Intro

The Apple Watch Series 11 is here, but its main rival, the Galaxy Watch 8, has been around for a bit longer, expecting it to enter the ring and kick off the bout.?

Samsung's entrant scored many changes in tow, including a new design, many new health and wellness improvements, and an increased price tag.?

At the same time, the Apple Watch Series 11 remains mostly the same wearable, with a largely unchanged design and feature set, but some key improvements like better battery life and a new interface.?

How do these two compare?

Apple Watch Series 11 vs Galaxy Watch 8: differences

• New 5G modem and S11 chip on Watch 11
  
• New health features on Watch 11 (hypertension) and Galaxy Watch 8 (Vascular Load, Antioxidant Index)
• watchOS 26 with new looks on the Apple Watch, Wear OS One UI 8 Watch on the Samsung wearable
• Gemini AI on the Galaxy Watch 8
• 3,000-nit display on Galaxy Watch 8 vs 2,000-nit display on AW11
• LTPO3 display on AW11
• New squircle redesign for the Galaxy Watch 8, thinner 8.6mm case
• New Dynamic Lug System for band attachment on Galaxy Watch 8
• 42/46mm versions of the Apple Watch 11, 40/44mm versions of the Galaxy Watch 8
  
  

Table of Contents:

• Design and Sizes
• Bands
• Software
• Battery
• Models
• Voice and Haptics
• Specs
• Summary

Also read:

• Apple Watch Series 11 vs Series 10
• Apple Watch Series 11 vs Series 9
• Apple Watch Series 11 vs Apple Watch Ultra 3

Design & Sizes

Squircle-shaped?

The Watch Series 11 is similar to what we saw on the Watch Series 10, with a thin and appealing design language that easily makes it the most versatile wearable in Apple's wearable portfolio right now.?

This means the same general design is kept alive here on the Watch Series 11, with a slightly rounded display sloping toward the case, a digital crown and a flush button on the right-hand side of the device. You will be able to get this one in either aluminum or titanium, depending on which option you go for, giving you lots of leeway in terms of the exterior design.?

That's okay: wearables seldom score major redesigns.?

But as an exception to the rule, it's this here Galaxy Watch 8 that actually comes with a hefty redesign in tow. The new wearable employs a squircle case design language similar to the Galaxy Watch Ultra. It's made of Armor Aluminum 2 and the case has been slimmed down from 9.7 mm down to 8.6 mm, making it one of the slimmest Galaxy Watches around.?

Apple Watch Series 11	Galaxy Watch 8
Sizes 42/46mm	Sizes 40/44mm
Materials Aluminum/titanium Ion-X glass	Materials Armor Aluminum 2
Thickness 9.7 mm	Thickness 8.6 mm

Thanks to the redesigned case, Samsung has successfully fit a slightly bigger battery inside the smartwatch, which is once again available in 40 mm and 44 mm sizes, with 1.3" and 1.47" screens, respectively. Peak brightness here, however, has been increased to 3,000 nits, setting a bar too high for the Apple Watch Series 11, which maxes out at 2,000 nits. For a brighter watchOS-powered device, you have to go with the Apple Watch Ultra 3.?

One key feature of the Apple Watch Series 11 is the use of LTPO3 technology for the display, which allows it to refresh at just 1Hz per second. This boosts the efficiency and also allows the device to display second changes on the always-on display.?

The?Galaxy Watch 8?comes in Graphite and Silver colors, a business-like selection that is mostly devoid of fun. The Apple wearable gives you more options here: it comes in Rose Gold Aluminum, Silver Aluminum, Space Gray Aluminum, or Jet Black Aluminum, but you can also get it in Natural Titanium, Gold Titanium, or Slate Titanium.?

Bands

Despite the rumors that Apple is entertaining the idea of changing the way bands are attached to its wearables with the Watch Series 10, we didn't get such a change and instead Apple kept its decade-old latch mechanism in place. The Apple Watch Series 11 doesn't change that, and that's perfect.?

All the older Apple Watch bands you've collected over the years will be compatible with the next device.

Meanwhile, Samsung has once again changed the band attachment mechanism with a new one, called Dynamic Lug System. It ensures a snugger fit, passively increasing the heartrate accuracy and also allowing for even quicker band swapping. New bands with the Galaxy Watch 8 will fit into three categories, called Athleisure, Fabric, and Sport.

Sadly, this means your older bands are now largely incompatible with the new wearable.?

Software & Features

Wear OS vs watchOS

The Apple Watch Series 11 comes with watchOS 26. Yes, watchOS 26 and not watchOS 12, as Apple has renamed all of its operating systems across the board.

Aside from the name itself, Apple is also changing the visuals of watchOS: just like iOS and macOS, Liquid Glass is the interface design of choice here. This boosts the cohesiveness of the design style of all of Apple's operating systems.

