The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active is one of the strongest contenders yet to the Apple Watch’s crown - and today can be bought for half the price of its arch-rival.
Launched in 2018 but still sold by Samsung and other retailers today, the Galaxy Watch Active is as much a smartwatch as it is a fitness tracker.
Available in black, silver, rose gold and green with matching silicon straps, the first-generation Watch Active has a compact 40mm case diameter housing a 1.1-inch AMOLED touchscreen display protected by Corning Gorilla Glass.
The strap has a 20mm diameter and is fixed to the case using industry-standard lug bars, so you can swap it out to any other you might fancy.
There’s an accelerometer, barometer, gyro sensor and heart rate monitor for accurately recording your exercise and daily steps, and water resistance to 50 metres means you can take it swimming too. The wearable is compatible with fitness apps like MapMyRun. MyFitnessPal and Strava, among others.
Running Samsung's own Tizen operating system, the watch tracks a wide range of exercises and sports, and also has a suite of wellness features to help monitor your stress levels, and talk you through meditation and guided breathing sessions.
Data collected by the watch is sent over a Bluetooth connection to the Samsung Health app on your phone - and the watch works with both Android and iOS, so even iPhone owners can use it. Integrated GPS means you can accurately track outdoor runs without taking a smartphone with you, and there’s NFC for making contactless payments through Samsung Pay.
As well as exercise, the watch automatically tracks your sleep each night, logging the time you spent awake in bed, plus the light, deep and REM stages of sleep.
Samsung states the Watch Active’s battery life as 45 hours, depending on use.
Check out the best Samsung Galaxy Watch Active deals below:
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