Samsung could launch a cheap Galaxy Watch, but is it an FE model?

The Fan Edition (FE) range of devices from Samsung offers cheaper versions of its flagship models. These have so far been limited to the Galaxy S range of smartphones and tablets, but new rumours suggest that the Korean giant could be about to introduce a budget-friendly version of its smartwatch series.

Whether this is an FE model or just a 2024 edition of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 smartwatch that’s cheaper isn’t clear yet, but it does seem that a new one is on the way.

So, what should you expect from the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE or Galaxy Watch 4 (2024) smartwatch and when will you be able to get one on your wrist? Here’s all we know so far.

When will the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE be released?

There’s been no official word from Samsung on when a cheaper version of its Galaxy Watch will arrive. There are a few rumours that say it will arrive in 2024, but no specifics of what month.

Max Jambor, journalist and a Samsung specialist, posted on his Twitter/X account that we would see a Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 (2024), which has been one of the main sources for the expected release.

There were no more details than that, aside from replying to a comment, where he said it wouldn’t bare the FE moniker. This would match the naming system of the Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (2024), which originally launched in 2020 and saw a 2022 refresh as well as the most recent edition.

August is normally when Samsung introduces its new smartwatch models, as you can see from this list of previous launch date:

With this in mind, it would seem likely we’ll see the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE (or whatever it’s called) in August 2024, alongside the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7.

However, multiple sources (though not Samsung) have confirmed to SamMobile that the summer Unpacked event will take place on 10 July. It will be held in Paris to coincide with the Olympic Games which Samsung is a major sponsor of.

This could also see the release of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold FE and Samsung Galaxy Z Flip FE, which would flesh out the FE lineup even more.

It’s worth noting that SamMobile doesn’t mention this cheaper Galaxy Watch as an expected device for the July event.

How much will Samsung Galaxy Watch FE cost?

Again, there are no indications of how much the new budget Galaxy Watch will cost but we can look at the pricing of the last few generations of Watches as a rough guide.

Here’s how they lined up:

Galaxy Watch 6

Galaxy Watch 6 Classic

Galaxy Watch 5

Galaxy Watch 4

Galaxy Watch 4 Classic

Obviously, the price should be a bit lower than those of the current model if this is to be a budget FE type version. We’d imagine that somewhere between £199/$199 and £249/$249 might be on the cards, but we’ll have to wait and see.

What new features will be in the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE include?

Details of what features we’ll see in the Galaxy Watch FE, or Galaxy Watch 4 (2024) as some are calling it, are pretty thin on the ground. Here’s all we’ve gathered so far from the latest leaks and rumours.

Design

One theory that seems popular is that Samsung will simply take its Galaxy Watch 4 from 2021 and repackage it into a more streamlined offering for 2024.

Samsung

That model came with dimensions of 40.4 x 39.3 x 9.8mm (40mm variant) or 44.4 x 43.3 x 9.8mm (44mm variant), and weighed in at 26g (40mm) or 30g (44mm).

It had two buttons on the edges of the aluminium casing, and came with a IP68 rating for dust and waterproofing. At the time, our review praised the ‘cutting edge hardware’, so if Samsung resurrects it for the 2024 model, then we think customers will be pleased with what they find.

Display

Again, using the Galaxy Watch 4 as the baseline, this would mean two size variants: 40mm and 44mm. The smaller 40mm model comes with a circular 1.2-inch AMOLED panel running at 396×396, while the larger version features a 1.4-inch AMOLED display running at 450×450.

All of these were protected by Gorilla Glass DX+, although we’re not sure if lowering this spec might be one of the cutbacks Samsung uses to drop the price.

Saying that, the Galaxy Watch 5 and Galaxy Watch 6 both have Sapphire crystal displays, so Gorilla Glass DX+ may still appear on the FE/4 (2024) model.

Performance

The Galaxy Watch 4 was powered by an Exynos W920 chipset, with 1.5GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage. These specs were also on the Galaxy Watch 5, only being replaced by the new Exynos W930 on the Galaxy Watch 6, along with an upgrade to 2GB of RAM.

It would seem sensible for Samsung to plunder its parts draw and call on an older chipset again, likely the W930, for the FE/4 (2024) model.

Battery & Charging

The Galaxy Watch 4 featured a rather small 361mAh battery, which has subsequently been upgraded to a 410mAh cell in the Watch 5 and 425mAh cell in the Watch 6. In our review, we found that the Watch 4 lasted for around two days on a single charge, which is acceptable and easily as good as any of the Apple Watch equivalents.

Wireless charging was also supported, so it could be that Samsung just resurrects the entire power section and puts it in the Watch FE/4 (2024).

Fitness & Tracking

The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 came with a comprehensive set of health tracking features, including monitoring for heart rate, SpO2, sleep, stress, as well as a body composition measurement that tried to assess levels of fat, muscle and water in your system.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

In the Watch 5 and Watch 6, Samsung introduced a skin temperature sensor, and we think it’s unlikely that this will make it to the FE/4 (2024) model as it would cost more to implement, plus would give less to differentiate between the premium and budget-friendly options.

Software

All of the current Samsung Galaxy Watch models are now running WearOS 4 and One UI Watch 5. We can’t see any reason why the new FE/4 (2024) model would be any different.

Of course, it may not get as many updates as the premium models, but for the time being it would be up-to-date and running the latest software.

That’s all we know so far about the Samsung Galaxy Watch FE/4 (2024), but we’ll keep updating this article as more details come to light. Until then, you can see what rivals the new model will have to over come by reading our best smartwatch and best fitness tracker articles.

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