’ll be suggested an achievable running plan based on that test. I’m a pretty experienced runner and the plans recommended to me didn’t really align with my current running ability at all, which is worrying.

The GPS performance isn’t what I’d consider particularly outstanding either. Particularly when compared to other sports watches from Garmin and even an Apple Watch. It’s a similar story for heart rate tracking where maximum heart rate readings, even for less intense workouts, trended higher than a reliable chest strap heart rate monitor.

That personal running coach is tagged as a beta feature, while the Antioxidant Index, vascular load and recently introduced AGEs index are features that are considered experimental. That means they’re not officially released features suggests you shouldn’t entirely trust everything they’re telling you right now.

Battery Life & Charging

• Up to 40 hours battery life
• Up to 30 hours in always-on display mode 
• Power saving mode available 

The Watch 8 Classic moves to a slightly larger 445mAh capacity battery compared to the 425mAh one used on the 6 Classic.

That small increase in battery size gives you a sense of what you can expect from the battery life. It’s not hugely different and rivals like the OnePlus Watch 3 still outpace it.

In fact, Samsung quotes the same up to 40 hours using the raise-to-wake mode, or 30 hours with the screen on at all times. If you plan to keep that screen bright and use features like the sleep apnea one overnight, these are the kinds of things that put greater strain on battery life.

When I used it with the raise-to-wake mode, the battery was just under two days. With the screen on at all times, it was closer to 1-1.5 days. Samsung does include some additional modes to push things further, and show you features to disable to push things further.

In Wear OS terms, it’s not the best you’re going to get and is zero improvement on the last Classic, which is a shame considering the two-year gap between them.

When you’re using the GPS, the battery drop after 30 minutes of running was 8%. That roughly works out to about 5-6 hours of GPS battery life. You can find cheaper smartwatches that offer a lot more in terms of GPS battery.

Price & Availability

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic was announced in July 2025 and is available to buy now with pricing starting at £449/$499 for the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi version. That jumps to £499/$549 if you want to add in LTE connectivity.

You can buy it from Samsung, Amazon and other retailers.

Looking at things from a Samsung smartwatch perspective, the 8 Classic is roughly £150/$150 cheaper than the Galaxy Watch Ultra and £150/$150 more expensive than the Galaxy Watch 8. The Galaxy Watch 6 Classic launched at £369/$3999, so that’s quite a price hike.

Compared to other Wear OS smartwatches, the Google Pixel Watch 3 costs from £349/$349. The OnePlus Watch 3 is even cheaper at £319/$349. Basically, they’re are cheaper and better Wear OS options out there.

Check out our list of the best smartwatches for our current top 10 choices.

Should you buy the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic?

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is a pretty good smartwatch that improved on the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic in a number of ways.

The change in design, however, isn’t going to be to everyone’s liking and I’m not sure it works as well as it does on the Ultra or regular Watch 8. 

In the context of other Wear OS and Android smartwatches, this isn’t a standout one in terms of battery life, or aspects like sports tracking and half-baked features with issues you wouldn’t expect to encounter from a Samsung watch at the price.

It’s a good showcase for Gemini and the latest Wear, though other smartwatches like the Pixel Watch 4 will be able to offer that soon as well.

I’d say opting for the cheaper Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 would be the smart choice. Those looking for more battery life can look at the likes of the OnePlus Watch 3 and the TicWatch Pro series.

Overall, it’s a rare misstep from Samsung in the wearable game.

Specs

• Wear OS 6 with One UI 8 Watch
• 1.3-inch AMOLED screen
• 46mm case
• Stainless steel case
• ECG, blood pressure and sleep apnea monitoring 
• 64GB storage
• 2GB memory
• Bluetooth and LTE models
• Dual-frequency GPS
• 5ATM waterproof rating 
• Up to 40 hours battery life
• Launch colours: Black and white

Best Prices Today: Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic