Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: There’s a clear winner

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch Ultra is the company’s answer to the Apple Watch Ultra. It’s the new rugged smartwatch offering from Samsung, designed for those who want a little bit more from their everyday smartwatch.

But this is not the first time that Samsung has released a rugged watch. Before the Galaxy Watch Ultra, there was the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, which launched in 2022. While it was a good smartwatch, it was never really seen as a true competitor to the Apple Watch Ultra.

Although the Galaxy Watch Ultra is Samsung’s latest and greatest rugged smartwatch, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is still available. So, if you’re shopping for a durable Samsung smartwatch, which should you buy? Let’s break it down.

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: specs

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: design and display

The Galaxy Watch Ultra has an interesting and controversial design. It definitely is “inspired” by its biggest competitor, the Apple Watch Ultra. Despite initially seeming like an Apple Watch Ultra competitor though, Digital Trends’ Mobile editor Joe Maring was able to shake off that impression after just one week of using the Galaxy Watch Ultra, leading him to the conclusion that its the “most original and unique Android smartwatches you can buy in 2024.”

With the Galaxy Watch Ultra, you have a mostly square case that envelops a round display. It’s rather chunky with a 47mm case size, which is the only size it comes in, and it’s 12.1mm thick. On the right side of the case is the watch’s Quick Button, flanked by the back and home buttons. Oh, and don’t forget the bright orange accents like the other Ultra watch on the market.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra is made with aerospace-grade titanium and comes in three colors: Titanium White, Titanium Silver, and Titanium Gray. It has a proprietary “cushion design” that will protect the display in certain extreme conditions and is marketed as the “toughest Galaxy Watch yet.” The lug system has also changed and works similarly to the Apple Watch band system.

The 1.5-inch Super AMOLED always-on display is protected with sapphire crystal glass. It has a resolution of 480 x 480 pixels and can reach a maximum brightness of 3,000 nits. The Galaxy Watch Ultra is also water-resistant up to 100m and has an IP68 rating, which means it is completely dust-tight and is meant to be submerged in water for extended periods of time.

However, Samsung warns against using the Galaxy Watch Ultra during “high-pressure water activities and diving,” suggesting you should limit your usage to shallow water activities such as swimming in a pool.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro has a completely round case, which is similar to traditional timepieces, and it comes in two colors: Black Titanium or Gray Titanium. It is also made with titanium and has sapphire crystal glass on the display, so it’s also quite durable. The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro also comes in one size, 45mm, and is slightly less thick at 10.5mm. There are two buttons on the right side, but no Quick Button. Samsung uses standard 22mm-width straps for the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro.

The always-on Super AMOLED display on the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is 1.4 inches, and it has a 450 x 450 pixel resolution and an IP68 rating. However, while the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro has a 5ATM water submersion rating, the Galaxy Watch Ultra has a 10ATM rating (50 meters of submersion versus 100 meters, respectively).

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: health tracking features

When it comes to health tracking features, the Galaxy Watch Ultra is a bit more comprehensive than the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro.

Both the Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro have the same overall set of sensors: heart rate, ECG, bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), SpO2, temperature, accelerometer, gyroscope, alti-barometer, ambient light, and compass. The Galaxy Watch Ultra’s biggest hardware upgrade is its improved BioActive Sensor, which enables sleep apnea detection and AGEs index tracking (a metric that can help gauge your body’s biological aging process). Unfortunately, while the sleep apnea detection appears to be on point, we did not find the AGEs metric to be convincingly accurate.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra also introduces special AI-powered features like Energy Score and Wellness Tips. Energy Score gives you a 1 to 100 score to rate your energy for a given day based on different aspects of your sleep, while Wellness Tips looks at your health data to provide recommended tips.

With the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, you have heart monitoring, advanced sleep coaching (but no sleep apnea detection), automatic workout detection, body composition, and cycle tracking — all of which you also get on the Watch Ultra. Samsung will be adding Energy Score and Wellness Tips to older Galaxy Watches, including the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, as long as you have an Android phone that runs Android 10 or higher.

Even after software updates, though, the Galaxy 5 Pro will still lack sleep apnea detection and the AGEs index feature. That’s because it doesn’t have the new BioActive Sensor that is found on the Galaxy Watch Ultra.

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: performance and charging

The Galaxy Watch Ultra comes with Samsung’s most powerful chip yet, the Exynos W1000, which is also found in the Galaxy Watch 7. This is the first 3nm processor from Samsung. In layman’s terms, this means a smooth and efficient user experience.

