The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is built like a tank, lasts for days, and may be more watch than most people actually need. Here’s our review.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is priced at Rs. 64,999 in India
Since 2024, the Galaxy Watch Ultra has been Samsung's big, rugged smartwatch. It is a built-like-a-tank smartwatch designed for hikes, open water, and even situations when you want something a little more bold on your wrist. The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, which arrived last month, looks very similar to the first model. But once you start using it, the under-the-hood changes come to light.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is priced at Rs. 64,999 in India. I have been using it as my everyday smartwatch to see how all that extra hardware translates to regular use.
Before I get into how the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 fared, I will admit this is my first time using Samsung's Ultra watch. So, I didn't quite know what to expect from the size. The 47mm case and 61.5g weight are quite a jump from the Apple Watch Series 11 (review) I normally wear. It isn't uncomfortably heavy, but you know you're wearing it. The case is fairly thick too, although Samsung has shaved some of that bulk off compared to the previous Ultra.
The titanium case gives the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 the same solid, expensive feel that you'd expect at this price. I also like how Samsung approached the design. It is unmistakably a rugged smartwatch, with the raised bezel, prominent buttons, and chunky case. But it doesn't look like something I'd only want to wear while trekking.
The strap is comfortable enough for all-day wear and stays firmly in place. It is flexible and doesn't dig into the wrist. I think this matters more here compared to other smartwatches because of its size and weight. I did need some time to get used to sleeping with it, though. Coming from the Apple Watch Series 11, the Ultra 2 is noticeably more present on the wrist, and that doesn't completely disappear after a few days.
Our review unit comes in the Titanium Silver colourway. However, I don't think ‘silver' is quite the right word for it, since the green strap complements it so well, accompanied by the orange-accented button.
The 1.52-inch Super AMOLED display is another highlight. It is sharp, colourful and easy to read. It is responsive, too, and I had a fluid experience throughout my time with it. For protection, Samsung has equipped it with a sapphire crystal, which has protected the watch from scratches during my time with the watch so far.
The standout upgrade here is the screen. Samsung pushing peak brightness to 5,000 nits sounds absurd for a wearable, and it is definitely overkill for sitting on the couch. But the moment you take it out under the brutal midday sun, that extra headroom keeps the display completely legible. Glare was also practically non-existent.
Qualcomm's Snapdragon Wear Elite platform, paired with 2GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, delivers plenty of power. The interface stays smooth and responsive, even when hopping rapidly between notifications, fitness tracking, and media controls. But I wouldn't expect anything else from a flagship smartwatch.
It runs Wear OS 7 with Samsung's One UI 9 Watch on top. I've used a Galaxy Watch sparingly over the years, and the interface felt familiar. However, the company's latest OS iteration has enough going on here to make the watch feel like a proper extension of a Galaxy phone rather than just a notification screen strapped to your wrist.
Samsung has also added the usual collection of health and fitness features, alongside more specialised tools for activities such as trail running and diving. The Ultra 2 also supports LTE, NFC, Wi-Fi, and dual-frequency L1+L5 GPS, so it packs plenty of connectivity hardware.
Now, I have to admit, I am probably not the ideal Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 user. I don't go hiking on my weekends, nor have I ever scuba-dived. My idea of a workout is an early-morning jog, or perhaps a couple of hours of badminton if I'm feeling adventurous on a particular day. This gave me another perspective to evaluate the health and fitness tracking on the Ultra 2. Instead of attempting to recreate Samsung's mountain-trail marketing material, I used the smartwatch as a normal person would.
For most of my day-to-day activity, I compared its step counts and heart-rate readings with the Apple Watch Series 11, my reliable companion for almost a year. The results, to no one's surprise, were quite close. Most days, I saw a difference of about 250-300 steps in a 10,000-step walk. Heart-rate readings were similarly consistent during regular activity.
The dual-frequency GPS is also a useful addition if you spend more time outdoors. But I think its benefits will be much more obvious to runners, cyclists, and hikers than they are to someone whose biggest outdoor workout is walking to grab lunch.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 also has Samsung's BioActive Sensor, which combines optical heart rate, electrical heart signal, and bioelectrical impedance analysis, along with temperature, accelerometer, barometer, and gyroscope sensors. That gives it a fairly comprehensive health-tracking setup. Samsung has clearly built this watch with people who want detailed fitness data in mind. The important thing, however, is that the basic tracking doesn't feel out of place for everyday use either.
There is a slight irony here, though. The Ultra 2 can track far more than I am likely to ever use. It is EN13319-certified for diving to 40 metres, supports dedicated outdoor activities, and has hardware designed to handle conditions well beyond anything I am likely to throw at it.
The watch's health data is analysed by AI. As a result, the Ultra 2 has some really good features. It can flag breathing disruptions during sleep and notify you when it spots unusual deviations in heart rate, heart rate variability, breathing rate, skin temperature, and blood oxygen. There's also Daily Cardio Load, which gives you a recommended range for how much cardio you should be doing each day based on your recent activity and recovery.
It even has a Hearing feature that monitors sound levels around you and can warn you when the noise gets dangerously loud. I found these features more interesting than simply having another bunch of health numbers sitting inside Samsung Health. They give you a little more context about what the numbers actually mean, especially if you're not someone who spends hours studying workout data.
Then there is Raise to Talk, probably the watch's most obvious AI feature. You can raise your wrist and speak to interact with the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 instead of tapping through menus. It could sound a little gimmicky until you are walking around with your hands full and want to ask the watch to do something.
For a long time, battery life was the main reason I hesitated to recommend Samsung's smartwatches. The Ultra 2 changed my mind. Thanks to its larger 800mAh battery, it lasts noticeably longer through a regular day of tracking and notifications.
On paper, Samsung promises anywhere from 60 to 80 hours depending on your always-on display settings. In practice, it completely outlasts the Series 11. I didn't feel that constant urge to top it up throughout the day. With moderate usage, it easily stretched to three days before hitting the charger, or roughly two full days if you wear it to bed for sleep tracking every night.
The one real disappointment here is how long it takes to charge. Plugging it in at zero percent, I had to wait a full hour and 40 minutes for a complete top-up. Next to the Series 11, which usually got there in less than an hour, the Ultra 2 felt frustratingly slow, especially on days when I required a quick top-up before heading to work.
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is clearly meant for people who take fitness more seriously than I do. Even so, I didn't find it difficult to use as my everyday watch. It is big and takes a little getting used to, but the display is excellent, performance has been smooth, and the health tracking has been consistent in my testing. For me, the 5,000-nit screen and the three-day battery were the two things I liked most.
A couple of things still hold it back. The watch is big and heavy, and the charging time is longer than I'd like. Much of what you are paying for is hardware and fitness capability that a regular smartwatch user may never really use.
At Rs. 64,999, the Ultra 2 is probably more of a watch than I need. The rugged build, extra fitness features, and dual-frequency GPS are useful if you are actually going to use them. In my case, most of my smartwatch use is limited to tracking my steps, checking notifications, and occasionally trying to get a workout in. For that, the regular Galaxy Watch should be enough.
But if money is no object, then why not? You get the best of what Samsung currently offers in a smartwatch, and there is something quite satisfying about knowing you have a watch that can do considerably more than you will probably ever ask it to.
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