Samsung has made one of the biggest changes to its smartwatch strategy yet.
The company confirms that the new Galaxy Watch 9 and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 will receive five years of Wear OS updates. The move gives Samsung’s latest wearables the longest software support commitment currently available on Wear OS, expanding their lifespan well beyond previous Galaxy Watch models.
The new policy covers both major Wear OS version upgrades and security updates for five years, and represents a notable step forward for Samsung.
Previous Galaxy Watch models were guaranteed four years of software support, while Google’s own Pixel Watch lineup currently offers three years of updates. For buyers planning to keep their smartwatch for several years, the extra support could make the latest Galaxy Watches a more attractive long-term investment.
Both the Galaxy Watch 9 and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 ship with Wear OS 7, making them the first smartwatches to launch with Google’s latest wearable operating system pre-installed.
Samsung has also upgraded the hardware across both models. The Galaxy Watch 9 is powered by the new Snapdragon Wear Elite platform. Samsung says this platform delivers around 35% better performance than the previous generation.
Meanwhile, the rugged Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 pairs the same chipset with an 800mAh battery, the largest ever fitted to a Galaxy Watch, along with the brightest display of any smartwatch (5000nits) and improved GPS performance.
With more capable hardware under the hood, Samsung appears confident these watches will remain responsive enough to benefit from years of future software releases.
Extended software support has become increasingly important in the smartphone market. Manufacturers now compete on update policies as much as hardware, and while smartwatches haven’t seen the same pace of change, Samsung’s latest announcement suggests that is beginning to shift.
The move also means buyers won’t feel pressured to upgrade quite as frequently. This is particularly true as smartwatch hardware improvements have become more incremental in recent years.
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