The Exynos W1000 is 3x faster than the previous-generation Exynos W930 chip in the Galaxy Watch 6 and Galaxy Watch 6 Classic. The Galaxy Watch Ultra also has 2GB RAM and 32GB of internal storage.

On the other hand, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro has the Exynos W920 processor, 1.5GB RAM, and 16GB storage. This would mean that it’s significantly slower than the W1000 chip, especially with less RAM and storage. We did notice some slowdown with basic tasks like seeing notification information on the screen or it taking several attempts to select a menu item before it registers. The slowdown may be more apparent (without being detrimental to usage) if you are using third-party watch faces on a Galaxy Watch 5 Pro.

With this in mind, while you can still pick up a Galaxy Watch 5 Pro for cheap these days, you definitely do have to make some compromises in terms of performance.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro both have a 590mAh battery inside. That means you’ll get around the same battery life from either watch. The more efficient processor on the Galaxy Watch Ultra should compensate for its brighter — and, thus, relatively more power hungry display.

During our review, we found the Galaxy Watch Ultra’s battery to last around one-and-a-half to two days with ample physical activity. Samsung states it should last at least 48 hours in exercise power-saving mode, and up to 100 hours in standard power-saving mode.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra supports faster charging at up 15W using the wireless charging puck included with it. Despite the fast advertized speed, however, we witnessed the Galaxy Watch Ultra take roughly 90 minutes per cycle, which can be frustrating in certain scenarios.

Our review of the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro showed that it can be used for around three full days — as long as you only do a 30-minute workout each day — before you need to recharge. But typical use should be at least two full days. It features a slower 10W charger, which increases the charging time, making it slower than the Galaxy Watch Ultra.

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: software and updates

Both the Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro run Wear OS with Samsung’s custom One UI Watch interface layered on top. Of course, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro came out earlier and is now about halfway through its life cycle.

The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro came equipped with Wear OS 4 with Samsung’s One UI Watch 5 software on top. Samsung has promised four years of software updates for the Galaxy Watch 5 and 5 Pro, both of which launched in 2022, which means that it will last through 2026.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra is among the first Android smartwatches to run Wear OS 5, which is said to have much-improved performance and power efficiency compared to the previous version. Samsung also included its One UI 6 interface on top for an optimized Samsung experience. Although the new interface feed is visually identical to that of the previous generation, we did notice more fluidity and quicker delivery of notifications. Samsung also added support for a “Double Pinch” gesture wherein you can tap your thumb and index finger to perform specific actions, such as answering calls, changing music, dismissing alarms, and taking pictures with a paired Samsung phone.

Like the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, the Galaxy Watch Ultra will also have four years of supported updates, which means it will last through to 2028 at least.

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: price and availability

Since the Galaxy Watch Ultra is a true Apple Watch Ultra competitor, it isn’t cheap. It costs $650, comes in three colors — silver, white, or gray — and you can choose between three band types. It can be found directly from Samsung’s website or at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy.

The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is still available for sale from Samsung’s website, as well as retailers like Amazon and Best Buy. It comes in two colors, black or gray, and you can find it at a relatively inexpensive price these days — as low as $154 for a certified refurbished one or around $250 for a new one.

But considering that the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro has only about two more years of support left, it may be a better idea to just go with the Galaxy Watch Ultra, as long as you can afford it.

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: verdict

After putting the Galaxy Watch Ultra through its paces during our review, we certainly liked it much more than our positive initial impressions, despite its imperfections.

It’s more than Samsung’s adaptation of the Apple Watch Ultra and features such as sleep apnea detection, and the distinct squircle design helps to set it apart from other Wear OS watches. The rugged design is made to withstand tough and harsh environments, and it’s packed to the brim with useful health sensors. Galaxy AI features like Energy Score and Wellness Tips give you the best and most comprehensive look at your health and well-being, and it comes in multiple colors.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is two years old at this point, around halfway through its supported lifespan, and was already sluggish on launch. The Galaxy Watch Ultra has a much faster processor, more RAM, and double the storage. Wear OS 5 is also a nice improvement, and we should expect around two full days of wear, depending on use.

The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro can be a tempting buy in 2024, especially thanks to frequent sales and discounts that are now available. However, if you have the cash to spend and want the best rugged Samsung watch you can buy, the Galaxy Watch Ultra is what you should probably buy.