New health features coming to the Apple Watch Series 11 are blood pressure monitoring, which will alert you if it detects signs of hypertension, as well as a return of the blood oxygen functionality of old, which got removed from some previous models due to legal troubles with the Masimo health tech company.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 8 comes along with Wear OS 6 running beneath Samsung's One UI Watch 8 software. The interface is slightly redesigned, with the Galaxy Watch 8 scoring the Now Bar from Samsung's One UI 7 flagships. It shows relevant information like timers and media controls on your watchface. Another change has come to how notifications are displayed: notifications from each app now occupy a single page, giving you richer context and providing with more relevant actions at the bottom.

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The major new feature is Google Gemini, bringing AI on your wrist. The AI assistant can execute multistep actions straight on your watch. For example, you can tell it to start a 5K run and play your workout playlist. Of course, more complex Gemini prompts are also available.

New health-related features on the Galaxy Watch 8 are Vascular Load and Antioxidant Index, which are exclusive to the new models. The former aims to gauge the vascular load on your circulatory system while you're asleep and provide you with ways to improve it. It tracks your sleep habits, exercise load, and stress levels to determine your vascular load. The other new feature uses sensor data to determine the levels of antioxidants accumulated in your skin. It also gives you recommendations on how to lower your antioxidants.

Some other improvements include a new Bedtime Guidance feature that will use Galaxy AI to determine the best times to hit the hay at night, based on your heart rate variability, heart rate, and previous sleep data. Another new activity-based feature called Running Coach will provide guidance and motivation to runners, give motivational messages, insights, and real-time feedback.

Battery and Charging

Better battery life on the Apple Watch Series 11

Thanks to the much more efficient Apple S10 chip and display up front, the Watch Series 11 has been rated for a 24-hour battery life, which is a six-hour increase over the usual 18-hour battery life of most previous Apple Watch devices. That's a major increase in battery life

Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 8 comes with?a 325 mAh and a 425 mAh batteries inside the 40 mm and 44 mm versions of the Galaxy Watch 8, respectively. The Galaxy Watch 8 features the 3nm Exynos W1000 chip.?

Samsung says it expects up to 30 hours of battery life with the always-on display on and up to 40 hours with the feature off, which is mostly consistent with the previous Galaxy Watch 7.?

In our experience, however, both devices will last you a day and some change, with recharges needed almost daily.?

Models and Prices

The Apple Watch Series 11 is available in two sizes, 42 and 46mm ones. Each of these will be available in either GPS-only or GPS cellular variant, with the connectivity here upgraded from LTE to 5G RedCap (Reduced Capability) on the upcoming models for better efficiency.?

On top of that, each of these will be available in different sizes and material variants, so the options will be a lot.?

At the same time, the Galaxy Watch 8 comes in two sizes, 40 and 44mm ones, either available with either Bluetooth-only or a cellular version. Samsung has raised prices by $50 across the board. The 40 mm Bluetooth-only watch is priced at $350, while the 44 mm one goes for $380. The LTE-enabled 40 mm versions costs $400, while the top 44 mm LTE model goes for $430.

Voice Calls and Haptics

You will be able to make and take calls on either smartwatch, provided that you pick a cellular-enabled version. You can do that on a regular GPS-only watch as well, but your phone will have to be nearby. The Apple Watch Series 11 comes with a single speaker, and so does the Galaxy Watch 8.

Haptics are excellent on either of these two smartwatches, with strong and precise feedback when you interact with the display or receive a notification.?

Specs

Here's how the Apple Watch Series 11 vs Galaxy Watch 8 specs might pan out:

Apple Watch Series 11	Samsung Galaxy Watch 8
Models 42mm 46mm both in Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi Cellular versions	Models 40mm 44mm both in Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi Cellular versions
Processor S11 chip	Processor Exynos W1000 chip
Software watchOS 26	Software Wear OS 6, One UI Watch 8
Battery 24-hour battery life Magnetic charger, 50% in 30 mins	Battery 30-hour battery life (AOD on)/40-hour battery life (AOD off) 325 mAh / 435 mAh
Sensors HR, blood oxygen, altimeter, ECG, blood pressure (hypertension)	Sensors HR, blood oxygen, altimeter, ECG, blood glucose, AGEs, BMI,?Vascular Load, Antioxidant Index

?

Summary

Both the Apple Watch Series 11 and the Galaxy Watch 8 will be the workhorses, so to say, of both companies' smartwatch lineups this year.?

The Galaxy Watch 8 comes along with a fresh new design, new health features, as well as Gemini AI, and a price hike. However, it's easily the best wearable for you this year if you're in the Android ecosystem, and the Galaxy one in particular.?

Meanwhile, the Apple Watch Series 11?is a small improvement over the previous Apple Watch Series 10. You get a few upgrades here and there, but nothing too drastic to justify upgrading.?Still, it is definitely a decent upgrade target for users of older Apple Watches, like the first SE, Apple Watch Series 5 or 6.?

Which one should you pick? Well, as neither one is a cross-platform device, you're pretty much railroaded in your choice.?

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