Samsung Galaxy Watch Active

Good data-rich exercise tracking ; Looks petite and expensive ; Good smartwatch feature breadth (if not depth) ; Very bright screen

Few useful apps ; Battery life is only passable ; Misses out on Samsung's control bezel

A worthy successor to the Samsung Gear Sport that boasts an attractive design and worthwhile new features for the price.

Light comfortable fit ; Bright colorful screen

Bland design ; Hard to navigate on such a small screen without rotating bezel

High-end design Competitive price Lots of features

Lacks rotating bezel No LTE variant Limited storage

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch Active takes a lot of what was great about the company’s standard smartwatch, pushes it all into a smaller package and trims some of the top-end features we’ve come to love. Given that the Galaxy Watch Active is a lot cheaper,...

Lightweight, stylish design. Lots of functionality for the price.

Thick, stationary bezel. Shorter battery life than Galaxy Watch.

While the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active doesn't have any breakthrough features that set it apart from the Apple Watch or the Fitbit Versa, it costs significantly less than the Apple Watch and is arguably more attractive than the Versa. That said, the...

Comfortable, lightweight design ; Reliable battery life ; Good fitness-tracking features

Bixby is a poor voice assistant ; Clumsy to use with non-Samsung phones ; Fewer third-party apps than other smartwatches

The new Galaxy Watch Active from Samsung lacks the company’s signature rotating bezel, but it still strikes a very appealing mix of features for the price.

Lovely design ; Great build quality ; Good price ; Easy to use interface ; Good fitness tracking options

Bixby isn't strong ; No rotating bezel ; No LTE model ; Tizen OS still lacks apps ; Active 2 has more features

Think of this as a smaller, sportier version of the Galaxy Watch. Thanks to a fabulous display, good battery life for its size, easy-to-use interface, and premium finish, it's up there with some of the best-looking smartwatches on the market. But with...

Great aesthetics ; Cheaper price-point

Battery life ; No rotating bezel

Good looking ; Excellent smartwatch functionality

No ANT+ ; Exercise screens can’t be customised ; Samsung Health isn’t a great app

All of which leaves me in two minds about recommending the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active. For serious runners and cyclists, it doesn’t feel like the right choice: you’re better served by the superior battery life and data field customisation options of...