Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 vs Garmin Vivoactive 4 Compared

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Featured in this comparison chart are two classy smartwatches; the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 and the Garmin Vivoactive 4. These two watches represent the latest additions to the rich lineup of Samsung and Garmin smartwatches respectively. And each of these two is sturdily built with some of the most durable materials, as well as loaded with lots of features. In this post, we’re comparing the differences between the Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 vs Garmin Vivoactive 4 to find out which is a better smartwatch for you.

Note that both the Galaxy Watch Active 2 and Vivoactive 4 come in two sizes, while the Active 2 is available in 40mm and 44mm, the Vivoactive 4 is available in 40mm and 45mm sizes. Moreover, the 40 and 44mm units of the Active 2 are available in Bluetooth and LTE versions. The difference between the LTE and Bluetooth model is that the former comes with an eSIM that enables cellular connectivity, and thus makes it a standalone smartwatch. As a result, the LTE model of the Active 2 can make and receive calls, and receive and reply to messages without your phone. The Bluetooth model requires your phone to do these.

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 vs Garmin Vivoactive 4: Specifications Compared

 
 
Product Info
Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 (44mm) Full Specs and features

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 (44mm) Bluetooth Full Specifications and Features

Garmin Vivoactive 4 Specs and prices

Garmin Vivoactive 4 Specifications, Features and Price

Price $156.97 $188.00
ABOUT DEVICE ABOUT DEVICE ABOUT DEVICE
Device name Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 (44mm) Garmin Vivoactive 4
Device type Fitness/Classic smartwatch Fitness/Sport smartwatch
Gender Unisex Unisex
Release date September, 2019 September, 2019
Predecessor Samsung Galaxy Watch Active Garmin Vivoactive 3
Successor Galaxy Watch 4 Garmin Vivoactive 5
Versions Bluetooth only, LTE Captain Marvel, First Avengers, Vivoactive 4, Vivoactive 4S
BODY BODY BODY
Dimension 44 x 44 x 10.9 mm 45.1 x 45.1 x 12.8 mm
Weight 30 grams (aluminum), 42 grams (stainless steel) 50.5 grams
Shape Circular Circular
Case material Aluminum, Stainless steel Fiber-reinforced polymer
Strap material Fluoroelastomer (Aluminum), Leather (stainless steel) Silicone
Bezel material Aluminum, Bezeless Stainless steel
Strap size 20 mm 22 mm
Interchangeable strap Yes 22 mm, Yes
Screen protection Corning Gorilla glass DX+ Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Water resistance Yes, 5ATM Yes, 5ATM
Durability test MIL-STD-810G
Swim-proof Yes, recommended Yes, recommended
Color Aqua-black, Black, Cloud-silver, Gold, Pink-gold, Silver Black, Silver
DISPLAY DISPLAY DISPLAY
Display size 1.4 inches 1.3 inches
Display type Super AMOLED, Full color LCD, Memory-in-pixel (MIP), transflective
Display resolution 360 x 360 pixel 260 x 260 px
Pixel density
Always on Yes Yes
Custom watch face Yes Yes
Input type 2 Physical buttons, Digital rotating bezel, Touchscreen 2 Physical buttons, Touchscreen
CONNECTIVITY CONNECTIVITY CONNECTIVITY
Bluetooth Bluetooth v5.0 ANT+, Bluetooth v4.0
Bluetooth calling Yes No
GPS Yes, GPS/GLONASS/BEIDOU Galileo, GLONASS, GPS
NFC Yes Yes
Wi-Fi Yes Yes
MEMORY MEMORY MEMORY
RAM 0.75GB
ROM 4GB 4GB
Memory card slot No No
CELLULAR CONNECTIVITY CELLULAR CONNECTIVITY CELLULAR CONNECTIVITY
Technology None None
SIM type None None
Band
NOTIFICATIONS NOTIFICATIONS NOTIFICATIONS
SMS alert Yes Yes
Calls alert Yes Yes
Email alert Yes Yes
Event reminder Yes Yes
Third-party apps alert Yes Yes
Reply to Notifications - -
MEDIA MEDIA MEDIA
Audio mp3/mp4 mp3/mp4
Bluetooth music Yes Yes
Loudspeaker Yes No
Microphone Yes No
Camera No No
Radio No No
SENSORS SENSORS SENSORS
Sensor(s)
ACTIVITY TRACKING ACTIVITY TRACKING ACTIVITY TRACKING
Blood oxygen No Yes
Blood Pressure Yes No
Calories Yes Yes
Distance Yes Yes
ECG tracking Yes No
Heart rate monitoring Yes Yes
Sleep tracking Yes Yes
Steps Yes Yes
Floors climbed Yes Yes
Stress Yes Yes
Fall detection Yes Yes
Menstrual cycle Yes Yes
VO2 Max Yes Yes
Swim-tracking Yes Yes
Underwater heart rate tracking No Yes
On-screen workout No Yes
Sport modes 39 20
BATTERY BATTERY BATTERY
Battery type Non-removable Li-ion battery non-removable Lithium-polymer
Battery capacity 340mAh
Battery life Regular: 2 days, Standby :5 days+ GPS with music: up to 6hrs, Smartwatch mode: up to 8 days
Charging type WPC based wireless charging Charging dock
Charging time 1-2 hours 1-2 hours
Solar charging No No
PLATFORM PLATFORM PLATFORM
Chipset Exynos 9110
CPU Dual core 1.15GHz
GPU
Operating system Tizen 5.5 Proprietary OS
MISC MISC MISC
Companion app Samsung Gear app Garmin Connect
Compatibility Android 5.0+ & RAM 1.5GB+, iPhone 5+ and iOS 9.0+ Android 5.0+, iOS 11.0+
Payment system Samsung Pay Garmin Pay
Voice command Yes, Bixby No
Find my phone Yes Yes
Box content Charger, Manual, Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 (44mm), Straps Charger, Garmin Vivoactive 4, Manual, Straps

