Progress in any sport comes down to understanding your numbers. To get better, you need a clear picture of what you’re aiming for—and a way to keep tabs on it. Whether you’re starting to run, hitting the trails, diving into the pool, or tackling any outdoor activity, a good GPS watch can be the tool that keeps you focused and moving forward instead of losing momentum. Samsung happens to have its newly released for 2025 model of the its smart watches—the Galaxy Watch 8—on sale ahead of Black Friday. Normally this smart watch goes for $350 for the 40mm model, but right now you can save 20%. That brings the price down to just $280. Likewise, the 44mm model is one sale for 18% off. That one comes down from $380 to just $310 for a limited time.
Your Own Personal Fitness Coach
The Galaxy Watch 8 is driven by Samsung’s Galaxy AI platform. When you head out for a bike ride, a jog, or any outdoor training session, the watch lets you track and compare your live performance against your past activity data. Throughout the day, it delivers wellness prompts and tailored recommendations designed to keep you progressing toward your personal fitness and health goals. Galaxy AI also enhances workout monitoring with upgraded heart-rate analysis that filters out natural body movements, offering a more precise reading than previous generations.
Your sleep patterns are closely monitored as well, helping detect potential signs of sleep apnea and providing deeper insights into your nightly rest. Each day, you can check a summarized energy level and physical readiness score that factors in your sleep quality, daily step count, heart-rate trends, and more to paint a clearer picture of your overall physical state.
Beyond fitness tracking, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 supports your everyday tasks as a full-featured smartwatch. You can view and reply to messages directly from your wrist without reaching for your phone. When paired with your smartphone, it even doubles as a remote camera controller, letting you take group photos or selfies from afar while adjusting settings, activating the timer, or triggering the shutter right from the watch.
Improvements This Generation
Among the improvements in Galaxy Watch 8 over its predecessor—the Galaxy Watch 7—you’ll find a slimmer, sleeker design. The new model has more of a square-shaped bezel with the screen going much brighter. The Galaxy Watch 8 is capable of reaching up to 3,000 nits of brightness while the Watch 7 comes in at a max of 2,000 nits, making the new watch easier to see in direct sunlight. Both the 8 and the 7 are built to withstand harsh weather conditions so you can take it outside training year round, rain or shine.
You’ll also see improvements to battery life as well. There are two versions of the Galaxy Watch 8, and each use a different size battery. On the 40mm model, you get a 325mAh battery and on the 44mm, you get a much larger 435mAh battery. Both of which come in at a higher capacity than their Watch 7 counterparts.
The Galaxy Watch 8 comes built from the ground up for use with Gemini—Samsung and Google’s AI assistant. Use it to manage your calendar, respond to texts, set reminders—you name it.
