Apple Watch S9 or Samsung Galaxy Watch 6?

TheRandomWizard on 03/03/2024 - 17:49

Hi everyone,

I'm trying to decide between an Apple Watch Series 9 and a Samsung Galaxy Watch 6.

I use both iPhone and Samsung Galaxy phone.

My research indicates:

  • the AW can only pair with IPhone and the SGW can only pair with Samsung phone. I have both phones, but enjoy the Samsung more.

  • the AW has better sensors, apps, onboard Siri processing, and siri raise to speak. I have also watched Quantified Scientist who reported better results in AW too.

  • the SGW has better battery life.

  • They otherwise seem to mostly have feature parity.

Usage:
I've tried my wife's AW for a bit, looks like I could use the watch for Apple/Google pay, sleep/workout tracking, voice activated kitchen timers and shopping list interaction, and the occasional notifications, and of course, to tell time.

Now here is where I'm stuck:
the Apple Watch is obviously better, however I enjoy the Samsung phone a lot more and the iPhone sometimes also stays home. Obviously AW and Samsung phone won't talk to each other, and getting cellular connectivity can potentially be a drain on batteries.

Any advice on what other perspectives I could think from for this?

Electrical & Electronics Apple Samsung Smartwatch Wear OS

Comments

  • CrispyChrispy on 03/03/2024 - 17:52
    +1

    Which phone do you have on you more when you work out/at the gym (that is if you're going to be using the watch as a fitness tracker as well)?

    Are there any specific features that you know you'll use that the other watch can't do?

    Does one watch do something better than the other that is of significant importance to you (besides battery life)?

    The SGW's battery life seems to roughly double that of the AW's, so it's up to you whether you're fine charging your AW daily instead of every 2 days with the SGW.

    • TheRandomWizard on 05/03/2024 - 21:30
      +1

      Thanks Crispy. Apologies for the late reply, it has been hectic.

      If in the gym, then it'll just my Samsung as that's where my SIM card is. However if it's my wife and I going out for a walk straight from home, then usually it is no phones at all, just us and house keys.

      In terms of capabilities… overall… the Apple Watch. you got me thinking again deeply. It consists of:

      • The Apple Watch has much more accurate sensors according to research, and I think Siri raise to speak would be helpful in the kitchen, which the GW doesn't seem to have.

      • The Samsung watch has Google Assistant which at least on my phone, is far more capable in answering questions, for example, I asked for the Melbourne Antipodes festival dates while driving and it read it out loud, while Siri just told me it can't help me while driving.

      • That being said, I just remembered, I had questioned GA's reliability after it failed to properly set a timer last night, which I could've ended up with a parking fine if I didn't notice the 1 hour timer had started 20 minutes late.

      Charging the AW daily, am cool with that, have been doing my wife's daily, although hers has around 55-60% at around the 24 hour mark.

  • chartparker on 03/03/2024 - 18:34
    +2

    The other option is something like a Garmin or Huawei watch that can work on either. Pros and cons whatever you decide to do

    • TheRandomWizard on 05/03/2024 - 21:37

      Thanks:) I had taken a quick look at Garmin, I think the accuracy is a bit low. Will not touch Huawei at all.

  • bargaino on 03/03/2024 - 20:13
    +1

    I wear older models of both, and Apple is much more polished overall.

    An advantage of Samsung is that you can load a regular eSIM onto it to get cheap LTE.
    Apple requires an expensive post-paid phone plan. You do get the shared number for that, but $500/year more than I pay now.

    • TheRandomWizard on 05/03/2024 - 21:38

      Ooooh the cheap LTE… I'll explore this one a bit more and see if I get much use out of it or not.

      • bargaino on 06/03/2024 - 13:08

        I don't use it much, but at $10 to $20 per year for an prepaid eSIM, you might as well have it as a backup.

        • TheRandomWizard on 06/03/2024 - 17:25

          Is it OK to please elaborate which provider that is, so I can check that one out?

  • try2bhelpful on 03/03/2024 - 20:21
    +1

    If you buy the watch from Apple you have 14 days to try it out. You can return it within that timeframe for a refund.

    If you buy the Apple Watch or the Samsung watch from Costco you have 90 days to return it. I would confirm this before purchasing though.

    I would check if the ancillary apps work best with the round screen or square screen.

  • scooba on 03/03/2024 - 22:42

    "Any advice on what other perspectives I could think from for this?"

    Privacy, Apple is better for privacy.

    But then again, considering you already have an Android phone I guess privacy isn't that much of an issue for you?

  • WorstAgreeableRadish on 04/03/2024 - 07:38
    +1

    How long do you keep your devices?

    My wife had an older apple watch, and after a software update increases the drain rate on the battery a few times and it discharged completely, the battery wouldn't even last until her workout started in the afternoon which made it pretty much useless for her. This was around the 2-year mark iirc.

    I still get almost 2 full days out of my galaxy watch 3 which I bought at the end of 2018.

    • TheRandomWizard on 05/03/2024 - 21:46

      I'll take a look at the experiences about such ages then, it is good insight.

      We used to upgrade every 2 years, but the our phones from late 2021/early 2022 are running significantly cooler (during video calls), with longer battery life, and not yet slow… better than anything we had before it, so my wife and I have set a goal to keep them for at least 3 years, or preferably until software support ends.

      I plan to keep my watch for at least around that amount of time as well.

  • MrMcHairyHead on 04/03/2024 - 08:23
    +2

    If you have the option to use an Apple Watch get the Apple Watch. It's light years ahead of anything on the Android side.

  • iridiumstem on 04/03/2024 - 09:25
    +1

    I heard that SoC on Galaxy Watch 6 is near identical to one on Watch 5, and they are hoping to change that this year. I know that this is probably something everyone says whenever someone wants a new device of any kind, but I am personally waiting for Galaxy Watch 7. Given their ventures to the smart ring market, I am hoping that pushes them to go all in with the watch (otherwise, ring is cheaper and likely going to be a less intrusive alternative to a watch). Just based on rumors of course.

    With Apple Watch, they might be doing a big change this year given that it's a 10th year anniversary. Again just based on rumors.

    I do feel like Apple Watch is the better option if you are planning to get one right now. Is it worth carrying extra phone around? That's probably not something that I can comment on.

    I think in the latest video by Quantified Scientist, he mentions that Pixel watch 2 is better than the alternatives available on Android in terms of sleep tracking? So that might be an option as well.

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