Samsung Teases Health Upgrades for Galaxy Watch 9 and Watch 10

A few weeks ago, Samsung launched the Galaxy Watch 8 series with new health features and additional enhancements. The company is now already looking forward to further upgrades with the Watch 9 and Watch 10 series. A senior executive recently revealed that advanced health monitoring capabilities remain a primary focus for its watches, and that Samsung will never chase the 10-day battery life offered by low-power Chinese watches.

Samsung has a set strategy for Galaxy Watches, and it will stick to that

At the Galaxy Watch 8 media briefing in Seoul, South Korea, Choi Jong-min, Senior VP of Samsung’s Health Hardware Development Group, noted that Chinese brands often use ultra-low-power microcontroller chips, delivering up to 10 days of battery life but at the cost of performance. Samsung, he said, is taking the opposite route, prioritizing high-quality sensors and advanced health tracking over sheer endurance.

The Galaxy Watch 8 introduces several new health features, including antioxidant index measurement. It uses blue, yellow, and purple infrared LEDs to detect carotenoid levels in the skin in just 5 seconds. Low readings may indicate poor fruit and vegetable intake, a factor linked to chronic disease risk. The watch also adds vascular stress monitoring to assess blood vessel stiffness, a potential early warning sign for heart disease.

Moreover, Samsung’s bedtime guide uses the Two-Process sleep model to recommend optimal sleep schedules based on circadian rhythm analysis. All these functions are powered by the company’s upgraded BioActive Sensor, a 3-in-1 chip combining optical heart rate (PPG), ECG, and bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). The Galaxy Watch 8’s thinner design improves both comfort and sensor accuracy.

Before the Galaxy Watch 8 launch, Samsung’s smartwatch shipments grew 74% year-on-year in Q1 2025. Its global market share increased from 6.9% to 10.6%. However, the company still ranked fourth behind Apple, Xiaomi, and Huawei. Samsung is betting on long-term health innovation, with features already in research for future models like the Galaxy Watch 9 and Watch 10.

“We’re developing Galaxy Watch features with pride, always asking how much value they can bring to users,” Choi said. Antioxidant index measurement, for example, has been in development for over five years before its debut. “We are preparing for the previous research while thinking about 2, 3, or even 5 years from now, and we plan to discuss the parts where the technology is closer to commercialization with the product planning team.”