The Galaxy Watch Active 2 didn't end up being what many had expected it to. It didn't bring back the physical rotating bezel that many Samsung fans have grown so fond of. What it did do was to try and strike a compromise with its digital rotating bezel. It got the job done but it didn't feel nearly as nice as a physical bezel.
So Samsung is finally following through with a new smartwatch this year that addresses that shortcoming. While much of the internals remain the same, the Galaxy Watch 3 does bring back the physical rotating bezel for Samsung's smartwatches.
Galaxy Watch 3 vs Galaxy Watch Active 2
The footprint has been increased slightly for the new smartwatch so while the Galaxy Watch Active 2 was available in 40 and 44mm sizes, the Galaxy Watch 3 is available in 41 and 45mm sizes. Both utilize the Exynos 9110 chipset and the Galaxy Watch 3 does come with 1 of RAM as standard. Check out the complete specs comparison of the Galaxy Watch 3 vs Galaxy Watch Active 2 on our devices page.
Many of the health and fitness tracking features are the same but the Galaxy Watch 3 does get a few new features. It can measure and track blood oxygen saturation as well as detect accidental falls. It does get the same blood pressure monitoring feature as the Galaxy Watch Active 2, however, this feature is currently only approved for use in South Korea.
Clearly, the Galaxy Watch 3 appears to those who held out on the Galaxy Watch Active 2 just because it didn't have a physical rotating bezel. The slimmed-down bezel on the new smartwatch doesn't add much heft or bulk to the device so it's a great implementation of a design element that many Samsung fans still remain loyal to.
We'll be doing a full review of the Galaxy Watch 3 in the near future so do stick around for that.
