Samsung Galaxy Watch FE overview: Nice, with one caveat

Samsung’s price range gadgets do not usually obtain a lot fanfare, however when you ask me, they’re ceaselessly the corporate’s most compelling choices. The Galaxy S24 Ultra is a powerful telephone, however let’s be sincere, exterior of Samsung diehards, most individuals are higher off shopping for the Galaxy S24 or one of many firm’s much more inexpensive A-series handsets. So it is shocking that it took Samsung until this past June to announce a Fan Version (learn: price range) model of its well-liked Galaxy Watch smartwatch. Much more shocking is how straightforward the Galaxy Watch FE is to advocate.

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Samsung Galaxy Watch FE

Regardless of costing solely $200, the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE looks like the whole package deal. It provides practically every thing somebody who desires to enhance their well being would possibly must get extra out of their exercises and sleep.

Professionals

• Solely $200
• Strong health and sleep monitoring
• Vibrant AMOLED display screen
• NFC included

Cons

• Massive show bezel
• Battery life may very well be higher
• Solely obtainable in 40mm measurement

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Worth, specs, and availability

The Samsung Galaxy Watch FE is obtainable in three colours: Black, Silver, and Pink Gold. On the time of the writing of this overview, Samsung is barely promoting the Bluetooth model of the FE, which you should purchase for $200. An LTE variant will arrive later this 12 months and price $250. As issues stand, the Galaxy Watch FE is obtainable in a single measurement: 40mm. I examined the Bluetooth mannequin in Black.

What I preferred concerning the Galaxy Watch FE

It does not really feel compromised

After spending two weeks with the Galaxy Watch FE, the factor that stood out to me was how full it felt. From a function standpoint, there’s little that’s lacking right here. Take health monitoring, as an illustration: Like its costlier siblings, the FE can course of 100 completely different actions. With built-in GPS and coronary heart charge monitoring, the monitoring is as sturdy as what you may discover on Samsung’s costlier wearables.

As a bike owner, I used to be capable of configure the FE for zone two training. As you’ll be able to see from the pair of screenshots under, the watch made a dramatic distinction. On the experience the place the watch warned me after I was pushing myself too arduous, I managed to control my coronary heart charge for practically 80 p.c of the exercise.

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I used to be additionally impressed by how shortly the FE acknowledged after I was ready at a cease signal or purple mild. Inside seconds, it could pause the exercise to make sure it wasn’t accumulating junk knowledge. Equally spectacular are all of the supplementary well being options. Outdoors of a lacking temperature sensor, the FE provides every thing I might anticipate from a contemporary smartwatch, together with sleep monitoring and blood oxygen monitoring. It may even take physique composition measurements, and throughout the board, all of those options work properly and are useful.

The FE isn’t missing in fashionable smartwatch options both. It comes with an NFC modem, enabling assist for cell funds by means of Samsung Pay and Google Wallet. The one annoyance right here is which you could’t reassign the shortcut Samsung set to shortly launch Samsung Pay, forcing you to make use of one among your valuable few different shortcuts for Google Pockets when you favor to make use of that platform as a substitute. Fortunately, you’ll be able to freely drop Bixby for Google Assistant.

Aside from a smaller 1.2-inch display screen, the FE shares the identical design because the Galaxy Watch 7. I did not thoughts the chunky show bezel, partially as a result of the FE’s AMOLED panel appears to be like nice. It is vibrant, vibrant, and straightforward to learn, even in harsh daylight. With a watch face that includes a black background, the bezel can also be straightforward to disregard, because of the deep blacks provided by OLED tech. Not like the Apple Watch SE, the FE’s AMOLED show even comes with an always-on function.

One other space Samsung didn’t minimize prices on was safety. Along with being IP68-certified in opposition to water, Samsung hardened the show in opposition to scratches with sapphire crystal glass. I did not strive bumping the show, however I did take the look ahead to a swim in a cool Canadian lake, and it got here out simply wonderful.

As I discussed above, Samsung is providing the FE in three completely different colorways. Price noting right here is that every mannequin comes with a color-matched silicone band. Moreover, the FE makes use of the identical clasp mechanism as its costlier siblings, so it’s potential to make use of bands relationship way back to these Samsung initially designed for the Galaxy Watch 4. I discovered the band that got here with my overview unit made the FE comfy to put on all day, together with after I went to sleep.

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What I did not like concerning the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE

Battery life is a priority

On condition that the LTE variant solely prices $250, it is wonderful all of the options Samsung determined to pack into the Galaxy Watch FE. For probably the most half, the corporate’s cutbacks really feel cheap.

Notably, the Galaxy Watch FE options an older Exynos W920 chipset, which Samsung has paired with 1.5GB of RAM and 16GB of inside storage. The corporate announced the W920 in 2021. On the time, it was the business’s first 5nm chipset for wearable gadgets. However three years is sort of an eternity within the cell world, and the W920 is beginning to present its age in 2024.

From a efficiency standpoint, the Galaxy Watch FE is, at finest, serviceable. Navigating Put on OS does not really feel as snappy because it ought to, with animations which might be gradual to render. I additionally observed various hiccups within the two weeks I had the FE. As an example, after I went to log my each day water consumption, the watch would typically register my tapping however not add to my complete rely.

If the Galaxy Watch FE is your first entry into the world of smartwatches, otherwise you’re coming to it from an older system, I believe you will discover the efficiency to be wonderful. Like I mentioned, it is serviceable. However what you’ll discover is the FE’s restricted battery life. That is as a result of, along with outfitting the watch with an older, much less environment friendly processor, Samsung gave the FE a 247mAh battery.

For context, the 40mm variants of the Galaxy Watch 6 and Galaxy Watch 7 function 300mAh batteries. In absolute phrases, a 247mAh battery may not appear a lot smaller than a 300mAh one, however neither the Galaxy Watch 6 nor Galaxy Watch 7 are recognized for his or her battery life.

On standby, the FE can go about 34 hours on a single cost. After all, even reasonable use can dramatically have an effect on uptime. I think about myself an energetic particular person. My girlfriend and I stroll not less than 10,000 steps most days; within the spring, summer time, and fall, I experience my bike virtually each day; and after an extended, pandemic-enforced absence from the health club, I not too long ago received again to weightlifting. In case your days look one thing like mine, be ready to cost the Galaxy Watch FE each day, particularly when you plan to benefit from its sleep monitoring.

On days after I wore the FE to mattress after which used it to trace my morning bike experience, it had about 35% battery after I arrived dwelling at round 8am. Discovering time to cost the watch wasn’t a problem. Though the FE is restricted to charging at 5W, the battery can be practically full by the point I sat right down to work at 9, supplied I took it off to cost shortly after strolling by means of the door.

That mentioned, I fear about how properly the FE’s battery will age and what the watch will probably be like to make use of a 12 months or two after somebody buys it. Though I used the FE’s exercise monitoring function every single day, there have been different capabilities I turned to much less usually. For instance, I did not measure my physique composition every single day, nor did I take advantage of the watch to take heed to music on my bike rides. I used to be additionally frugal with the show’s always-on function. In the event you’re an influence consumer, you are in all probability higher off contemplating one among Samsung’s different smartwatches or a competing option from Garmin.

Do you have to purchase the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE?

As I discussed above, probably the most exceptional factor concerning the Galaxy Watch FE is how full it feels. Certain, it’s not the quickest smartwatch I’ve examined, however it does include practically every thing else I believe most individuals might need from a health tracker. Battery life may very well be a priority down the highway, however when you’re somebody who’s simply beginning out on their health journey, that is the Put on OS watch to purchase.

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Samsung Galaxy Watch FE