The Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra now headline the Korean company’s smartwatch efforts. Both offer buyers a particular set of skills, with the standard model building on its predecessors’ strengths and the Ultra presenting a brand new development path. While they may now be among Samsung’s best smartwatches, there’s no getting around the fact that new models will always face teething issues. Thankfully, many of these problems can be remedied without much effort. Here’s a list of Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 7 problems and their fixes.
Galaxy Watch Ultra and Galaxy Watch 7 problems: Quick fixes
More often than not, a reboot can solve most tech issues, which is true with the Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra. However, there are other pre-diagnostic checks you should perform before delving deeper into troubleshooting. Here are a few quick fixes.
- Before troubleshooting, ensure that you’re starting with a clean slate by rebooting your device.
- To reboot your Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra, press and hold the Home and Back keys on the right-hand side of your watch until the Samsung logo appears.
- If you’re lucky, this may fix any problem that you may have.
- Ensure that your smartwatch’s battery is fully charged before troubleshooting. This minor but often overlooked step is especially important for diagnosing battery problems.
- If you’re struggling to pair your Galaxy Watch 7 or Galaxy Watch Ultra to your smartphone, check that your device is actually supported. The watches require a phone running Android 11 or newer with at least 1.5GB of RAM.
- Lastly, it would be best to learn how to factory reset your device. You may encounter a seemingly unfixable problem, in which case factory resetting should be your last resort.
- To factory reset your Galaxy Watch 7 or Galaxy Watch Ultra, open the Galaxy Wearable app, go to Watch settings, select General, and then select Reset > Reset.
- To back up your data before resetting your device, visit Account and backup in the Galaxy Wearable app > Back up and restore > Back up data. Select which settings and apps you want to save, and then tap Backup. Wait until the process is complete, then tap Done.
If you’re still having trouble with your Galaxy Watch 7, follow the more targeted troubleshooting steps below. Additionally, peruse our all-encompassing Galaxy Watch problems guide for more general fixes for widely known problems.
Battery problems
If your new Samsung smartwatch is drinking its battery through a straw, there’s likely an underlying issue. Find some practical ways to decrease battery drain on your Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra below.
What to know about Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra battery issues
- We’ve seen plenty of reports online of dramatic battery drain from Galaxy Watch 7 and some Galaxy Watch Ultra users. Samsung has also acknowledged the issue, taking to its Korean community forum to confirmed that it has “identified the cause” and is issuing a fix across that country. Everyone else can expect a software update in their region soon.
- The smaller Galaxy Watch 7 40mm model will naturally need recharging more often than the 44mm or Galaxy Watch Ultra, as it features a much smaller battery. This also means that battery drain on this model will be particularly noticeable.
- Battery drain for all models is also accelerated in the first few days after setting up a device or installing a major update. However, this shouldn’t persist for weeks and weeks. If this is the case, you’ll need to address the problem.
Potential solutions for battery drain
- Check if any updates are available. Samsung has confirmed that early Galaxy Watch 7 battery drain issues will be fixed through a pending update. To check if your device has a pending update, go to the Settings menu > About Watch > Software.
- Consider disabling some non-essential system processes and features:
- Disable Google Assistant hotword detection: open Settings on your watch > Google > Assistant. Toggle off “Hey Google” to disable the hot word activation.
- Disable always-on display: Open Settings > Display > toggle off Always On Display.
- Decrease the screen timeout duration: Open Settings > Display > Screen timeout > set it to the lowest value.
- Disable location services when not in use: Open Settings > Location > toggle off Location.
- Disable continuous heart rate monitoring: Open Samsung Health > Settings > Heart Rate and Stress > select Every 10 mins while still.
- Manage your notifications to ensure that only essential apps ping your watch. To do this, grab your phone, open the Galaxy Wearable app, then head to Watch settings > Notifications > toggle off apps under the Most recent on phone or watch section.
- If you have an LTE smartwatch, consider disabling LTE when not in use or not required. Settings > Connections > Mobile networks > toggle off Mobile data.
- Uninstall non-essential apps or apps you no longer use. There’s a chance that one of these are running in the background, draining your battery.
- Consider using a first-party Samsung watch face. Like third-party apps, there’s a chance that the face isn’t optimized, and drains battery in the background.
- If all else fails, consider using Power saving mode more frequently. While this mode will drastically reduce power demands, it’ll also disable several features. To activate Power saving mode, open Settings > Battery > toggle on Power saving.
