Galaxy Watch 6 vs Galaxy Watch 4: Is it time for an upgrade?

Samsung's newest smartwatches are here. The Galaxy Watch 6 and the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic were unveiled during the Galaxy Unpacked event today. They feature bigger and brighter screens, a faster processor, higher memory, a newer version of Wear OS, and improved health tracking features.

But the new watches still have largely the same design as the Galaxy Watch 4 and the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic that were launched two years ago. So, if you have a Galaxy Watch 4, should you upgrade to the Galaxy Watch 6?

In this article, we've compared their features and specifications to help you decide if you should upgrade from the Galaxy Watch 4 to the Galaxy Watch 6.

Galaxy Watch 6 vs Galaxy Watch 4: Display and design

The Galaxy Watch 4 and the Galaxy Watch 6 have the same design, featuring an aluminum body and silicone bands. However, the display on the Galaxy Watch 6 is bigger, and the bezels are thinner. The Galaxy Watch 4 has a 1.2-inch OLED screen in the 40mm version and a 1.4-inch screen in the 44mm version. In comparison, the Galaxy Watch 6 has a 1.3-inch OLED screen in the 40mm version and a 1.5-inch screen in the 44mm version.

More importantly, the Galaxy Watch 6 has a much brighter screen. It has a peak brightness of 2,000 nits compared to the Galaxy Watch 4's 1,000 nits brightness. The Galaxy Watch 6 also features automatic brightness in the AoD (Always On Display) mode. The Galaxy Watch 6 has a 20% bigger screen and 30% thinner bezels.

The Galaxy Watch 4 has Gorilla Glass DX+ screen protection, while the Galaxy Watch 6 has Sapphire Crystal protection on top of its screen. Both watches have an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance (up to 50m). The Galaxy Watch 4 has an MIL-STD-810G design for drop and shock resistance, while the Galaxy Watch 6 has improved resistance to drops and shocks as it has an MIL-STD-810H design.

Galaxy Watch 6 vs Galaxy Watch 4: Internal hardware, health tracking, and battery life

Samsung has equipped the Galaxy Watch 4 and the Galaxy Watch 6 with an accelerometer, barometer, body composition analysis, compass, ECG, GPS, gyro, and heart rate monitor.

The Galaxy Watch 6 has a temperature sensor that lets you measure your skin temperature as well as the temperature of your surroundings or objects. The temperature sensor is also used in more accurate insights into female health tracking. The new watch also features detailed sleep tracking and offers users personalized tips to improve sleep quality and duration. It also features irregular heart rhythm notifications, even when a user is sleeping. These features are missing on the Galaxy Watch 4.

Samsung has equipped the Galaxy Watch 6 with a slightly faster chipset. The Exynos W930 inside the Galaxy Watch 6 has a 1.4GHz dual-core CPU, and it is paired with 2GB RAM and 16GB storage. The Galaxy Watch 4 has the Exynos W920 chip with a 1.18GHz dual-core CPU, and it is paired with 1.5GB RAM and 16GB storage. So, the Galaxy Watch 6 is slightly faster in day-to-day operations.

The Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 6 have GPS, dual-band Wi-Fi, NFC, and Samsung Pay. The Galaxy Watch 6 has Bluetooth 5.3, while the Galaxy Watch 5 has Bluetooth 5.0, so its wireless range and connection stability with the paired smartphone will be better.

The 40mm Galaxy Watch 4 has a 247mAh battery, while its 40mm version of the Galaxy Watch 6 has a 300mAh battery. Similarly, the 44mm version of the Galaxy Watch 6 has a bigger battery (410mAh) than the 44mm Galaxy Watch 4 (361mAh). The Galaxy Watch 6 charges wirelessly at 10W, while the Galaxy Watch 4 has 5W wireless charging. So, the Galaxy Watch 6 charges faster and lasts longer than the Galaxy Watch 4.

Galaxy Watch 6 vs Galaxy Watch 4: Software and features

The Galaxy Watch 6 runs Wear OS 4-based One UI 5 Watch out of the box that offers better sleep coaching, gesture controls, and deeper integration with Galaxy phones, tablets, and smart TVs. The Galaxy Watch 4 will soon get the Wear OS 4 update, so all the new features will be available on the older smartwatch.

The Galaxy Watch 6 will get at least two more Wear OS updates, though, so it is more future-proof.

After taking a look at all its features, the Galaxy Watch 6 is a good upgrade for those who already own a Galaxy Watch 4. The new smartwatch from Samsung offers a sleeker design, a much brighter screen, a slightly faster processor, more RAM, better health tracking features, a bigger battery, and faster charging.

Apart from the design, everything is better on the Galaxy Watch 6 compared to the two-year-old Galaxy Watch 4. Whether you are buying a new watch or looking to upgrade from the Galaxy Watch 4, the Galaxy Watch 6 looks like a good choice.

Samsung
Galaxy Watch 6 40mm

Select model SM-R930 Buy Full specs

Samsung
Galaxy Watch 4 (40mm)

Select model SM-R860 SM-R865 Buy Full specs