I've avoided smartwatches for years, but a month with the Galaxy Watch Ultra changed my mind

When it comes to wearable technology, I often find myself staring enviously through a locked fence. The problem is that it is a fence that I built myself.

With Samsung's summer releases Galaxy Watch 7 And Watch Ultraclosely followed by Google Pixel Watch 3 and more recently the new Apple Watch Series 10I decided to fix this.

My goal was to consciously wear one of the best smartwatch models for a month and see if I could make it a part of my life. A few sub-goals I set for myself were to reduce my daily phone use. I don't even regularly wear a “dumb” watch, so I whip out my phone to check the time, which generally results in me checking a notification and distracting myself from there. It's unnecessary and I'd like to make better decisions.

The other sub-goal was to monitor my fitness levels and encourage myself to get back on track health-wise. Everything is possible with a smartwatch.

So how did it go?

I've worn the Galaxy Watch Ultra for a month: here we go

Galaxy Watch Ultra review | BUY or SKIP?! – YouTube

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Originally I just wanted to try out the new basic version of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7. Somehow I was sent the high-end Galaxy Watch Ultra, which retails for $649. It was surprising to open the package.

I have to admit that the watch looks pretty nice. Personally, I would have preferred if Samsung had kept the case shape round instead of putting a circular front in a square case. At 47mm, it's also a fairly large watch compared to the 40 and 44mm sizes on the Watch 7. When it comes to watches, smart or not, I'm not a fan of chunky devices and prefer a sleeker fashion.

Additionally, the Galaxy Watch 7 has almost all of the same features as the Ultra and costs almost half. Here's a closer look at the Galaxy Watch 7 compared to the Galaxy Watch Ultra.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra is made of aerospace-grade titanium and is designed to withstand harsh conditions. The worst thing I did with it was rub the screen along my car while moving a tent. Luckily it is very scratch resistant and I didn't notice any marks on it from this little accident.

For a newbie to the smartwatch game, this immediately felt like way too much of a watch.

The construction was pretty simple. I already use a Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra as my daily driver, so pairing it was a breeze. I understand that some features may not work or work well with other devices, and certainly not for someone rocking an iPhone.

I tried the Galaxy Watch Ultra for a month: I don't sleep (and other tracking)

Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra

(Image credit: Future)

While trying out the Galaxy Watch Ultra, I had a love-hate relationship with all of the tracking features available on the watch.

In short, I really enjoyed the fitness tracking and getting to know the details of the different sports available to access. Most of the time I've really just tracked by walking, hiking, and jogging, as my sport of choice is disc golf, which is mostly hiking with a few throws thrown in. Still, it was nice to be able to differentiate between the three. You can create a label for a new exercise, which I could have done for disc golf, but for me it made sense to just pick something that already existed.

I'm trying to exercise more and find the tracking information displayed by the watch very helpful, especially when I'm trying to reach more specific goals like active time and heart rate.

Unfortunately, those were the only tracking metrics I found really useful.

I have a five month old baby who disagrees with the concept of sleep. So I don't really need to know that I'm not sleeping. Here

Starting with the biggest layoff, I have no personal need for sleep tracking at this time. There are two reasons for this.

Firstly, I have a five month old baby who disagrees with the concept of sleep. So I don't really need to know that I'm not sleeping. My partner has an Apple Watch Series 9 and is fully aware of how much deep sleep she doesn't get. If I snoozed more regularly, I might find this information more interesting and helpful instead of adding to the frustration.

Secondly, I don't enjoy the feeling of wearing accessories while sleeping. This includes things like necklaces, my wedding ring and now the watch. I did try it in the last week of my experiment, but I was so constantly aware of the clock that it prevented me from sleeping.

This means I didn't have access to Samsung's new Energy Score, as it requires sleep tracking data as part of its calculation. So I have no idea if this is a helpful feature.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra

(Image credit: Future)

The biggest new tracking feature on the latest Galaxy Watch is the sleep apnea detector and improved ECG tracking; The latter has been around in the Galaxy Watch series for some time. I tested the ECG tracker and it's interesting, but I didn't feel like I needed it.

The EKG monitors your heart's electrical activity and rhythm, but doesn't detect heart attacks, as the app constantly reminded me. However, it can theoretically detect early warning signs. Apparently sleep apnea detection was not used.

Annoyingly, the feature I was most excited about was the stress tracker. However, the watch seems to think I'm constantly suppressing stress, which ironically probably made me even more stressed. Maybe it's because I don't sleep well, but even when I took the time to try the relaxing breathing exercises on the watch, I still got a red-level stress reading. I've seen speculation that it could be heart rate related. I found out from the clock that my constant is in the 75-80 range, which is higher than I want it to be, but it's not clear if that's why my stress levels seem to be so high.

I tried the Galaxy Watch Ultra for a month: did I like anything?

I found the media controls a nice touch since I regularly walk my dog while playing podcasts or music. The ability to pause, skip, or play without pulling out or holding my phone was welcome.

Tracking rounds through the UDisc app for disc golf was a little wonky on the watch, but again, the goal was to not use my phone. It helped me feel more connected to what I was actually doing and not worry about the rectangle in my bag.

When I was on the go, the ability to use the watch to make payments via Google Wallet (or Samsung Wallet) was a nice touch, especially when I accidentally left my wallet at home while picking up my son from school. I've found that not every store or system accepts these yet, but overall I haven't had any problems shopping with my watch when I really needed it.

Outlook: Do I have to continue wearing this?

The Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra is worn on a user's wrist on an orange rubber strap

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

I went into this experimental smartwatch month with the greatest possible openness. From where I stand now, I honestly can't decide whether I will continue to wear the Galaxy Watch Ultra or not.

Using it as a smartphone extension is a nice way to keep my phone in my pocket, which was a big goal, and the smartwatch is far less distracting when interacting. I also liked having the weather, text messages, and certain apps like UDisc at my fingertips.

However, many of the tracking features are a waste for my current life situation. Sleep tracking completely escaped me. At least the fitness tracking features have proven useful when I'm trying to get my workouts back on track. However, I'm not sure anyone other than a professional athlete needs everything offered here.

If I just stopped wearing the watch tomorrow, I don't know that I would miss it since my smartphone is available with the information I need. Still, with the fitness tracker, access to Google Wallet, and distraction-free life, there's a case to be made for staying here.

I wouldn't call myself a smartwatch evangelist, but I'd like to give it another try, perhaps with a smartwatch that's not as expensive or bulky as the Galaxy Watch Ultra and perhaps a little less feature-rich, although I may have missed the boat on that here.

I've avoided smartwatches for years, but a month with the Galaxy Watch Ultra changed my mind

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