Display problems
The Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra have wonderfully vivid displays, but some user-reported problems affect some. We’ve seen reports of a green tint on the Galaxy Watch 7 and a problem with watch face alignment on the Ultra, to name the two most common. Here’s how to address both.
Potential solutions for the Galaxy Watch Ultra screen misalignment
- It’s unclear whether the Galaxy Watch Ultra screen misalignment issue is a software fault or quality control lapse. Either way, there are no clear-cut fixes for it at present. Your best bet is to contact Samsung for a replacement as soon as possible.
- Try another watch face to ensure that your device is affected and not just a quirk of the watch face.
Potential solutions for the Galaxy Watch 7 green tint issue
- We’ve previously seen users remark that their older Galaxy Watch models also feature a slightly greenish tint. Again, there’s no fix for this, so your best course of action is to contact Samsung for a replacement.
Fitness tracking and GPS issues
The Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra introduced a wealth of new health tracking features via Samsung Health, including a new Energy Score. Both watches also receive dual-frequency GPS smarts, allowing more accurate position tracking when training in dense urban or natural areas.
What to know about Galaxy Watch 7 and Ultra fitness tracking
- Not every new health tracking and wellness metric will be available to all users. The likes of sleep apnea monitoring and other Galaxy AI-reliant features will require a supported Samsung Galaxy smartphone.
- Additionally, some features are not yet approved in certain regions. For instance, sleep apnea monitoring is approved in the US and South Korea, but isn’t yet available in the EU or the UK.
- The Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra both land with dual-frequency GPS capabilities, but we’ve spotted more reports that the cheaper watch is much less accurate than expected. This may be due to software, but we outline a few potential fixes below.
Potential solutions for the Galaxy Watch 7 GPS accuracy issues
- Activate the Improve accuracy feature on your Galaxy Watch 7 if it isn’t already. To do this, open Settings on your watch > Location > toggle on Improve accuracy.
- If this feature is on and your GPS accuracy is terrible, deactivate it, then try tracking your workout once again.
- You’d have to think that the GPS issues on the Galaxy Watch 7 are due to software and not hardware. The cheaper watch shares the internals of its Ultra sibling. In this case, you’ll have to wait for Samsung to address this particular problem.
Durability issues
The Galaxy Watch Ultra is an imposing wearable with its grade 4 titanium finishes and bulky straps. However, it’s not unscratchable, and many users have remarked that the devices’ paint can be damaged. Here’s what you can do to alleviate or prevent this.
What to know about the Galaxy Watch Ultra’s durability
- While the Galaxy Watch Ultra is constructed of titanium, the paint covering the metal can be chipped and scraped. This doesn’t mean that the watch is in any way damaged.
- The Galaxy Watch Ultra is also water and dust resistant, offering a 10ATM water pressure rating, a 100m water depth rating, and an IP68 ingress rating. This means that you can swim or wash with the watch on, however, remember to dry it thoroughly after these instances with a soft towel.
Potential solutions for the Galaxy Watch Ultra’s paint peeling issues
- The simplest way to avoid damage to your smartwatch is to purchase a protective case. Yes, this is counterintuitive, considering that the rugged smartwatch is meant to withstand knocks. However, some users prefer to keep their devices in pristine condition. This is understandable, too.
LTE and connectivity issues
Several users on Samsung’s forums have outlined issues with its LTE connectivity. Here are a few potential fixes for LTE problems.
- To check if your LTE connection is functional, disable Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, but keep Mobile data on. To do this, head to Settings > Connections and toggle off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Next, carry out a task that demands a data connection, like visiting the Play Store on your watch and searching for an app. If these pages load, your watch has a working LTE connection, if it doesn’t, consider the additional steps below.
- Switch your watch’s data connection off and then on. To do this, go to Settings > Connections > Mobile networks > toggle off Mobile data > toggle on Mobile data.
- Contact your carrier directly and explain your issue. Your service agent will be able to walk you through network-related fixes and diagnostics. Even better, if your carrier has a physical store, take your watch in to demonstrate your issue in the flesh.
The Galaxy Watch 7 and Galaxy Watch Ultra are new devices, so we expect more issues to arise as they become more common. However, if you’re experiencing an issue that we haven’t listed, be sure to mention it in the comments below.