Galaxy Watch 9 and Ultra 2 leaks reveal more changes, no Classic after all [Gallery]

TL;DR

Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 9 and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 are set to debut at the company’s July 2026 Unpacked event, with leaks confirming the permanent retirement of the Classic bezel design and introducing a new “Slim” model alongside iterative hardware upgrades. This matters now because it signals Samsung’s final strategic pivot away from rotating bezels—a hallmark of its smartwatch line since 2018—in favor of a thinner, more Apple Watch-like form factor.

What Happened

On June 20, 2026, 9to5Google published a comprehensive leak gallery and analysis detailing the final design and feature set of Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Watch 9 lineup, including the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, ahead of the company’s July Unpacked event. The leaks, sourced from industry insiders and CAD renders, confirm that Samsung has permanently discontinued the Classic model—ending the rotating bezel era—and is instead introducing a new Galaxy Watch 9 Slim variant, while the Ultra 2 gains a larger display and improved battery life.

Key Facts

• Samsung’s July 2026 Unpacked event will officially launch the Galaxy Watch 9, Galaxy Watch 9 Slim, and Galaxy Watch Ultra 2, according to leaks published by 9to5Google on June 20, 2026.
• The Classic model with its signature rotating bezel has been permanently retired—no Galaxy Watch 9 Classic variant will be offered, marking the end of a design lineage that began with the Galaxy Watch in 2018.
• The new Galaxy Watch 9 Slim measures 9.8mm thick, a reduction of 1.2mm from the standard Galaxy Watch 9’s 11mm thickness, targeting users who prefer a more discreet wrist profile.
• The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 features a 1.6-inch circular Super AMOLED display (up from 1.5 inches on the original Ultra), with peak brightness reaching 3,000 nits, and a 590mAh battery (up from 570mAh).
• All three models will run One UI 6 Watch based on Wear OS 5, with Samsung’s new Exynos W1000 chipset (5nm process), offering a 20% performance uplift over the Exynos W930 in the Galaxy Watch 7 series.
• The Galaxy Watch 9 and Watch 9 Slim will share the same BioActive Sensor v3 for heart rate, ECG, blood pressure, and body composition, while the Ultra 2 adds a new skin temperature sensor array for advanced sleep and fever tracking.
• Pricing leaks indicate the Galaxy Watch 9 Slim will start at $329 (40mm) and $359 (44mm), undercutting the standard Watch 9 by $30, while the Ultra 2 is expected to hold at $649.

Breaking It Down

The most consequential takeaway from these leaks is the permanent retirement of the Galaxy Watch Classic. Samsung had already narrowed the Classic’s availability with the Galaxy Watch 7 series, offering it only in a single 47mm size, but this generation eliminates the variant entirely. The rotating bezel was a differentiator that set Samsung apart from the Apple Watch and other Wear OS competitors—it provided tactile navigation without smudging the screen and appealed to users who valued mechanical interaction over touch-only interfaces. By killing the Classic, Samsung is signaling that it believes the touch-and-digital-crown paradigm—pioneered by Apple and refined by Google’s Pixel Watch—is now the dominant user expectation. The company is betting that the trade-off (a thinner, lighter watch) will attract more mainstream buyers than it alienates legacy fans.

The Galaxy Watch 9 Slim’s 9.8mm thickness puts it within 0.5mm of the Apple Watch Series 10’s 9.3mm profile, marking Samsung’s most aggressive pursuit of Apple’s design language to date.

This is a strategic pivot. Samsung’s smartwatch business has historically been split between two audiences: fitness enthusiasts who wanted rugged durability (the Pro/Ultra line) and traditional watch lovers who prized the rotating bezel (the Classic line). The Slim model targets a third demographic: fashion-conscious users who found Samsung’s standard watches too bulky. At 9.8mm, the Slim is thinner than the Galaxy Watch 7 (11.0mm) and the Galaxy Watch 6 Classic (12.9mm), and it competes directly with the Apple Watch Series 10 (9.3mm) and the Google Pixel Watch 3 (10.1mm). The $30 price cut further signals that Samsung is willing to sacrifice margin to capture the “thin-first” buyer—a group that has driven Apple Watch sales growth since the Series 7.

