I’ve seen the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 and 8 Classic I don’t hate the squircle redesign

Samsung’s Galaxy Watches have looked almost identical since the brand returned to Wear OS with the Galaxy Watch 4 in 2021, with the exception of last year’s Galaxy Watch Ultra. Now the rest of the Galaxy Watch line-up is changing to match their Ultra cousin with a new shape and strap mechanism that makes the Watch 8 series the biggest redesign in Samsung’s wearable history. I had some brief hands-on time with the Galaxy Watch 8 and 8 Classic, and they could be Samsung’s best, despite the quirky looks.

The Galaxy Watch 8 has adopted a similar design to the Watch Ultra, placing the circular display within a squircle frame. It’s certainly a divisive move, but I think it looks great in person — far better than it looks in any of Samsung’s press images. Samsung says the design change was made to make the watch more comfortable, and I have to agree. The Watch 8 is thinner than its predecessors, and the wider footprint makes it sit on my wrist without the curve of the housing digging into my skin.

The metal lugs that the strap attaches to are gone, replaced with the same mechanism that’s used for the watch bands on the Galaxy Watch Ultra, as you can see illustrated by the side-by-side with my Galaxy Watch 6. The upside is the increased comfort I already mentioned, and what Samsung says is a big improvement in health sensor accuracy, thanks to the watch sitting more evenly on your wrist. The downside, of course, is that the watch bands from old Galaxy Watches and all the standard 20mm bands on Amazon won’t work here — you’ll need to buy straps designed to use Samsung’s new system.

The Watch 8 comes in 40mm and 44mm sizes in either silver or graphite, with either Wi-Fi/Bluetooth only or an LTE variants available.

The Classic model returns this year, also with the new design, and I’m pleased to report that it returns that rotating bezel from previous models. Unlike the regular Galaxy Watch 8, which is made of Armor Aluminum, the Classic is made from stainless steel, and it looks fantastic. The rotating bezel feels solid and satisfying, thanks to a mechanical click with each degree of rotation. Sure, it’s the same functionality as the touch bezel on the non-Classic models, but this is more satisfying to use.

The Classic differentiates itself with more than just a rotating bezel and larger size (46mm) this year, thanks to a hand-me-down from the Galaxy Watch Ultra. The Quick Button sits between the buttons we’re used to, and can be remapped to a plethora of different functions, like starting a specific workout, a timer, water lock mode, and more.

The specs table below shows just how similar these two watches are, with the only real differences being display/battery sizes, materials used for the body, and the storage, which is doubled for the Watch 8 Classic.

If you’re familiar with the One UI 8 Watch beta for the Galaxy Watch 7 family, there isn’t much more to see here. One UI 8 Watch is here out of the box for the Watch 8 series, and there’s a lot to like. The app drawer is easier to parse and has a new list mode, tiles can be arranged in multiple lists for better organisation, and the Now Bar from Samsung’s One UI 7 for phones makes an appearance and is easily the highlight of this version.

New features for the Watch 8 series are health-focused. Sleep Apnea tracking is coming to the UK and EU with the Watch 8 series, and later, older models back to the Galaxy Watch 4, something I look forward to testing as someone who suffers from the condition.

Sleep tracking is enhanced by the ability to measure vascular load, which will allow the Watch 8 to determine how hard your heart is working while you sleep.

Finally, there’s the antioxidant index. By holding your finger to the same sensor that performs the body composition scan, the Watch 8 and 8 Classic can tell you what your antioxidant levels are and how to increase them. How useful this and other new health metrics are remains to be seen, as does their accuracy.

I could only spend about half an hour with these watches, so performance and battery life metrics will have to wait until our full review. What I can say is that they feel like watches I want to upgrade to from my Watch 6. The new design may look weird in a photo, but in person, it looks fantastic and feels even better when you wear it. The thinner profile makes them less likely to snag on anything, and the squircle metal frame will take the brunt of any impacts that do occur instead of the display.

The wider footprint felt good to me, but that might not be the case for those with smaller wrists, and the new strap mechanism, while cool, does mean we lose out on the vast watch band ecosystem that’s been built up over the last few years.

Overall, these feel like a solid step forward for Samsung’s wearables, and fans are sure to be glad to see the return of the Classic model in all its rotating bezel glory.