The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 Under Armour Edition is now official. As the name suggests, this product is the result of a partnership between Samsung and Under Armour.
This smartwatch follows on from the two Galaxy Watch Active 2 models announced earlier in the week.
The new smartwatch is all about Under Armour and how well Samsung’s software integrates with Under Armour’s apparel and fitness clothing. The Under Armour Edition will feature premium access to the company’s MapMyRun app to track runs and this includes a free six-month Under Armour MVP membership.
Additionally, the new Under Armour Galaxy Watch Active 2 connects via Bluetooth to Under Armour’s HOVR shoes, a pair of digitally connected sneakers that record every fitness metric so users can see how to improve their workouts and get the most out of them. There is no cellular-connected model, but considering the Under Armour Galaxy Watch Active 2 is designed to pair with Under Armour sports and fitness apparel, the decision to not include one makes sense.
This is an interesting device considering that its predecessor, the Galaxy Watch Active, was designed as a budget-friendly alternative to the original Galaxy Watch unveiled in 2018. The Galaxy Watch was priced at $350 or so when it landed; the Galaxy Watch Active, announced in February of this year, is priced a bit more budget-friendly at $199.99. However, the Galaxy Watch Active 2 now appears to be Samsung’s “flagship” smartwatch this year (and priced accordingly), even though the naming might lead to some consumers confusing it with Samsung’s recent budget-friendly offering.
The Galaxy Watch Active 2 Under Armour Edition comes in aluminum casing, with 44mm and 40mm models available. The 44mm Watch Active 2 features a 1.4-inch Super AMOLED Full Color Always On Display and Corning’s Gorilla Glass DX+. The 40mm model comes in with a 1.2-inch display, all other aspects being equal to its 44mm “sibling.”
Both feature Samsung’s dual-core 1.15 GHz Exynos 9110 processor, 768MB of RAM, 4GB of storage, Bluetooth 5.0, 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, Near Field Communication (NFC) for on-wrist mobile payments, Assisted GPS (A-GPS), GLONASS, a heart rate monitor, accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, ambient light sensor, wireless charging, IP68 and 50-meter water and dust-resistance.
The new Galaxy Watch Active 2 also features an echocardiogram (ECG) designed to help monitor a heartbeat more closely. Notice, too, that the Wi-Fi is 802.11a/b/g/n, not the latest in the 802.11ac standard (or even Wi-Fi 6, 802.11ax, the latest Wi-Fi standard).
As for the display, it is protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass DX+, which is said to be more legible in sunlight – seventy-five percent improvement – compared to Corning’s previous glass protection, Gorilla Glass SR+ (found in Samsung’s 2016 Gear S3 Frontier and Classic). Gorilla Glass DX+ is also found on Samsung’s original Galaxy Watch announced last Fall.
Samsung’s new Galaxy Watch Active 2 features a digital touch bezel to replace the former rotating bezel, and Samsung has brought this feature over to the Under Armour Edition as well. Finally, the 44mm Under Armour Galaxy Active 2 smartwatch utilizes a 340 mAh capacity battery, while the 40mm model relies on 247 mAh.
According to the announcement, the Galaxy Watch Active 2 Under Armour Edition will be available at Under Armour, Samsung, and major retailers this Fall.