The leaks were right. Samsung has just announced the launch of a third smartwatch, the Galaxy Watch FE. It is intended to be the company's new entry-level smartwatch and offers a more affordable option compared to its flagship Galaxy Watch models.
It makes sense that Samsung is doing this now. The Galaxy Watch series used to be relatively affordable compared to the competition, but over the past two years, Samsung has increased the starting price of its watches by $50 to keep up with inflation. The FE will sell for $199 for the Bluetooth-only version and $249.99 for the LTE version, which is more in line with what their watches used to cost. This also makes Samsung's smartwatch lineup a little more like Apple's, with a budget model, a flagship model, and a more premium option.
Like other entry-level models, the FE gives up some creature comforts to achieve that more palatable price. For example, the FE only comes in a 40mm size with a slightly smaller 1.2-inch OLED display. The FE also has the next-generation Exynos W920 chip instead of the W930, with 1.5GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. Most of the sensors remain the same, but the temperature sensor that was introduced last year is forgone. The battery is also smaller at 247 mAh. The edge He wondered if the FE would support fast charging, but didn't get an answer.
That being said, you won't give up. that a lot. Despite being the budget model, the FE has the same sapphire crystal lens, IP68 rating, and 5 ATM water resistance. It also has the same one-click strap mechanism, NFC payments, and built-in GPS. As for connectivity, you get LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, and Wi-Fi. Also like the flagship watches, the FE has OneUI Watch 5 and Wear OS 4, abnormal high or low heart rate notifications, electrocardiograms, body composition analysis, and custom heart rate zones.
Announcing FAITH now is a bit of a surprise. Samsung typically unveils its wearable devices at its summer Unpacked event, which is expected to take place next month in Paris. That being said, this year's event could be truly comprehensive for Samsung's line of wearables. In addition to the new Galaxy Watch 7, we expect to see a new Galaxy Watch Ultra and the Galaxy Ring. Considering all this, the relatively simple FE would have easily been lost in the shuffle.
The Bluetooth version of the Galaxy Watch FE goes on sale in the US starting June 24. The LTE version will arrive later this year.
