The new Galaxy Watch 3 or the Apple Watch 5? How the top smartwatches match up.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is the long-awaited successor to one of our favorite wearables, the original Galaxy Watch, and we’re enjoying all the new perks and features. But how does it stack up to the market leading competitor, the Apple Watch 5? While both watches sit on either side of the operating system divide – the Apple Watch 5 works seamlessly with iPhones, while the Galaxy Watch 3 integrates with Android phones far better than iOS devices – so choosing between the two may come down to which ecosystem serves you better. Apple Watches only link to iPhones, while the Samsung Watch 3 won’t be able to reply to messages or transfer much health data unless linked to Android phones That aside, both are all-around watches that can fit your fashion and your fitness needs – which is to be expected with their high prices relative to other smartwatches. These are the top-tier devices in their field, and you’d be hard-pressed to find wearables that outperform them. The Apple Watch 5 and Galaxy Watch 3 do differ substantially in features, operating system, and functionality, but it’s tough to summarize their appeal. Instead, we’ve broken them down section-by-section, so read on for our deep dives into how they compare by category. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 was officially announced at Samsung Unpacked on August 5, 2020 and released a day later on August 6, 2020. Yes, it’s the direct successor to the original Samsung Galaxy Watch – we’re not sure why the company skipped the ‘Galaxy Watch 2’ name, but there was a two-year gap between the two watches. The Galaxy Watch 3 starts at $399 / £419 / AU$649 for the smaller 41mm Galaxy Watch 3, and $329 / £429 / AU$699 for the bigger 45mm version, both in stainless steel – and there’s a titanium version in 45mm coming later in 2020 at an undisclosed cost. The price is even higher for the LTE-connecting models: $449 / £439 / AU$799 for the 41mm version, and $479 / £459 / AU$849 for the 46mm version. The Galaxy Watch 3’s stainless steel cases come in three colors total, split between sizes: 41mm exclusively has Mystic Bronze,45mm has Mystic Black, and both come in Mystic Silver. They’re shipped with a color-coordinating leather band, and the titanium version will have a corresponding metal link band. The Apple Watch 5 launched alongside the iPhone 11 lineup on September 10,2020. Costs for the cheaper GPS-only model start at $399 / £399 / AU$649 for the smaller 40mm size, rising to $429 / £429 / AU$699 for the 44mm size. LTE versions of the watch start at $499 / £499 / AU$799 for 40mm, and go up to $529 / £529 / AU$849 for the 44mm version. Those baseline prices are for the aluminum case, which comes in three finishes: Gold, Space Black, and Silver. The stainless steel casing costs more based on band choice: $699 with a sport loop or sport band, $749 with a Milanese loop, or $799 with a leather loop. The titanium casing, in light and dark finishes, starts at $799 with a sport loop and goes up to $899 with a leather loop. Finally, a Ceramic finish will push the cost to a whopping $1,299 with a sport loop and going up to $1,399 with a leather loop. The Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 is a refinement of the original Galaxy Watch and inherits much of its design. While the new watch is 14% slimmer and 15% lighter than the old, with some visibly streamlined elements, it’s still a large smartwatch. Most importantly, the Watch 3 retains a physical rotating dial, which was one of our favorite features of the original Galaxy Watch that made it a pleasure to navigate the interface with precision and tactile clicking.
