And, with the new Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, Samsung is surely enhancing the andriod smartwatch space with an intriguing offering that’s durable enough to withstand harder usage conditions while also living to tell the tale, intact. At the same time, it lacks the slightly off-putting and gimmicky “rugged” style found in many traditional watches, and it readily passes as a rather smart dress watch. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is the company’s most recent and maybe greatest smartwatch. It’s undoubtedly positioned as the wearable companion most willing to accompany you up Mount Everest, or at least a steep hill. It’s worth noting that both Samsung and Apple have taken their most recent premium gadgets in similar directions, with the new Apple Watch Ultra.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro review: Design
To put it mildly, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is a massive and imposing smartwatch, substantially taller and heavier than, say, an Apple Watch. The current flagship Galaxy Watch, fashioned entirely of titanium and sapphire glass, is a robust and somewhat durable hybrid between a dress watch and a heavy-duty hiking companion that may appear a little scary when first placed on your wrist. Because of the enormous battery inside, it’s a very thick device that literally and metaphorically stands out, and it might be a little more difficult to hide that one up your sleeve. Still, it’s not painful to wear this one, and we grew accustomed to the weight. However, if it weren’t for the sake. The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro was undoubtedly designed with bigger wrists in mind. Nobody is stopping you from buying one even if you have smaller wrists, but it stands out and looks a little odd. Despite the claimed thickness of 10.5mm, the real thickness of the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, including the bezel, sensor, and bottom, is 15.5mm.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro review: Interface and controls
This watch has no moving parts. Yes, none the beloved spinning bezel of yesteryear, which allowed for rapid interactions with the interface without touching the screen, is now all but gone. It’s a shame, because it would have beautifully complemented the robust appearance of the Watch 5 Pro! However, the overall functioning has not been completely eliminated. The inner bezel is still capacitive, which means you may move your fingertip around to simulate the same functionality, but the satisfaction, precision, and utility of the original rotating bezel are no longer present. Speaking of the display, it’s equally as bright and vibrant as prior Samsung smartwatches. It’s a pleasure to stare at this stunning 1.4-inch OLED screen, which is completely legible even in direct sunlight and makes information and interface elements jump!
Display
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 40mm variant has a 1.19-inch display with a resolution of 396 × 396 pixels and a pixel density of 330ppi. The Watch 5 44mm and Watch 5 Pro both have a 1.36-inch display with a 450 x 450 pixel resolution and a 330ppi. All have Super AMOLED displays and Sapphire Crystal Glass lenses on top, but the Pro variant has ‘improved’ crystal, which is tougher and more durable. The Pro model is supposed to be 2x tougher than the Watch 4 series, while the Watch 5 versions are 1.6x tougher. The 1.4-inch Super AMOLED display with 450 × 450 pixel resolution is a visual pleasure. It gets really bright and is very legible in direct sunshine. It’s fairly responsive to touch, and because it’s surrounded by raised case borders, it’s protected from corner knocks and bumps.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro review: Tracking
Sleep tracking is available on the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. The watch can monitor the pulse and oxygen saturation at night if needed. It also recognises waking phases with accuracy. The wristwatch distinguishes between several sleep phases, including REM sleep, deep sleep, and light sleep. The watch displays both the overall amount of sleep time and the times spent in each phase, as well as the percentage of total time spent in each phase. The software depicts sleep and its numerous components in several diagrams. A sleep value is also used to evaluate sleep quality. This number is then categorized by age group, and its components are split down. In conjunction with a smartphone, the Samsung software also detects snoring. In a sleep coach, Samsung evaluates the collected data. The sleep behavior is assigned to a scheme after one week. If the watch is worn at night for more than four weeks, Samsung will send further sleep suggestions.
Other features
The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro’s one “Pro” software feature is compatibility for GPX for hiking and bicycling. GPS Exchange Format File (GPX) is a file format that stores geographic information such as tracks, routes, and waypoints. It’s weird that this is the Watch 5 Pro’s priority when there’s no support for trail running, mountain biking, or even running. The first thing you’ll need is a GPX file for the location where you intend to hike or cycle. You can try looking online, but you’ll quickly find that creating GPX files requires a third-party service membership. Trailforks is a reasonably priced subscription service that provides GPX files for popular hikes. Personally, we subscribe to Strava.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro review: Battery life
With a battery size of 590mAh, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro boasts up to 80 hours of battery life. That’s around 30 hours longer than the ordinary Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 and twice as long as the Galaxy Watch 4. Does that actually happen? Both yes and no. We feel the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro could survive nearly 5 days without the always-on display, constant SpO2 monitoring, and frequent GPS use. The Watch 5 Pro’s battery life depleted faster throughout my hikes and bike rides. We got a little more than three days out of the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro with what we would consider normal use. That’s nearly a full day’s worth of use more than we got with the ordinary Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. We must admit that not having to worry about a daily charge with this year’s Galaxy Watch devices was a game changer. Nonetheless, the battery life falls short of that of many Garmin watches. The Garmin Instinct 2 Solar comes to mind, which has an indefinite battery life. The watch isn’t designed to last a week in the wilderness.
Price and Configurations options
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro has a Bluetooth price of $449 and an LTE price of $499. It has a single 45mm size, as opposed to the normal Galaxy Watch 5, which has 40 and 44mm sizes. In that regard, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 pro begins at $279 for the 40mm Bluetooth variant. The 40mm LTE model costs $329. The price rises to $299 and $349 for the 44mm Bluetooth and LTE variants, respectively. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 Classic is still available. The MSRP of the tested Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro with D-Buckle Sport Band is 469 Euros. The same band LTE variant costs 519 Euros. Prices begin at 429 euros if the band with titanium quick-release is eliminated.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro delivers a lot for the money, and the fact that it’s built on Google’s most recent software and includes Samsung’s health tracking means you’ll get a lot of capability for your money. However, the more expensive Pro model may turn out to be a fantastic choice for many people. Even if you’re not an outdoor sports fanatic, the larger battery means you won’t have to charge it almost every night, and the more powerful the battery, the better.
