These adaptable, scrollable Tiles fundamentally alter how I interact with my Galaxy Watch 8 Classic.
Wear OS Tiles have always centered on one application at a time. It’s handy to scroll through pertinent information, like your Samsung Health goals, current weather, or calendar reminders, without having to open each app separately. However, it can also become tiresome to sift through many tiles to locate the single piece of information you require.
With One UI 8 Watch on the Galaxy Watch 8 series, Samsung has created themed Tile groupings that utilize the watch display space more effectively; they feel so intuitive that it’s hard to believe this hasn’t been attempted sooner.
Samsung’s fresh approach to Wear OS Tiles
I spin my Classic bezel once, and I notice a “Health” Tile displaying my daily goals, Energy score, Sleep, Breathing exercises, and ECGs. I subsequently included my antioxidant index and blood oxygen levels, while you could integrate cycle tracking, medications, or any other metrics you consider significant!
The subsequent “Fitness” Tile features my primary activities for a quick workout launch, the Running Coach, body composition information, and Together friend challenges. Then there’s the “Basic” Tile with my weather, calendar, battery status, and music playback controls.
In some respects, these Tiles seem reminiscent of the Apple Watch smart stack, but with Android’s distinctive customization and the capacity to categorize them into smaller, themed groups instead of having all widgets lumped together.
For each Samsung app, two Tile options are available: a narrower oblong designed to accommodate two per display space, or a taller squircle that occupies most of the space while leaving enough room to display a glimpse of additional data beneath. This allows you to provide an essential app with a “full” Tile space while grouping other apps underneath it, if desired.
Regrettably, Google and third-party apps only offer traditional, full-Tile layouts; these do not present as an option when configuring multi-app Tiles. The Gemini tile, for instance, already showcases the Wear OS 6 design with rounded edges and limited space for two saved commands.
I assume (or at least hope) Samsung will allow other Wear OS app developers to create their mini-Tile views. They have quickly become a favorite, enabling me to incorporate more apps into my routine without dedicating an entire Tile to something I won’t utilize daily.
The Galaxy Watch 8 and Pixel Watch 4 ventured down two distinct Tile paths
When I explored Wear OS 6 at Google I/O, I was impressed by Google’s revamped Tiles as they made full use of the display space. You can bypass accessing individual applications since the Tile initiates your search for the most pertinent information or shortcuts.
Now that I’ve experienced Samsung’s interpretation of Wear OS 6, I find this core difference intriguing. Samsung’s Tiles system resembles customizing your Galaxy S25 home screen, allowing you to swipe left to your organized apps and widgets. Google’s UI appears more self-contained, intended for watches with the Material 3 Expressive aesthetic as its inspiration.
This may merely be recency bias speaking, but my preference has shifted towards Samsung’s Tiles. For one, I enjoy seeing more information at once, even if it’s smaller. Additionally, I find it simpler to scroll down through a single themed Health tile and determine which option to select, rather than memorizing my Tile sequence and settling for one at a time.
I’m not dismissing the Pixel Watch 4 UI until I’ve thoroughly assessed it. However, I believe that Google’s Wear OS 6 Tiles enhance the traditional approach, while the One UI 8 Watch Tiles revolutionize the experience, making me more inclined to utilize apps I previously overlooked on my Galaxy Watch Ultra due to running out of Tile slots and feeling overwhelmed by my app drawer.
Fortunately, this feature of One UI 8 Watch will be brought to other Galaxy Watches later this year, although the Watch 8/7’s Exynos W1000 chip particularly enhances scrolling. I won’t fault you for feeling impatient until then, as these new Tiles are simply that impressive!
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