Samsung's One UI 8 Watch replace is so good, I'd hand over on the Pixel Watch

[ad_1] <img class="e_ng" decoding="async" loading="eager" sizes="(min-width: 64rem) 51.25rem, 80vw" title="Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 watch faces" srcset="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces.jpg 1920w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces-1536w-864h.jpg 1536w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces-675w-380h.jpg 675w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces-64w-36h.jpg 64w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces-1000w-563h.jpg 1000w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces-300w-170h.jpg 300w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces-1280w-720h.jpg 1280w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces-840w-472h.jpg 840w" alt="Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 watch faces" src="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-watch-faces.jpg"/> Ryan Haines / Android Authority

One UI 8 beta is already rolling out to Galaxy Watches, and I’m equally irritated by and in awe of it. The reason being that I used to be a Galaxy Watch 4 consumer again in 2021, however I migrated to Google’s wearable when the primary Pixel Watch launched. My determination was principally guided by my need to remain inside Fitbit’s ecosystem, which had a few years of my private exercise and well being knowledge. Since then, I’ve had the primary, second, and third Pixel Watch, and I assumed that this 12 months, I’d improve to the Pixel Watch 4. Besides that One UI 8 has so many good options that it’s making me second-guess this determination.

Would you turn from the Pixel Watch to the Galaxy Watch? 0 votes

Sure, already did that.

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I am truly contemplating it now.

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Not now, but when there's sufficient to tempt me away.

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No, I am sticking with the Pixel Watch.

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I really need One UI 8’s hand gestures

<img class="e_ng" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="(min-width: 64rem) 51.25rem, 80vw" title="Galaxy Watch 6 Classic reaching for bezel" srcset="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel.jpg 1920w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel-1536w-864h.jpg 1536w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel-675w-380h.jpg 675w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel-64w-36h.jpg 64w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel-1000w-563h.jpg 1000w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel-300w-170h.jpg 300w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel-1280w-720h.jpg 1280w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel-840w-472h.jpg 840w" alt="Galaxy Watch 6 Classic reaching for bezel" src="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Galaxy-Watch-6-Classic-reaching-for-bezel.jpg"/> Damien Wilde / Android Authority

Again within the Android Put on days, Google had rolled out help for hand gestures on its watch OS. On the time, I discovered the function a bit gimmicky, however I slowly grew keen on it. For me, it was the one-handedness of it that made such a big influence. As an alternative of getting to attend till each of my arms have been free to have the ability to work together with my watch and verify or dismiss a notification, for instance, I may merely flick my wrist. Scrolling up and down was additionally doable.

It’s been years since Google eliminated that helpful (ha!) function, and I nonetheless catch myself flicking my wrist and attempting to work together with my Pixel Watch. Most occasions, it’s even simpler for me to get my telephone out of my pocket to do one thing solely as a result of I can use my telephone with one hand, whereas watch interactions lock each of my arms collectively.

I nonetheless miss Android Put on's hand-flick gesture. It was a handy approach to navigate my watch with one hand.

Samsung has been providing hand gestures on its Galaxy Watches for years now, however One UI 8 takes this to the subsequent degree. The double-pinch gesture has been taken to the subsequent degree with customized actions on the watch face, music controller, in addition to alarm, calendar, and reminder notifications.

That appeals to me a lot. It’d permit me to do precisely what I need in every scenario, like pause or skip music, dismiss or snooze alarms, and act on notifications. I’m positive Samsung will carry on bettering these gestures and including extra customization to them. I’d find it irresistible if I may pause monitoring my hike or swim, for instance, with a double pinch, then resume it with one other. I’d find it irresistible much more if the double-pinch gesture was open to third-party devs to permit us to regulate every app nevertheless we wish. However even of their present state, hand gestures on Galaxy Watches appear so sensible to me in on a regular basis use, and for that alone, I’m so tempted to ditch my Pixel Watch and transfer over.

