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Phone Arena
7 days ago
- Phone Arena
Galaxy Watch 8 Classic's rotating bezel: A feature I can live without
Samsung brought back the "Classic" variant of its smartwatch this year. One of the hallmarks of the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, and a big marketing point, is the physical rotating bezel. Today I'm going to go against the grain and argue against this physical interface. This may be an unpopular opinion, but to be honest, I've seen quite a few people share this sentiment that the rotating bezel in Samsung's watches is an unnecessary, bulky, laggy, and even ugly contraption. But first, a few words on the history of the rotating bezel. Back to the year 2015! History of the rotating bezel The first iteration of the rotating bezel in the Gear S2 | Image by PhoneArena Samsung introduced it with the Galaxy Gear S2 in 2015. Back then, people were fascinated by the idea. My colleague Nick praised it in the Galaxy Gear S2 Review: "Speaking of the bezel, it is one of the Gear S2's stand-out features. By rotating it, one can navigate through the smartwatch's menus, scroll down emails, and interact with apps, having to touch the display only to confirm a selection. The solution is elegant, convenient, and superior to anything similar that we've seen on a smartwatch to date." The design made its way to the Galaxy Watch 3 and subsequently to the Galaxy Watch 4 Classic. But then Samsung decided to move to a two-year release cycle for the rotating bezel models, skipping it on the Galaxy Watch 5 series, only to bring it back a year later on the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic. The Galaxy Watch 7 series once again omitted the rotating bezel, and now we have it back on the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic. What's going on? It turns out that most of the reasons match the ones I already mentioned in the beginning. Let's dive deeper. Design and aesthetics The true origin of the rotating bezel can be traced back to diving watches in the 1950s | Image by Omega One of the reasons Samsung has been taking away and bringing back the rotating bezel on a regular basis lies in the aesthetics department. I know design is subjective, but in 2022, when Samsung removed the rotating bezel from the Galaxy Watch 5 series, the industry was pushing for a minimal and stylish look. Samsung was competing with the Apple Watch 8 and allegedly saw the rotating bezel as old school, bulky, and outside the design language the company wanted to portray. Samsung didn't say this officially, but that's what the rumor mill was spitting out at the time. The sleek and stylish Galaxy Watch 7 | Image by PhoneArena I'm absolutely on board with this point of view. Smartwatches have been trying for years to mimic regular timepieces, mainly because we're so accustomed to the design through the ages. But given the true origin of the rotating bezel, I think it looks odd and out of place on a modern and stylish smartwatch. Hear me out. The origin of the rotating bezel can be traced back to diving watches back in the 1950s. It was a crucial safety feature to remind divers of the time they'd spent underwater. Nowadays many smartwatches go for that "diving watch" aesthetic, even though they're not specifically designed for diving. I personally find this annoying; instead of making smartwatches innovative and exciting, we're clinging to the past. But even as an interface piece, the rotating bezel is, in my opinion, not a very good idea. It's redundant as an interface You still need to tap on the display to navigate in and out of menus and apps | Image by PhoneArena The rotating bezel is mainly used to scroll through menus and text on the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic. In order to select something or go back, you need to touch the display. Many people argue in favor of the rotating crown with the argument that it lets you navigate without touching the display—for example, with wet or dirty hands, underwater, etc. However, it's simply not the case—you can't even use the other physical buttons to avoid touching the screen—you can only return to the home screen. To me, it's a flawed design and a failed opportunity. Had Samsung allowed the physical buttons on the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic to be used to go forward and back one step, the rotating bezel would've made much more sense. And even then, doing a rotating motion to scroll up and down or left and right isn't the most intuitive way to do it. And speaking of alternatives… There's a better way to do it—the rotating crown Apple Watch's rotating crown is minimal and gives more design freedom As far as physical scrolling interfaces go, Apple did a great job with the rotating crown. Don't get me wrong, I still think that the Apple Watch is overpriced and flawed with its 18-hour battery life. The rotating crown, though, was a great invention, and no wonder so many companies have copied it. It requires less physical effort to turn (you can do it with a finger), your hand doesn't obscure the display while you're turning it, and the direction of the rotation mimics what's happening on the display—you turn it up or down, and the text or menu moves up or down. For me, the rotating crown is a better implementation of the same idea and also leaves much more design freedom. Other problems with the rotating bezel People are complaining about rotating bezel's durability and functionality on older Galaxy Watch models | Image by Reddit The rotating bezel is a big moving part. And as we all know, parts that move mechanically are prone to failure. It's also a point of entry for dirt and moisture, adding to the risk of failure I mentioned above. The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is still quite new, and it will take some time for such problems to manifest, but still, it's a potential issue. Conclusion Design and interface are two subjective parts of the smartwatch equation. I get that many people still love and swear by the rotating bezel, but it's just not for me. I see it as a gimmick and a tribute to our old ways of thinking. I would love to see new designs, new interface choices, and braver solutions when it comes to smartwatches. What do you think of the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic and the rotating bezel? Vote in our poll and share your thoughts in the comment section below.
