Which Galaxy smartwatches will get One UI 8 Watch beta?

Samsung is working not only on a new One UI version for smartphones and tablets but also on a new firmware upgrade for Galaxy watches. Today, the company revealed a handful of details about One UI 8 Watch, particularly the upcoming beta program. There's some good news and a red flag.

Samsung didn't reveal much about the availability of the One UI 8 Watch beta program, apart from saying it's going to start “this month.” However, the company did specify which Galaxy Watches will be allowed to test the beta firmware. And sadly, it's not looking good for Galaxy Watch 4 owners.

According to the press release, Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic owners will not be invited to participate in the One UI 8 Watch beta program. The beta firmware will be available for the following smartwatch models.

As you might recall, in 2022, Samsung said it will support the Galaxy Watch 4 and later models with “up to four years of One UI Watch and Wear OS” updates.

This puts the Galaxy Watch 4 in an awkward position, wherein it may or may not receive One UI 8 Watch, depending on when the public firmware is released. If One UI 8 Watch doesn't go live before August, the Galaxy Watch 4 series could miss its window of opportunity.

Although beta access isn't usually a confirmation of which device will receive a public update, the fact that the Galaxy Watch 4 is excluded from the One UI 8 Watch beta program is worrying, particularly given the timeframe issues mentioned above.

In short, it now seems more likely than ever that the Galaxy Watch 4 and Galaxy Watch 4 Classic won't receive One UI 8 Watch. But we will have to wait and see how things develop. For the moment, we know the 2021 watches won't be accepted in the beta.

If you own a Galaxy Watch 5 or later model, you are safe, and depending on your location, you will be able to test One UI 8 Watch by the end of this month. We will keep you posted.