Combining two apps in a single tile is an enormous house and time saver

<img class="e_ng" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="(min-width: 64rem) 51.25rem, 80vw" title="Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 weather widget" srcset="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget.jpg 1920w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget-1536w-864h.jpg 1536w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget-675w-380h.jpg 675w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget-64w-36h.jpg 64w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget-1000w-563h.jpg 1000w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget-300w-170h.jpg 300w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget-1280w-720h.jpg 1280w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget-840w-472h.jpg 840w" alt="Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 weather widget" src="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Samsung-Galaxy-Watch-7-weather-widget.jpg"/> Ryan Haines / Android Authority

A smartwatch ought to save me time and be extra sensible to make use of and entry than my telephone. Not less than, that’s what I feel. But, more often than not, doing one thing on my Pixel Watch requires extra swipes and faucets than getting my telephone out, so I find yourself avoiding utilizing it. A type of time wasters are tiles. On paper, it’s a good suggestion to take out probably the most important a part of an app and create a widget-like tile out of it that is still accessible from the watch’s fundamental dwelling display screen. In actuality, although, as soon as there’s greater than 4 or 5 tiles, they grow to be much less environment friendly than opening the precise app. Swiping aimlessly by 10 tiles, for instance, is a big time waster for me.

The extra tiles I've, the much less I take advantage of them. I do not need to swipe a number of occasions to get to the one I need.

With One UI 8, Samsung is bettering the idea of tiles by letting us create them from scratch. The very best half is which you can combine and match two small tiles from two completely different apps into one massive tile, thus lowering the time it takes to swipe throughout them. I find it irresistible! It might permit me to make use of extra tiles on fewer screens and with fewer swipes, all whereas maintaining probably the most important data or icons that I care about.

For instance, as an alternative of getting 5 favourite contacts, I may have my husband and my mother; and as an alternative of getting actions to quick-start six sports activities monitoring actions, I may solely hold swimming, strolling, and mountaineering, i.e. those I care about probably the most. That’s greater than sufficient for me, and it will let me use tiles extra usually and extra effectively.

Now Bar or Dwell Updates could be a game-changer on a watch

<img class="e_ng" decoding="async" loading="lazy" sizes="(min-width: 64rem) 51.25rem, 80vw" title="pixel watch at a glance" srcset="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled.jpg 1920w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled-1536w-864h.jpg 1536w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled-675w-380h.jpg 675w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled-64w-36h.jpg 64w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled-1000w-563h.jpg 1000w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled-300w-170h.jpg 300w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled-1280w-720h.jpg 1280w, https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled-840w-472h.jpg 840w" alt="pixel watch at a glance" src="https://www.androidauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/pixel-watch-at-a-glance-scaled.jpg"/> Rita El Khoury / Android Authority

Google already has an At A Look complication, however I by no means use it as a result of it takes up an excessive amount of house away from my fundamental watch face with out offering sufficient worth more often than not. I'd a lot reasonably have this information surfaced proper once I want it, which is the precise idea of Samsung’s Now Bar.

Well timed and context-aware stay updates on a smartwatch make a lot sense. Why did we wait this lengthy to have them?

I think about seeing the progress of my Uber or meals supply proper there on my watch’s face, with out having to unlock or swipe or faucet or do something. In on a regular basis life, it’d even be tremendous helpful to see elapsed time on timers or the development of my subway journey and subsequent cease. That’s the form of handy and practical updates a smartwatch is made for, however sadly, till now, virtually all of those haven’t been seamless and have required some type of interplay with the watch. Now Bar ought to repair that fundamental sore level.

All of this to say that Samsung is doing a kick-ass job with One UI 8 for watches, and that I’m critically contemplating ditching my Pixel Watch 4 desires and becoming a member of the Galaxy Watch camp. The one hiccup is Fitbit — I've a Galaxy Ring and I’m not a fan of Samsung Well being. In addition to that, although, Samsung is hitting each proper notice and including all the sensible options that I dream of getting on Put on OS 6 to make my smartwatch smarter, extra helpful, and extra handy in my on a regular basis life. I've a troublesome determination to make within the subsequent couple of months.