Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: is the clear winner

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

But this is not the first time that Samsung has released a durable 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 considered 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 one should you buy? Let’s break it down.

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: specifications

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

The Galaxy Watch Ultra has an interesting and controversial design. It’s definitely “inspired” by its biggest competitor, the Apple Watch Ultra.

With the Galaxy Watch Ultra, you usually have a square case that wraps around a round display. It’s quite robust with a 47mm case size, which is the only size it’s available 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 other Ultra watches on the market.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra is made of aircraft-grade titanium and is available in three colors: Titanium White, Titanium Silver and Titanium Grey. It has a patented “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 always-on 1.5-inch Super AMOLED display is protected by sapphire glass. It has a resolution of 480 x 480 pixels and can reach a maximum brightness of 3000 nits. The Galaxy Watch Ultra is also water resistant to 100m and has an IP68 rating, which means it’s completely dustproof and designed to be submerged in water for extended periods of time.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro has a completely round case that is similar to a traditional watch, and is available in two colors: Black Titanium or Gray Titanium. It’s also made of titanium and has sapphire glass on the display, so it’s pretty durable too. The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro also comes in one size, 45mm, and is slightly thinner at 10.5mm. There are two buttons on the right side, but no Quick Button. Samsung uses standard 22mm wide straps for the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro.

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

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

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 the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro have the same overall set of sensors: heart rate, ECG, bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), SpO2, temperature, accelerometer, gyroscope, altimeter, ambient light, and compass. The Galaxy Watch Ultra’s biggest hardware update is an improved BioActive Sensor that enables sleep apnea detection and AGE index tracking (a metric that can help measure your body’s biological aging process).

The Galaxy Watch Ultra also introduces special AI-powered features such as energy scores and wellness tips. Energy Score gives you a score of 1 to 100 to rate your energy for the day, while Wellness Tips looks at your health data and provides recommended tips.

With the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, you get 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 add energy score and wellness tips to older Galaxy watches, including the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, if you have an Android phone running Android 10 or higher.

However, even after the software updates, the Galaxy 5 Pro will still lack sleep apnea detection and the AGEs index feature. That’s because it lacks the new BioActive Sensor 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, Exynos W1000, which can also be found in the Galaxy Watch 7. This is the first 3nm processor from Samsung. In layman’s terms it means 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 of RAM and 32GB of internal storage.

On the other hand, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro has an Exynos W920 processor, 1.5GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. This would mean that it is significantly slower than the W1000 chip, especially with less RAM and storage. In our original review, we noticed some slowdown for basic tasks like displaying notification information on the screen or trying to select a menu item several times before it registers.

With that in mind, while you can still pick up the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro for cheap these days, you definitely have to make some compromises when it comes to performance.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro have a 590mAh battery inside. This means you should have the same battery life on both watches.

From what we understand, the Galaxy Watch Ultra should last at least 48 hours in “exercise power saving mode.” However, it lasts up to 100 hours in “standard power mode” before you need to charge it again. Galaxy Watch Ultra support fast charging.

Our review of the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro showed that it can be used for around three full days – if you only exercise for 30 minutes each day – before needing a recharge. However, typical use should be at least two full days.

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

Both the Galaxy Watch Ultra and the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro run Wear OS with Samsung’s own 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 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, which both launched in 2022, meaning they will last until 2026.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra will be 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 has also included its One UI 6 interface on top for an optimized Samsung experience.

Like the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, the Galaxy Watch Ultra will have four years of supported updates, meaning it will last until at least 2028.

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

Since the Galaxy Watch Ultra is a true competitor to the Apple Watch Ultra, they don’t come cheap. It costs $650, comes in three colors – silver, white or gray – and you can choose between three types of bands. It can be found directly on Samsung’s website or at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy.

The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is still available for sale on 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 for a relatively cheap price these days – just $154 certified refurbished or around $250 new.

But with only two more years of support left for the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, it might be a better idea to go with the Galaxy Watch Ultra if you can afford it.

Galaxy Watch Ultra vs. Galaxy Watch 5 Pro: the verdict

We still have the Galaxy Watch Ultra to go through in our upcoming review, but from what we’ve seen so far in our brief hands-on experience, the Galaxy Watch Ultra looks like a big potential hit.

It’s basically Samsung’s version of the Apple Watch Ultra, but for Android users. The rugged design is built to withstand the rough and tumble environments you may find yourself in, and is packed to the brim with plenty of useful health sensors. And with Galaxy AI features like energy scores and wellness tips, it gives you the best and most comprehensive view of your health and well-being. Plus, it comes in multiple colors.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is two years old at this point, and we already noticed some slowness when it was first released. It is also halfway through its supported life. The Galaxy Watch Ultra has a much faster processor, more RAM and twice the storage. Wear OS 5 is also a nice upgrade, and we should expect about two full days of wear, depending on usage.

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