Galaxy Watch Active2 is light enough to wear anywhere comfortably; It comes in aluminum or stainless steel and with a variety of faces, bands and finishes so it goes with anything. Connect seamlessly via Bluetooth to your favorite apps so you can keep moving and a sleek, all-new design means you can wear the Galaxy Watch Active2 everywhere from the gym to the pool to your bed. But which one is best fitted for you – Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 44mm vs 40mm vs Galaxy Active?
Pros & Cons
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 44mm
Pros
- Samsung Pay
- Electrocardiogram
- Built-in GPS
- Health and fitness tracking
- 1.4-inch AMOLED display
Cons
- Bulky on small wrists
- A bit heavier
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 40mm
Pros
- Electrocardiogram
- 1.2-inch AMOLED display
- Built-in GPS
- Health and fitness tracking
- Samsung Pay
Cons
Smaller battery
Price comparison – Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 44mm vs 40mm vs Galaxy Active
The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active is great value at $200, and it’s widely available, plus it can often be found as low as $169 (or lower) in sales. The Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 started at $280 for the 40mm model and $300 for the 44mm model, although Samsung is now listing the 40mm model at $250. Similarly, deals online often bring these prices down to as little as $179 upwards. The LTE versions will cost you more.
Who is this for?
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 44mm
Looking to go big or go home with your fitness smartwatch? You’ll love the 44mm Galaxy Watch Active 2. It’s pretty much the perfect size: not too big, not too small. You’ll have fitness and health tracking, GPS, Samsung Pay, and ECG. Plus, who doesn’t love a big display?
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 40mm
If the right fit is more important to you than having the biggest display, you might prefer the 40mm Galaxy Watch Active 2. You still get all the great features, like fitness and health tracking, GPS, Samsung Pay, and ECG. A smaller display size is ideal for smaller wrists.
Compare Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 44mm vs 40mm
| Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 40mm | Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 44mm | |
| Display | 1.2-inch AMOLED, 360×360 | 1.4-inch AMOLED, 360×360 |
| Dimensions | 40x40x10.9mm | 44x44x10.9mm |
| Sensors | HRM, electrocardiogram (ECG), accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, ambient light sensor | HRM, electrocardiogram (ECG), accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, ambient light sensor |
| Connectivity | Optional LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi b/g/n | Optional LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi b/g/n |
| Durability | 5ATM, IP68, MIL-STD-810G | 5ATM, IP68, MIL-STD-810G |
| Built-in GPS | Yes | Yes |
| Samsung Pay | Yes | Yes |
| Wireless charging | Yes | Yes |
| Notifications | Yes | Yes |
Larger Display
Not only is the case larger on the 44mm model, but you also get a larger display at 1.4 inches. More importantly, there’s a bigger battery and slightly longer battery life. Those two factors alone were enough to win us over. However, if you happen to have a dainty wrist, you might be better off going with the 40mm model.
Weight
The 44mm is slightly heavier than the 40mm version. While the stainless steel model of the 44mm weighs 42 grams (excluding straps), the 40mm weighs 37 grams (excluding straps). On the hand, while the 44mm aluminum version weighs 30 grams (excluding straps), the 40mm weighs just 27 grams (excluding straps) – quite lightweight designs.
Battery Life
There’s a difference in the battery capacity. The 44mm model has a higher 340mAh capacity, while the 40mm comes with 247mAh battery capacity. But that doesn’t necessarily mean the 44mm model will last longer than the 40mm. We expect these two to have almost same battery life considering that it’ll take more power to keep up that extra 0.2 inch of the 1.4 inches display of the 44mm.
Petit wrist
If you have a petite wrist that is not suited for the bigger 44mm size, you’ll probably be happier with the more modest 40mm model. This also might come down to something as simple as preference. Perhaps you’re not a fan of the larger display, or you think it might affect your ability to exercise with it on comfortably. Whatever the case, there are certain scenarios where the smaller model is the more suitable option.
Is Galaxy Watch Active better than Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 (44mm or 40mm)?
| Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 | Samsung Galaxy Watch Active | |
| Display size | 1.2 inches/1.4 inches | 1.1 inches |
| Body size | 40mm: 40 × 40 × 10.9 mm44mm: 44 × 44 × 10.9 mm | 40mm: 39.5 × 39.5 × 10.5 mm |
| Resolution | 360 × 360 pixels | 360 × 360 pixels |
| Touchscreen | 40mm: 1.2-inch Super AMOLED display44mm: 1.4-inch Super AMOLED display | 1.1-inch Super AMOLED |
| Wireless interface | Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, NFC, LTE | Bluetooth 4.2, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, GPS, NFC |
| Depth | 10.9mm | 10.5mm |
| Accelerometer | Yes | Yes |
| Gyroscope | Yes | Yes |
| Ambient light sensor | Yes | Yes |
| Heart rate sensor | Yes | Yes |
| Barometer | Yes | Yes |
| GPS | Yes | Yes |
| Water-resistant | Yes | Yes |
| Battery life | 247mAh/340mAh | 230mAh |
| Price | From $280 | From $200 |
| Availability | Samsung | Samsung |
Although even the smallest Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 is bigger and heavier than the original, Samsung has made the most of the additional real estate, shaving down the bezels and packing in a bigger screen. The Super AMOLED is vibrant, sharp, and legible even in direct sunlight. Samsung hasn’t upped the resolution, but the extra space will be appreciated, particularly if you opt for the larger model.
The accelerometer has also been doubled, so the Watch Active 2 can measure up to 32G’s, whereas the original only went up to 16G’s. The fitness tracking features are much the same as the original, including step counts, run tracking, and sleep tracking, and all of your data still goes into the Samsung Health app. While the extra sensors and added sensitivity don’t herald a lot of new features, they should ensure that the Watch Active 2 is more accurate than its predecessor.
Samsung doubled the LED sensors in the Galaxy Watch Active 2 which are used for monitoring your heart rate. There were four in the original Watch Active, now there are eight. Although the feature took a while to be approved by the Food and Drug Authority (FDA), the Galaxy Watch Active 2 also takes ECG measurements on your wrist, just like the Galaxy Watch 3 and the Apple Watch Series 6.
The Watch Active 2 offers mostly iterative improvements like the enhanced sensors, bigger batteries and screens, and refined designs. We’re delighted to see more app integrations, including YouTube and Twitter browsing direct from the watch, and also Google Translate if you have an internet connection. While Samsung has stuck with a dual-core Exynos 9110 processor and 4GB of storage space, the Wi-Fi version of the Watch Active 2 has 768MB of RAM and the LTE variant has 1.5GB of RAM.