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 vs Garmin Vivoactive 4: What’s the Difference?

The Active 2 and Vivoactive 4 share a lot of features in common, both are circular shapes, both are also fitness-focused, and both are equipped with a 4GB storage capacity. However, there’re certain differences between these two.

  • The Active 2 is slimmer and more compact than the Vivoacitve 4. Thus, it’s sleeker and classier. Moreover, the innovative digital rotating bezel of the Active 2 makes navigation a lot easier. On the other hand, the Vivoactive 4 is thicker and bulkier than the Active 2.
  • The Active 2 with an AMOLED display offers a more vivid and fulfilling viewing experience than the Vivoactive 4 which has a transflective LCD display. The Active 2 also has a slightly bigger display size than the Vivoactive 4.
  • Thirdly, the Active 2 comes with both a microphone and loudspeaker which the Vivoactive 4 lacks. Thus, you can access voice assistant features via Bixby and as well play music aloud. Moreover, you can also make calls directly from the Active 2 via Bluetooth calling which isn’t possible with the Vivoactive 4. The LTE model of Active 2 can make and receive calls independent of a smartphone.
  • Both the Active 2 and Vivoactive 4 are very well loaded with lots of fitness tracking features. Each of these will track all your daily activities like steps, calories, heart rate, sleep, and stress. However, Active 2 has some health tracking features not present in Vivoactive 4. Likewise, the Vivoactive 4 has some fitness features not present in Active 2.

    The Active 2 allows you to take ECG directly from your wrist. It also features blood pressure measurements. Meanwhile, the Vivoactive 4 features blood oxygen measurement and animated workout modes that can guide you through some of your favorite workouts which are not available in Active 2.

  • Finally, the Active 2 battery will last about 2 days or more with mixed usage which is far lower than the Vivoactive 4 which has up to a week of battery life. This will allow you to go longer from a single charge.

Which is Better?

Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 2 vs Garmin Vivoactive 4
The Galaxy Watch Active 2 is a better smartwatch than Vivoactive 4

In all, each of these two has got an outstanding design and awesome features.

However, the Active 2 has a more colorful display and a comfortable design. It also has a microphone and loudspeaker than enable Bluetooth calls as well as advanced health tracking features like ECG and blood pressure measurements. It’s clearly a more productive and smarter smartwatch than Vivoactive 4, yet cheaper.

On the other hand, the Vivoactive 4 also has an incredible, durable design, plus lots of health tracking features. Moreover, it has a longer battery life than Active 2.