The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is the most significant smartwatch Samsung has released in a while, and comfortably the more interesting of its two new watches. It brings a new brain, a much bigger battery, faster charging, a startlingly bright screen and, for the first time, proper diving credentials. If you want a rugged, do-everything Android watch and do not mind a large one on your wrist, this is the one we would point you to. It arrives alongside three new phones we have already reviewed in full: the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, the Galaxy Z Fold8 and the Galaxy Z Flip8.
Pre-orders are open now, running since 22 July 2026, with general availability in Malaysia from 14 August 2026. It is priced at RM3,399 for the 47mm model. Full pricing for both new watches is in our Watch9 and Watch Ultra 2 price and pre-order guide.
Editor
Kai T. chevron_right
Table of Contents
Design and build
Built from grade-4 titanium with a sapphire crystal and an etched bezel, the Ultra 2 looks and feels the part. It is 12% thinner than before despite the bigger battery inside, and the redesigned bands are lighter, flatter and far more comfortable. The catch is the size: the 47mm case is unchanged and it is still a big, assertive watch that will overwhelm smaller wrists. That is the nature of the beast, and the slimmer profile and better straps take the edge off, but go in knowing this is a large watch.
Display
The star of the show. The 1.52-inch screen reaches a claimed 5,000 nits, up from 3,000 nits on the previous model and, on the numbers Samsung has published, the brightest display we know of on a smartwatch. We would expect that to make a real difference outdoors, staying crisp and legible in direct sun where rivals tend to wash out. It is a genuine advantage for anyone who trains or travels outside.
Performance and smarts
This is the first Galaxy Watch to run a Qualcomm chip, the new Snapdragon Wear Elite platform, and it brings on-device AI to the wrist along with promised gains in speed and GPS. We would expect navigation and menus to feel fluid, and there is real potential in having assistant features run locally.
Health and fitness
The Ultra 2 carries Samsung's full health toolkit: heart rate, ECG, blood oxygen, a Vitals dashboard, a Heart Health score, daily cardio load, a fitness index and sleep-apnea insights, and adds a genuine new string: diving. It is dive-certified to recreational depths, automatically logs depth, dive time and water temperature, and a dedicated dive-computer app is on the way. A Trail Run mode rounds out the outdoor focus. Worth flagging: as with earlier Galaxy Watches, some of the deepest readings, including ECG, blood pressure and sleep-apnea detection, need a Samsung Galaxy phone paired to unlock fully, so the day-to-day core (heart rate, Vitals, cardio load) is what other Android owners should expect rather than the complete picture. A couple of the newer wellness readings feel early and will improve with tuning, but the core suite is comprehensive.
Battery and charging
A big win. Battery capacity grows by around a third to 800mAh, the largest Samsung has put in a Galaxy Watch, and we would expect it to comfortably outlast the outgoing model, genuinely letting you leave the charger behind for a couple of days of normal use. Charging is also faster this time: Samsung says roughly 40% in half an hour on the bundled wireless charger, a real change from the slower pace of the last Ultra.
Durability
This is a watch built to be abused: 10ATM water resistance, IP68 and IP69K ratings, military-standard toughness and the new dive certification. It shrugs off the outdoors.
Pros
- Class-leading 5,000-nit screen that stays readable in bright sun
- Battery capacity up by around a third, for genuine multi-day life
- Slimmer than before with much better, lighter bands, and faster charging at last
- New Snapdragon Wear Elite brain with on-watch AI
- Serious rugged and diving credentials
Cons
- Still a large, heavy 47mm watch that won't suit every wrist (the slimmer body and lighter bands help)
- The full dive-computer experience arrives after launch through a separate app that looks to be subscription-based rather than a one-off purchase, with pricing not yet officially confirmed
- A few of the newest wellness features feel like early days
- Some of the deepest health readings need a Samsung phone paired to unlock fully
Who it's for
Outdoor and endurance types, divers, and any Android user who wants the biggest battery and brightest screen in a rugged package. If you want something smaller and lighter for everyday wear, the Galaxy Watch9 is the better fit.
Verdict
The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is one of the best rugged Android smartwatches around. The battery and brightness leaps are real, it now goes places its rivals cannot on the diving side, and it manages all of that while getting slimmer and, for the first time, charging faster too. The size still won't be for everyone, the marquee diving experience takes a little longer, and looks like a subscription, to arrive in full, and buyers outside the Samsung phone ecosystem lose a slice of the health picture. But if a big, tough, long-lasting watch is what you are after, few rugged Android watches come close.
Scores
- Design and usability: 8.0/10
- Display: 9.5/10
- Performance: 8.0/10
- Battery: 9.0/10
- Health and fitness: 8.0/10
- Durability: 9.5/10
- Value: 8.0/10
- Overall: 8.5/10 (Highly recommended)
