One UI 6 Watch beta arrives for Galaxy Watch 6, adding new Galaxy AI features and gesture controls

Samsung has officially opened the beta program for its One UI 6 Watch software update. The next iteration of Samsung’s wearable UI is expected to debut officially with the Galaxy Watch 7 next month.

The beta enrollment is now available for Galaxy Watch 6 owners in the United States, offering them the opportunity to test this major upgrade ahead of its full release. Following this initial rollout, Samsung should extend the beta program to older Galaxy Watch 5 models.

As expected, one of the most significant talking points in this update is the integration of Galaxy AI into Samsung’s smartwatches. This includes features like monitoring energy levels, AI-powered sleep analysis, and the ability to create custom workout routines.

The update also features a range of usability improvements, with gestures like double pinch for quick actions and screen-free navigation through wrist movements. Notably, some or most of these gestures are already available as part of the Accessibility settings in the current version of One UI Watch, but we can expect some quality-of-life improvements with their implementation.

Further refinements include a new default font with a “modern feel,” improved battery management options with the ability to limit health features for extended battery life, and the ability to automatically connect to Bluetooth audio devices upon starting music playback.

Health and fitness advancements

• Monitor your energy levels: Samsung Health’s new energy score shows your physical and mental readiness based on you sleep and physical activity. If your energy score is low, it may be best to take a rest. If your energy score is high, it could be time set a personal best in your favorite exercise. Galaxy AI provides personalized insights and motivation to keep you on the right track.
• Get more detailed sleep analysis: Galaxy AI-powered sleep insights give you more detailed and accurate analysis of your sleep quality. Your comprehensive sleep report now includes your heart rate, respiratory rate, and the amount of time it takes you to fall asleep after you lie down.
• Make your own workout routines: Combine a series of different exercises together for a custom workout routine. You can set targets for sets, reps, and more.

Enhanced watch control

• Do more with double pinch: Take quick action in a variety of situations by pinching your thumb and index finger together twice. You can answer calls, turn off alarms, scroll through notifications, control music, take pictures, and more. A finger icon will appear on buttons that can be controlled with a double pinch.
• Faster horizontal scrolling: Flick the screen left or right or to quickly scroll through notifications or tiles.
• View ongoing activities all at once: Tap the bottom of your watch face to view a list of ongoing activities such as phone calls, exercises, or music playing. Tap an item in the list to easily switch between them.
• Take action quickly with Universal gestures: In situations where a quick action is needed, such as answering a phone call or turning off an alarm, the button for the action will be automatically focused so you can do the action immediately without the need to manually change focus.
• Go back without touching the screen: Move your wrist back and forth to go back to the previous screen. You can control this in Universal gestures.
• Get only the notifications you want: Choose which apps are allowed to send you notifications directly on your watch without opening the Galaxy Wearable app on your phone.
• Control your watch with modes: Modes can now automatically control more of your watch’s settings based on what you’re doing or where you are. Modes can control Do not disturb, Always On Display, Raise wrist to wake, Touch screen to wake, Touch bezel to wake, Sound mode, and Disconnection alerts.

Communication and connectivity

• Instantly access your favorite emojis: You can set the emojis you use most as favorites so they’re always available to send as a quick response.
• Save image attachments: You can now save images attached to messages on your watch. Saved images can be viewed in the Gallery app, shared with others, or used to create a unique photo watch face.

Additional improvements

• Stylish new font: One UI 6 Watch has a new default font with a more stylish and modern feel. You’ll see the new font if the default font is selected in Settings. If you’re using a different font, you’ll still see that font after upgrading to One UI 6 Watch.
• Make your battery last longer: When Power saving is turned on, you can also choose to limit health features to make your battery last even longer than before.
• Automatically connect to Bluetooth audio devices: When you start playing music on your watch, your Bluetooth headphones or speaker will automatically connect for playback. If no Bluetooth audio devices are available to connect, music will play through your watch’s speaker if your music app supports it.