I tested the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic with a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6, so I could see all of its features in action, and it has a lot of them. New to this generation, the Watch 8 Classic has an antioxidant test unique to wearables. To get this information otherwise, you usually have to go to a doctor and get blood drawn.
The test gives insight into your dietary health and provides a warning sign for long-term diseases like diabetes. You have to take your watch off for this test, but the process is easy. Start the test using the watch or the Samsung Health app, though you’ll want the app open on your phone to gauge progress. Then, take off your watch and put your thumb on the sensor on the back for a few seconds until the app gives the all-clear.
The test only takes a few seconds (Credit: Andrew Gebhart)
I tried the feature a few times, and the watch consistently told me that my antioxidant levels were low. It prompted me to add more fruits and vegetables to my diet while occasionally offering more specific suggestions, like five pieces of kimchi or a serving of radish greens. My test results were consistent from one day to the next and deviated significantly when I asked a friend to test their value.
The Watch 8 Classic can now measure vascular load while you sleep to determine your arterial health. It takes three nights to establish a baseline value, then shows you results after each night on a sliding scale compared with your baseline instead of a static or average value. On this test, I regularly scored in the green “consistent” range, though I would have liked to know how that value compares with others of similar demographics.
Otherwise, the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic improves on the last generation’s Galaxy models thanks to AI. Samsung’s Galaxy AI has gained two new functions. It can now provide sleep coaching with tailored advice to improve your rest over time. Galaxy Watches were already proficient at measuring sleep, as prior models can track your sleep cycles as well as key health metrics, including respiration, skin temperature, and SpO2. With a nearby Samsung phone, the watch can listen for snoring, and the Galaxy Watch 7 and later can check for sleep apnea.
Similarly, Samsung smartwatches have long been able to track activity and exercise, with specific modes for various exercises like biking, hiking, running, swimming, and walking, and even sports like archery, badminton, or golf. While exercising, the watch tracks stats like duration and heart rate, and can monitor advanced running form metrics such as cadence and vertical oscillation.
Galaxy AI takes this tracking further with a Running Coach. To get started with this coach, you need to take a 12-minute running test to set a baseline. It then grades your skill level from 1 (beginner) to 12 (pro) and creates an exercise plan for you based on your level with the eventual goal of training for a 5K, a marathon, or a similar running event. These new Galaxy AI features build on the holistic Energy Score and prescriptive Wellness Tips introduced on the Galaxy Watch 7.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic retains all of the other health-tracking capabilities from prior models. It comes with an accelerometer, a barometer, a compass, a gyroscope, and a temperature sensor built in. Samsung’s BioActive sensor allows for optical heart rate and electrical heart monitoring. And in addition to tracking activity, exercise, sleep, and stress, you can use the watch to measure body composition stats like body fat percentage, fat mass, and skeletal weight, similar to a smart scale through Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA).
Like previous Galaxy Watches, the Watch 8 Classic can monitor your blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) levels, a feature missing from the latest Apple Watch models. It can also give you a detailed picture of your metabolism through overnight advanced glycation end products (AGEs) index tracking.
Aside from its robust suite of health tracking features, the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic does what you’d expect of a smartwatch, adding a lot of convenience to your wrist. You can use it to make calls, send texts, and tap for mobile payments. It provides access to Google Play, complete with every major third-party smartwatch app you could want to download, including Google’s staples like Maps and Gmail.
The Watch 8 Classic has gesture controls, so you can pinch your fingers together to answer calls or take a photo, twist your wrist to dismiss an alarm or silence a notification, or make a knocking motion to launch a favorite app.
The Galaxy AI features come as part of Samsung’s One UI 8 interface, which is one version newer than what’s currently available on the Galaxy Watch 7. Older models like the Galaxy Watch 7 will eventually get access to One UI 8, but the AI features introduced this generation will remain exclusive to the Galaxy Watch 8 series and the Galaxy Watch Ultra.
Google Gemini in action (Credit: Andrew Gebhart)
Underneath Samsung’s interface, the Watch 8 Classic runs Google’s Wear OS 6, which is again one version newer than the software currently on the Watch 7. Google’s software comes with even more AI assistance in the form of Google Gemini. Google’s voice-activated AI assistant can answer questions, send texts, and interact with Samsung Galaxy Watch apps like Calendar, Clock, Health, and Reminder. Unlike Samsung’s Galaxy AI features, Gemini will become available on older Samsung watches as part of the Wear OS 6 update.
Competitors like the Apple Watch Series 10 ($399), the Pixel Watch 3 ($349), and the OnePlus Watch 3 ($329.99) don’t have antioxidant tests, body composition measurements, or AGEs index tracking. The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic joins its siblings in having the best set of features of any current smartwatch, but it struggles to stand out from the rest of Samsung’s current smartwatch lineup. It has the same features as the base model but lacks the extra durability and multi-sport tracking of the Galaxy Watch Ultra, so the bezel is the big differentiator.