Galaxy Watch 5 rumored to ditch rotating bezel-equipped ‘Classic’ design, new Wear OS skin too

Ben Schoon | Apr 22 2022 - 7:28 am PT

Samsung still has the only smartwatch running the new Wear OS 3 that it worked with Google to build out. According to a new report, Samsung is prepping to double down on that with the Galaxy Watch 5 series, which will include a new Wear OS skin, as well as the removal of the “Classic” design.

According to a report from SamMobile, Samsung is readying the Galaxy Watch 5 series without the “Classic” design that packed the lineup’s iconic rotating bezel.

Back when it was the Gear lineup, Samsung debuted the rotating bezel to wide praise, and has kept the feature around in the years since. The Galaxy Watch Active was the brand’s first foray into a smartwatch without the feature, followed by the Watch Active 2. Samsung went further with the bezel-less design on its Galaxy Watch 4, which moved the rotating bezel over to the “Classic” design.

However, it’s not clear at this point if Samsung is set to fully ditch the rotating bezel from this upcoming lineup. The Galaxy Watch 5 “Pro” that’s been rumored for a bit, and there’s a good chance that the larger watch will still pack the feature.

In any case, though, this report makes it clear that Samsung will only have two models to offer later this year — Galaxy Watch 5 and Galaxy Watch 5 Pro. The report also mentions that the standard Watch 5 will have two different size options, but the Pro may only offer one: a large size, likely, given recent battery leaks.

Beyond that, this report also mentions that Samsung will be updating its Wear OS 3 skin, One UI Watch, with this upcoming generation. That doesn’t come as a huge surprise, but it’s probably safe to assume this won’t be a full revamp. Going on past patterns, Samsung only makes major updates to the software on its smartwatches every few years, and usually after a revamp of its Android skin.