Samsung gives Galaxy Watch a major navigation upgrade with Strava Routes
The new partnership will bring Strava’s popular route-planning feature directly to Samsung Health
Samsung Galaxy Watch users will soon be able to access Strava Routes on their wrist through Samsung Health, thanks to a significant expansion of the two companies’ partnership.
Strava will be pre-installed on new Galaxy Watches sold globally, beginning with the latest Galaxy Watch 9 and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2.
Buyers of either smartwatch will also receive a 60-day trial of Strava’s subscription service, which unlocks a complete selection of premium training and route-planning features.
More importantly, Strava Routes will be integrated natively into Samsung Health later this year, giving you on-wrist access to routes created through Strava without relying solely on the separate Strava watch app.
Strava offers a ton of premium features to its subscribers – and now new Galaxy Watch users will also be able to access these for 60 days for free
Strava and Samsung haven’t fully explained how the integration will work, including whether routes will synchronise automatically or which older Galaxy Watch models, such as the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, will be supported.
However, the companies say the Samsung Health integration will begin rolling out globally to Galaxy Watch users in the coming months.
Finding a better way around
Strava Routes uses activity data from the company’s enormous user community to generate courses suited to different sports, distances and preferences.
Strava Premium subscribers can also create their own routes and download them for navigation in areas without a reliable data connection.
The feature could make Galaxy Watch more competitive with outdoor watches from brands such as Garmin, Suunto and Coros, where route creation, synchronisation and on-wrist navigation are already important parts of the experience.
Its arrival is particularly timely after Strava expanded its hiking tools in June.
The latest Strava updated included big updates for hikers
The recent update introduced improved route planning, navigation and trail-discovery features, reflecting the company’s efforts to become more useful beyond running and cycling.
Samsung is also placing greater emphasis on personalised fitness services across its wearable ecosystem.
Alongside the Strava announcement, the company revealed that iFIT’s Tailor personal trainer will use sleep, heart-rate and recovery information recorded by Galaxy Watch to generate adaptive workouts through Samsung Health.
The two integrations arrive with the new Galaxy Watch 9 and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2.
The Watch9 is Samsung’s everyday health-focused model, while the Ultra2 adds an 800mAh battery, trail-running metrics, hydration guidance and support for recreational diving.
Strava says the Routes integration is the first of several improvements planned for Samsung users, although it hasn’t revealed what will follow.
Strava Routes requires a paid subscription once the complimentary 60-day trial has ended.
Read more about the integration at Strava.
