Review of Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 44mm - a watch that can do almost everything

We tested one of the simplest and most affordable versions of Samsung wearable gadgets - the Galaxy Watch 4 44mm. There is no LTE support and no bezel, and their dial is a classic round shape and relatively small. And yet this is a highly functional smartwatch that few can compete with.

Table of contents

• Specifications
• Appearance
• Screen
• Smartphone connection
• Smart features
• Health and exercise monitoring
• Autonomy
• Outcomes

Specifications

Appearance

Design by smart watch The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 is discreet. They look solid, at least in black. There are also olive and silver options.

The ends of the aluminum case turned out to be not resistant to damage: the model arrived for our test already slightly scratched. The glossy surface quickly attracts dust.

The screen is flush with the body and protected by Corning Gorilla Glass DX +. Fingerprints easily remain on it and are poorly erased, which spoils the appearance of the gadget.

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 44mm is quite large, but not so heavy that it looks heavy on a woman's hand. According to our measurements, a watch with a silicone strap weighs just over 50 g. The wrist does not get tired of them.

Two mechanical control keys are located on the right. The top one returns to the main screen, it is highlighted in red, which somewhat revives the strict design. The lower one activates Samsung Pay, and when you launch one of the sport modes, it allows you to switch between workouts.

The rest of the clock is controlled via the touch screen. It is responsive to touch, but it is not very convenient to scroll through small icons on it. At such moments, you regret that there is no bezel that makes navigation easier.

Screen

Around the 1.4 ‑ inch display of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, there is a rather noticeable black bezel, which is about 3 mm wide (according to our measurements). It slightly spoils the look of the watch in the mode of continuous display of the Always on Display dial.

The colors are natural and pleasant, the contrast and clarity of pictures and fonts are high. The light sensor is responsive, and the touchscreen responds quickly and clearly to taps and scrolling gestures.

There are many dial designs that you can customize to your liking by adding the apps you use most often.

Smartphone connection

Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 44 mm will work only with Android devices. iPhones and Huawei smartphones without Google services and associated app store are not officially supported.

We connected a smartwatch to a smartphone Poco M4 Pro 5Gand it wasn't easy. To pair devices, you need to install the Galaxy Wearable application, then the plug-in for the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4, as well as the Samsung Health proprietary application to collect statistics.

It took some time to find the correct sequence of actions. When connecting from Galaxy Wearable, the application hung a couple of times at the stage of copying data from a Google account and the device itself slowed down when establishing a Bluetooth connection. Then I found out that voice calls were not working.

After suffering, we still found a working algorithm: first install the plugin, then create a pair, and only then launch Galaxy Wearable.

At the end of the quest with the initial pairing, setting up the gadget and activating the Samsung account, the connection between the Galaxy Watch 4 and the smartphone keeps flawlessly.

Smart features

Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 44mm belongs to the group of the most advanced smartwatches. The version that we had on the test lacks only the LTE-module for the "full stuffing", although there are such variants in the line too.

The owner can use the watch for talking on the phone, pay with it for purchases (supported by Samsung Pay and Google Pay), view messages and reply in instant messengers, and install additional applications, For example Spotify or Viber.

If desired, it is easy to receive voice calls directly from the watch and dial the subscriber's number from them to make a call. The speaker sound is loud enough, the microphone works fine.

Also, without taking your smartphone out of your pocket, you can communicate in messengers. Messages are read in full, and if necessary, they are also voiced. Attached photos are visible immediately, audio and video clips are displayed only with icons.

You can enter text on the Galaxy Watch 4 in several ways. The watch has quick response templates (Yes, No, Later, and so on). You can also dictate it with your voice, draw letters on the display, or type on a small keyboard.

The list of applications, notifications from which are shown on the watch, is configured in the smartphone. Incoming messages and calls are duplicated by information on the screen, vibration and sound.

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 comes with an audio player. Built-in memory - 16 GB (available to the userGalaxy Watch4 / Samsung specifications 7.6 GB), so you can download music tracks from your smartphone. Wireless headphones connect to the watch via Bluetooth.

Health and exercise monitoring

The watch has a pedometer heart rate monitor, meters of the current level of stress and oxygen in the blood, monitoring of various phases of sleep and their duration. The blood pressure and ECG tracking functions are active only when the gadget is paired with Samsung smartphones.

An unusual option on the Galaxy Watch 4 is the calculation of the percentage of fat, muscle and water in the body using a bioelectrical impedance analysis sensor. Based on the information collected, it is calculated body mass index. The measurement itself takes 15–20 seconds, and the result is the same as that shown by smart scales from another manufacturer.

The sleep sensor works almost perfectly. The watch correctly records sleep at night and during the day, and even knows how to track and record snoring.

Galaxy Watch 4's workout list includes 90 indoor and outdoor physical activities such as walking, cycling, jumping rope, and push ups.

The watch supports all popular navigation systems, satellites are found quickly. When the user stops, an automatic pause is turned on, and when he resumes movement, the gadget continues to track the indicators.

Starting sport mode does not block other functions. When you go to the main menu, an icon appears on the dial for a quick return to statistics.

The overall impression of a smartwatch is slightly spoiled by the localization of voice information. For example, on circuit training the elapsed time is voiced as "two minutes thirty seconds".

Autonomy and charging

Battery life is a weak point of the Galaxy Watch 4. In normal mode, without workouts and geolocation, they "live" for about 40 hours. When Always on Display is on, the battery loses 3% charge per hour.

To feel confident, you need to connect to the outlet once a day. It takes approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes to fully charge the battery. During the process, the remaining time up to 100% is displayed on the screen.

Outcomes

Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 44 mm is a modern smartwatch with advanced functionality, attractive appearance and good build quality. Their current price does not seem too high: 24,990 rubles for the version with LTE, 20,490 or even less - without it. However, you can save a couple of thousand more by taking a more compact model - 40 mm.

The only disappointing thing about this watch is the modest battery life and the limitations of some functions laid down by the manufacturer. The main disappointment is the inaccessibility of measurement ECG and pressure for owners of other brands of Android smartphones.

Buy

The author thanks Samsung for the device provided for testing. The company had no way of influencing its outcome.