Samsung’s older smartwatches are getting the Galaxy Watch Active’s UI
With Samsung’s latest wearable, the Galaxy Watch Active, the company introduced a fresh new user interface: the One UI. Now a selection of Samsung’s older smartwatches will be getting the same look and feel, alongside a smattering of new features and improved battery life.
The update is available now for Galaxy Watch, Gear Sport and Gear S3 devices, and change will be immediately obvious from the moment you install it. The One UI is a simplified and colourful interface designed for easy navigation and to reduce the kind of clutter that can make a small screen feel overwhelming.
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On top of this, you’ll get more flexible options giving you increased control over Goodnight mode, the ability to enable and disable touch wake-up, and the option to adapt how you receive daily briefings. This also means that watch faces that were once exclusive to the Galaxy Watch Active are now free for the included devices.
But the update goes beyond the cosmetic and mild tinkering. You’ll also find that your watch now has a Daily Activities screen, which shows an at-a-glance summary of your daily movement, calorie consumption and workouts. Data is now continuously synced between watch and phone too, and there’s a new tracker for outdoor swimming, albeit one that only works on the Galaxy Watch.
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Speaking of the Galaxy Watch, Samsung promises improved heart-rate monitoring and sleep tracking there too. If the watch detects a high heart rate, you’ll now get an alert, while sleep tracking now shows you how your sleep compares to others in your age group.
Finally, Samsung is promising battery improvements for all supported devices. This comes both from the watches now automatically closing apps running in the background, and via additional user settings that let you adjust brightness and screen timeout.
While the update is available now, it isn’t hitting every region at the same time, so sit tight if it isn’t showing as available for you just yet.
Have you got the latest features on your Gear S3 or Galaxy Watch? Let us know how you’re getting along on Twitter: @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
