I love my Luna Ring Gen 2 smart ring — I wear it every single day to track my sleep, some basic fitness metrics, and simply because I like how the black band looks on my left index finger. Recently, I picked up a Samsung Galaxy Watch8 Classic, and boy, is it in a whole different league.
I’ll still wear my smart ring, but the smartwatch is now a key component in my everyday wardrobe too.
Where do I begin with the Galaxy Watch8 Classic?
The first draw of this smartwatch is its size. With a 46mm screen, it’s easy to read the watch face at a glance, parse notifications (even type out and send message responses from the watch), and interact with its various health and fitness apps.
Being bigger means the Classic is also a bit bulkier — with its rotating bezel adding a little chunk too, though it is a useful controller — and this size took a little getting used to, especially when I first slept with the Watch8 Classic on for sleep tracking. Thankfully, it has never felt uncomfortable to wear, and apart from that first night in my first two weeks, I haven’t been bothered by this watch in bed at all.
The design is also excellent. The Classic is distinctively a smartwatch but does work as a, well, classic timepiece, too. I recently went for a suit fitting ahead of my wedding later this year, and the Watch8 Classic didn't look out of place as I tried on jackets and waistcoats — in fact, it looked at home as part of the ensemble.
Beyond how it looks, this thing is very useful for health and fitness tracking. I’ve dabbled with the running coach — I’ve completed my assessment and my first training session with more to come — and I love how easy it is to track my exercises. I just push the large side button and swipe through to whatever activity I’m about to do.
If I forget to do this manually, I’ve also found the Watch8 Classic is great at detecting my activity, such as picking up my evening walks.
As for health, the insights are a little more useful than my smart ring, but the big draw is that accessing the information is much more convenient. I can find it all on my watch — limiting the risk of me getting distracted by my smartphone, which could happen if I wanted to check my smart ring app — or (if my smartphone is on hand) I can see some useful metrics like my sleep score in my Now Brief.
This does require you to have a Samsung phone, and it’s helpful to have this info alongside my calendar and other Now Brief data, making it a great way to prepare me for the day.
Even the battery — which I was worried would feel far too short — is just fine. Based on my usage, the Galaxy Watch8 Classic lasts for well over 24 hours, and I keep it topped up by charging it when I get ready in the morning (taking a shower, getting dressed, and eating breakfast). In this time, it always powers back up to full, so I’m ready to tackle the day.
I do still love my smart ring, but the Watch8 Classic has really impressed me — and I’m not sure I could ever give up wearing a smartwatch now. The Classic is far more capable than the basic trackers I was used to, and solves a few gripes I’ve had recently with my Luna Ring.
So while it's on sale, I’d seriously consider picking it up. We are expecting new Watch9 devices a little later this year, so there is some reason to wait, but if you’re keen to nab a Galaxy Watch8 Classic soon, these sales are excellent.
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