Stuff.tv
09-07-2025
- Stuff.tv
The new Galaxy Watch 8 brings back my favourite smartwatch feature
Clapping eyes on the new Galaxy Watch 8 smartwatch line – just announced at the Samsung's July 2025 Unpacked event – felt like a real blast from the past. In one sense, this duo of new techy timepieces took me back to my first encounter with 2015's Galaxy Gear S2 series, which also came in two distinct flavours: the ultra-modern Gear S2 and the more traditionally-styled Gear S2 Classic. Like their now decade-old forebears, the standard Galaxy Watch 8 serves up clean lines and an unapologetically technological aesthetic, hewn from Armor Aluminium, while the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic – as the name implies – offers up a more conventional form, with a coin-edge bezel and lots of polished stainless steel. The Galaxy Watch 8 lands in two sizes, as well as Bluetooth and LTE flavours – all with 32GB of storage. The 40mm versions cost a little more than the outgoing Watch 7, at £319 for Bluetooth and £269 for LTE; the 44mm model goes for £349 or £399. There's only one size of Classic: 46mm, which will set you back £449 (or £499 with LTE). How we test wearables Every smartwatch and fitness tracker reviewed on Stuff is worn 24/7 throughout the testing process. We use our own years of experience to judge general performance, battery life, display, and health monitoring. Manufacturers have no visibility on reviews before they appear online, and we never accept payment to feature products. Find out more about how we test and rate products. That bezel isn't just for show. Samsung has decided to bring back the rotation, letting you twist the bidirectional bezel to navigate the UI; from scrolling to changing media volume and more. I think it's a great inclusion. I've never understood smartwatches that commit to 100% touchscreen interaction, considering that trying to look at and hit touch targets on a small touchscreen whilst walking, running, swimming or carrying things can range from frustrating to physically impossible. Keeping physical controls at play on smartwatch allows for eyes-free interaction and more confident, definitive, direct input. Beyond the bezel, both new Galaxy 8 watches also embrace the cushion form Samsung introduced with last year's Galaxy Watch Ultra. I prefer a more rounded watch casing, but I can see value in the more square form from a practical standpoint, with Samsung claiming it's more resilient. Handy if you're prone to catching your watch on the world around you. Both watches also gain the Ultra's Quick Button – for quick access to features like a voice recorder or your favourite Samsung Health workout routine – and its quick-release Dynamic Lug system, for fast strap replacement. Samsung says, this also means better comfort and more reliable sensor performance, in a form that's 11% slimmer than before – making it the thinnest Galaxy Watch yet. On the technical side, expect a brighter display (now topping out at 3000nits) and an 8% larger battery (balancing out to deliver the same longevity as the Watch 7 series. The 3nm chipset from the previous generation is still running the show, paired to 32GB of storage. As for software, the One UI Watch 6 experience serves up a welcome consistency with the company's latest smartphones. The Now Bar plays host to media controls and the like on your preferred watch face, when needed. And thanks to Samsung's tight relationship with Google, these are also the first Wear OS watches to boast Google Gemini on-wrist. As well as controlling your smart home appliances with your voice, compatibility with Samsung's own ecosystem means you can also ask Gemini to start a workout based a metric like calories, or ask for multi-step actions, like recommendations on locations near you, paired with messaging invitations to you friends. If it's wellbeing features you're interested in, I was most intrigued by the updated sleep coaching, with Bedtime Guidance (after tracking your sleeping habits for a few days) letting you know when the optimum time to go to sleep will be, two hours in advance. If you're in the UK or Europe, the Galaxy Watch 8 series also gains certified sleep apnea detection. The sensor can also be used to assess your 'Antioxidant Index', letting you know whether you need to increase your veggie intake. I haven't gotten my head fully around what carotendoid levels are, but after taking the watch off and pressing my thumb to the sensor, I know I need more of them. As a fitness beginner, I'm also keen to try the Watch 8's running assessment feature, which tracks you over a 12-minute run before serving up one of 160 potential running plans (which include coaching) spanning running a 5K to defeating a full marathon. As you follow the plan, difficulty can dynamically adjust, depending on whether you're surpassing, or underperforming on a given plan. So all in all, a fairly major upgrade, with enhanced interaction through that bezel on the Classic model and Google Gemini integration, notable wellbeing and fitness upgrades, a slimmer design with a brighter display, and all atop the existing repertoire of Galaxy Watch functionality. Samsung also used Unpacked to drop a new Titanium Blue variant of the existing Galaxy Watch Ultra, to compliment its new Galaxy Z Fold 7 colour option. It gains all of the software upgrades of the Galaxy Watch 8 series out the box, as well as twice the storage at 64GB. The new blue Watch Ultra comes in a single 47mm LTE flavour, which will set you back £599.
