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Samsung announced its newest devices during its Galaxy Unpacked event on July 9. That happened to fall on the second day of Amazon’s Prime Day event. Do big tech companies not know what the others are doing? Do they care? Do they like making the lives of tech reporters difficult? I didn’t have time to consider. Only when I was done covering Amazon did I have time to begin properly testing Samsung’s latest wearable. That means I’ve been living with the Galaxy Watch 8 for four days now.
While that’s not enough time to complete a comprehensive review and tally a fair score, I was able to gather a good amount of first impressions — and let me tell you, they are nearly all positive. I’ll continue to evaluate the watch over the next few weeks or so and return for a final assessment. In the meantime, there’s a lot to say about the experience so far.
Samsung packed a lot of updates into its latest smartwatch, in terms of both hardware and software. But I put extra effort into testing one feature in particular — and it’s one of the more interesting.
Antioxidant tests and my persimmon intake
The Galaxy Watch 8 has the same processor and sensors as the previous generation, but it’s using those to detect a new metric: antioxidant levels. You have to take the watch off and hold your thumb on the sensor node for five seconds to get a reading and you’ll need to refer to the Health app in your phone for detailed results. The first time I tested, I got a score of 60, which falls right in the middle of the “low” segment of the scale. The only other results are “very low” and “adequate,” which will surely be a disappointment to the over-achievers out there.
The Health app suggested I “try eating one (100g) persimmon today.” When my grandmother was alive, she made persimmon cookies every Christmas and the last time she did so was also the last time I thought about that fruit. Considering South Korea is one of the world’s largest persimmon producers, it might make sense that a Samsung device suggested them. The produce guy at my local grocery store said they only carry them around the holidays (no doubt because grandmas insist, plus that’s when they’re in season).
Turns out persimmons are high in antioxidants such as Vitamin C and beta-carotine (Vitamin A). Cantaloupe also has those nutrients — plus it’s orange like persimmons — so I bought one. In fact, I went hard on the antioxidants and did everything I could to see if I could get a better score. I ate a bunch of cherries and a little dark chocolate. For breakfast, I had half a cantaloupe instead of the very tasty-smelling breakfast hash my husband made, and I drank plain green tea instead of my usual oat matcha latte. I did yoga and went to my monthly medical massage appointment (stress is said to increase oxidant levels). I got eight hours of sleep and drank my weight in water. I felt ready.
So I took the test again and my antioxidant levels were… two points lower. Sigh. I wasn’t expecting overnight transformation, but I’d hoped for a little improvement. Next time, I’m eating the hash.
Finally, a new design!
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