A smartwatch can be a great Black Friday deal, especially if you're shopping for a new phone as well. You can find bundles from Samsung, or discounts from major retailers on today's Galaxy Watch 5 models, watches from Fitbit, and other wearables that work well with your Samsung Galaxy S22.
I am a longtime Samsung Galaxy phone user, both personally and professionally. I recently sold my own personal Galaxy S21 Ultra to pay for my new iPhone 14 Pro, but for work, I carry a Galaxy Z Flip 4, and it’s one of my favorite phones ever, certainly one of the best Samsung phones you can buy. I need a smartwatch for work notifications more than for my personal life, so I’m shopping Black Friday smartwatch deals hoping to find a matching wearable for my favorite flip phone.
Samsung recently launched its newest lineup of wearables, the Galaxy Watch 5 and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. It’s unlikely we’ll see huge discounts on such new devices, but it’s possible we’ll see a price cut or even a bundle with a new device.
We’re already seeing Black Friday deals that include Galaxy Watch 4 devices, and that was a very good smartwatch. Our review complained about battery life problems, but every smartwatch has battery life problems, including the best Apple Watch.
If you want a watch with incredible battery life, a Garmin watch like the Forerunner 955 will handle intense fitness tracking for weeks without needing a recharge, but it won’t run apps and services like a smartwatch. I accept that I’ll charge my watch every day. As long as the watch can last until bedtime, it works for me.
Of course, the Galaxy Watch isn’t the only watch that works with my Samsung phone. I won’t be able to use an Apple Watch Series 8, but I can get a new Google Pixel Watch, or a Fitbit wearable, like the Fitbit Sense 2. With Google support, Fitbit watches are more colorful and robust than your average fitness tracker. We’ve seen Fitbit show up on early Black Friday deals, so they are worth a look.
What I would do with a bundle
I’d like a simple price drop on a watch for the holidays, but I would consider a bundle, even though I’m stock full of phones, myself. My kid, on the other hand, is carrying an iPhone 11. He’s happy with it enough, but he keeps eyeing my Galaxy Z Flip 4.
His friends all carry iPhones, but he chats with them on social apps like Discord, so he doesn’t need Apple. I think he’d have fun showing off a flip phone, but any new Samsung would be an upgrade for him.
If there’s a great bundle with one of Samsung’s best phones and a Galaxy Watch, I could give him the phone and keep the watch for myself. Samsung offers great value for old Apple phones in trade, sometimes even more than Apple offers (always more than Apple offers if the iPhone is broken).
Right now Samsung is offering a bundle deal, but it’s a bit too steep for what I need. You can get $80 off a Galaxy Watch 5 (no Pro option) and $60 off a Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, but you need to buy both when you buy a new Galaxy Z Flip 4. That’s a good deal, though not good enough to make it a no-brainer.
A great Black Friday Samsung watch deal could nab my kiddo a cool new phone, and me a fancy new watch, with a trade-in bonus and bundle to boot. I’m keeping my eye on the best. I’d like more flexibility in what I bundle and what I can refuse, or at least the option to get the nicer Galaxy Watch.
The watch I most want to buy for my Samsung Galaxy
If I had my pick, I’d go for the top-of-the-line, Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. The Watch 5 Pro normally starts at $449.99 / £429 / AU$799.99 for the Bluetooth-only version. Compare that to the Galaxy Watch 5, which only costs $279.99 / £269 / AU$499, and it’s easy to see why I want a discount on this device.
The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is the biggest and the best, so it has a bigger battery and a longer battery life. It also looks a bit nicer than the normal Galaxy Watch 5. That’s not what gets me excited about this wearable, though.
I like to hike with my kiddo, and we get lost a lot. I don’t get lost driving, and I’m good at following a subway map, even in a foreign city. In the woods, however, I can find every path except the right one, especially as the day gets late. The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro can help.
The GPS navigation built into the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro can read GPX route files. These are user-created navigation maps, and often include workout runs or hiking trails. The Samsung watch can provide turn-by-turn navigation even on the trail. When I get lost, I can just use the Track Back feature and the Galaxy Watch will find my way back to the path.
I’ve been using a Galaxy Watch 5 sent to me by AT&T, and that is a very competent device, completely worthy of a Black Friday buy. Still, the watch I want would be Samsung's best, the one that can save my hide when I’m lost in bear country.
