Review on SAMSUNG Galaxy Watch (46Mm by Shane Black

I've waited a few weeks before writing this review, with plenty of time to write down my thoughts on my experience with the Samsung Galaxy Watch. I'll break the review down into a few key points and share my thoughts, experiences, and shortcomings if any. 1.) The battery is probably the most important thing everyone wants to know about before buying! As always, your mileage here will depend on a variety of factors such as: B.: number of notifications received and how often updates are sent, screen brightness, whether or not you use Always on Display, GPS, etc., the list really goes on. Based on my personal usage and with the following settings: Default, screen brightness 4-5, enough notifications from Hangouts, WhatsApp, SMS, Gmail, Allo etc., GPS workouts/exercise selected. I charged every 2.5-3 days and I usually charge my watch when it hits 15-20% battery life so I can squeeze out another half before a full day! I rate the battery life as 8/10.2.) Durability - So far I don't see any scratches or visible stains on the watch case during workouts at the gym, everyday use and while sleeping with the device, the clasp only has a small visible scratch in direct light, so no big deal. As for the display, I'm sure it will be durable, but I chose a tempered glass screen protector as I suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder when I see scratches of any kind on my displays. But for now I would say that the Galaxy Watch 10/10 is extremely reliable! 3.) Software - I personally don't like Tizen OS very much and most of all I don't like Bixby, especially compared to Google Assistant. I used to take Google Assistant for granted, but after using Bixby a few times, I've found that I appreciate my Google Assistant in a new way. Voice-to-text is noticeably slower, more words are skipped, everything you ask Bixby seems slower, and Bixby can't do that much right now. Hope it gets better with time! I highly doubt Bixby will ever reach the level of Google Assistant, but hopefully Samsung will improve speed and functionality. Currently, the app count pales in comparison to WearOS, and there aren't many core Android apps that I want to use. Samsung adds a lot of unnecessary animations which unfortunately slow things down. The main culprit is when you look at the notification on the watch, it takes a few seconds for the notification to appear (just picky here, not a deal breaker). The fitness tracking is excellent and records your workouts well, from calories burned to distance traveled/run etc. The only thing I noticed is a software or maybe hardware limitation? When tracking your heart rate during high-intensity workouts, the watch sometimes has lag issues and it takes a few seconds to show your current heart rate. But overall I'd say that with regular use and low-intensity exercise, the heart rate is accurate and comparable to a chest monitor. But overall the Galaxy Watch offers nice 7/10.4 software.) Aesthetics - I have the 46mm version and "beautiful" is an understatement. Even with the standard silicone strap, the watch looks amazing and exudes class. The oversized form factor, the teeth on the rotating bezel, the pleasant clicking of the rotating bezel, and the markers on the inner bezel all add to the elegance of the watch. Also, how silver contrasts beautifully with darker colors. Even the home and back buttons make this watch even prettier! Samsung seems to understand that if it's not broke then it doesn't need fixing when it comes to aesthetics. In summary, we can say that "beauty lies in simplicity" 10/10! If you're looking for an awesome watch with solid performance and solid software, your search is over! At this point you must add this watch to your cart and click 'Buy'! If you're still on the wall and want to give Wear OS another try with the current generic and "new" processor and hardware, and can afford to wait another month or so, I'd say wait for some reviews . Personally, I have no hopes for a Qualcomm 3100 and co-processor since the 3100 is an old 2015 processor with an Adreno 304 GPU (the same one in the Qualcomm 2100 that runs most Wear OS devices). It seems to me that the 3100+ co-processor was created to please fashion brands with new and improved watch displays to make them look 'prettier'. This is understandable given that fashion brands have actually endorsed Wear OS. I'm always ready for the competition, so I hope Qualcomm steps up their game, innovates, and builds a complete SoC from the ground up, rather than using an outdated, archaic SoC that's been around for years. Thank you for reading and hope this helps you with your purchase decision!