The Galaxy Watch Ultra 2’s upgrades are iterative but meaningful. The jump from a 1.5-inch to a 1.6-inch display (a 6.7% increase in screen area) and the 20mAh battery bump (a 3.5% increase) are modest on paper, but they address two of the original Ultra’s most common complaints: the display felt cramped for outdoor navigation, and battery life under heavy GPS use was barely adequate. The new skin temperature sensor array is more significant—it adds multi-point thermal sensing, which could enable fever detection (a feature Apple introduced with the Watch Series 8 in 2022) and improved sleep stage tracking. However, Samsung has not yet received FDA clearance for fever detection, so that feature may launch as a “for wellness only” tool in the US.

The Exynos W1000 chipset is the unsung hero of this generation. Built on a 5nm process (down from 5nm on the W930, but with architectural improvements), it promises a 20% CPU uplift and 30% better power efficiency in low-load scenarios. This is critical because Wear OS 5’s biggest battery drain has been background sensor polling. If Samsung’s efficiency claims hold, the standard Galaxy Watch 9 could achieve 60 hours of typical use (up from 48 hours on the Watch 7), and the Ultra 2 could push past 80 hours—closing the gap with Garmin’s mid-range offerings.

What Comes Next

The July Unpacked event is the immediate milestone, but the product lifecycle extends well beyond launch:

1. Samsung Unpacked (July 2026, exact date TBD): The official reveal will confirm pricing, availability, and regional feature differences. Expect pre-orders to open the same day, with shipping beginning in mid-August 2026.
2. Regulatory approvals for Ultra 2’s skin temperature sensor: The FDA and European CE mark decisions will determine whether fever detection launches at launch or is delayed to a software update in Q4 2026. Samsung has historically struggled with timely health sensor clearances—the Galaxy Watch 5’s temperature sensor took eight months to gain FDA approval for ovulation tracking.
3. One UI 6 Watch public beta (September 2026): The new software will likely debut on the Galaxy Watch 9 series first, then roll out to the Galaxy Watch 7 and Watch 6 series in October. Key features include a redesigned quick settings panel and improved Google Assistant integration.
4. Competitor responses (late 2026): Google is expected to launch the Pixel Watch 4 in October 2026, and Apple will likely refresh the Apple Watch Ultra 3 in September. Samsung’s Slim model is a direct response to the Pixel Watch’s thinness, while the Ultra 2 aims to preempt Apple’s rumored larger display.

The Bigger Picture

This story sits at the intersection of three broader trends reshaping the smartwatch industry. First, the thinning imperative: after years of prioritizing battery life and sensor count, every major manufacturer—Apple, Samsung, Google—is now racing to reduce thickness. The Galaxy Watch 9 Slim represents Samsung’s admission that bulk is a barrier to adoption, especially among women and casual users who found previous generations too obtrusive. Second, the end of mechanical differentiation: with the Classic’s rotating bezel gone, Samsung has abandoned its last remaining hardware quirk that set it apart from the Apple Watch. This signals a convergence toward a standardized smartwatch form factor—a circular or rectangular touchscreen with a crown and a side button—where brands compete on software, sensors, and ecosystem integration rather than physical interaction. Third, the sensor arms race is shifting from quantity to quality: the Ultra 2’s new temperature sensor array, combined with the BioActive Sensor v3, shows that Samsung is moving beyond adding more sensors and is instead refining multi-point sensing for specific use cases (fever, sleep apnea detection). This mirrors Apple’s approach with the Watch Series 9’s temperature sensing for ovulation and the Ultra 2’s dive computer capabilities—vertical feature depth is replacing horizontal feature breadth.

Key Takeaways

• Classic is Dead: Samsung has permanently retired the rotating bezel after eight generations, betting that thinness and touch navigation will win over legacy fans.
• Slim Targets Apple: The Galaxy Watch 9 Slim’s 9.8mm thickness and $329 starting price are direct shots at the Apple Watch Series 10 and Google Pixel Watch 3.
• Ultra 2 Gets Smarter: The new skin temperature sensor array and larger display make the Ultra 2 a more compelling outdoor and health companion, pending regulatory clearances.
• Chipset is the Foundation: The Exynos W1000’s 5nm process and 20% performance gain are essential for enabling Wear OS 5’s battery-efficient sensor polling and smoother animations.