{"id":723262,"date":"2026-08-01T19:33:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T19:33:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/723262\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T19:33:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T19:33:14","slug":"i-wore-the-galaxy-watch-ultra-2-and-a-90-strap-makes-an-upgrade-almost-pointless","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/723262\/","title":{"rendered":"I wore the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, and a $90 strap makes an upgrade almost pointless"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019re looking at the original Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra<\/a> on your wrist and considering an upgrade to the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2<\/a>, take a moment to consider a far cheaper change that will make your current Samsung smartwatch feel exactly like the new one.<\/p>\n

The new Galaxy Watch Ultra 2\u2019s strap is its only major design change, and you can buy it separately ready to fit onto the old Galaxy Watch Ultra.<\/p>\n


\n \"A<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n

\t\t
\n\t\t\tThe Galaxy Watch 9 raises the bar for Wear OS updates
\n\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

Five major OS updates<\/p>\n

Returning to the original Marine Band<\/p>\n

Good-looking, but with problems<\/p>\n

\"A
\n Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra with Marine Band<\/p>\n

I\u2019m reviewing the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 with the new Marine Band attached. When I reviewed the Galaxy Watch Ultra, I wore it with the original Marine Band attached, and the two are very different.<\/p>\n

The original Marine Band took its design inspiration from the Apple Watch Ultra<\/a>\u2019s original Ocean Band, with individual open sections to help water and air flow through it. The titanium keeper was a nice touch, and the orange color looked fantastic.<\/p>\n

\"The
\n Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 Marine Band (front, Olive) and\u00a0Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra Marine Band (Orange)<\/p>\n

However, the rubber was stiff and unforgiving, and at 34 grams it took the original Galaxy Watch Ultra\u2019s overall weight to 94 grams. The band\u2019s thickness was a constant reminder of the smartwatch on your wrist.<\/p>\n

Some reviews point out the band was quick to discolor, but this didn\u2019t happen to mine. I still really like the original design, and it suits the rough-and-tumble nature of the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra.<\/p>\n

The new Marine Band is very different<\/p>\n

It\u2019s all about the weight<\/p>\n

\"A
\n Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2<\/p>\n

The new Marine Band launched with the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is very different than the original.<\/p>\n

It has a more standard strap design without the open sections along the edge, replacing them with a channel on the underside of the strap to encourage airflow.<\/p>\n

The titanium keeper has been replaced by two rubber ones, and the entire strap is slimmer. It\u2019s also much more flexible.<\/p>\n

\"The
\n The\u00a0Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra Marine Band (front, Orange) and\u00a0Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 with Marine Band (Olive)<\/p>\n

The new Marine Band reduces the weight by 10 grams, and attached to the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, the whole package weighs 85 grams.<\/p>\n

The Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2\u2019s cases have an identical shape, and both weigh the same at 62 grams. There is a tiny difference in thickness, but it\u2019s barely visible.<\/p>\n

It means that by changing the strap on your old smartwatch to the new one, you\u2019ll feel a noticeable 10-gram drop in weight on your wrist.<\/p>\n

Due to Samsung\u2019s easy-to-use proprietary Dynamic Lug band attachment system, the new band fits without issue, and takes a second to swap bands.<\/p>\n

Is it all good news?<\/p>\n

A balance problem<\/p>\n

\"Removing
\n Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2<\/p>\n

If the lower weight of the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is tempting you into an upgrade, you can achieve it with your existing Galaxy Watch Ultra by purchasing the new Marine Band.<\/p>\n

Is it a perfect upgrade? No, but the negative also applies to the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, so don\u2019t think you\u2019ll avoid it by buying the new model.<\/p>\n

\"A
\n Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra<\/p>\n

The new Marine Band\u2019s flexibility and lower weight don\u2019t keep the heavy Watch Ultra or Watch Ultra 2\u2019s case as centered and stable on your wrist as the original.<\/p>\n

It feels unbalanced, and because it moves around more, you are more aware of it on your wrist.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a tradeoff you\u2019ll have to accept, but I\u2019ve found the new Marine Band is more comfortable for longer, due to its suppleness, and the longer you wear the Watch Ultra 2, the less you\u2019ll notice it.<\/p>\n

How much will it cost?<\/p>\n

A lot less than the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2<\/p>\n

\"The
\n Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra and new Marine Band<\/p>\n

If you want to try the new Marine Band, it costs $90 from Samsung\u2019s online store. I have the Olive color, but still think the orange is the one to have, although the new blue version also looks great.<\/p>\n

The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2<\/a> costs $700, making just the band a lot cheaper than an upgrade, even when taking into account any trade-in value for your Galaxy Watch Ultra.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll know more about any differences in performance between the Galaxy Watch Ultra and the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 when we complete our review.<\/p>\n

The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 and the new Marine Bands are available to preorder now and will be released on August 7.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you\u2019re looking at the original Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra on your wrist and considering an upgrade to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":723263,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[786,86,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-723262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-gadgets","tag-gadgets","tag-technology","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/723262","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=723262"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/723262\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/723263"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=723262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=723262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=723262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}