Samsung’s new Galaxy Watch 5 Series is an iterative improvement on a product that was already well-regarded (the Galaxy Watch 4). The battery life has been enhanced, the operating system (Google’s One UI on top of Wear OS), has been simplified, and the premium model’s construction has been strengthened by the addition of sapphire glass and a titanium shell (Galaxy Watch 5 Pro).
However, the Garmin Forerunner 255 continues the tradition of its predecessor (the Forerunner 245) by providing an excellent all-around watch for novice and intermediate runners alike. Nevertheless, the Forerunner 255 stands out due to its exceptional features, such as its new triathlon mode enabled by the addition of superior cycling and swimming metrics, its enhanced battery performance (from 7 days to 12 days), and its two sizes to accommodate different wrists.
The following is a comparison of the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro with the Garmin Forerunner 255 Music in terms of appearance, functionality, performance, and cost.
| Galaxy Watch 5 Pro | Garmin Forerunner 255 Music | |
|---|---|---|
| Date | August 10, 2022 | June 1, 2022 |
| Predecessor | Galaxy Watch 4 Classic | Garmin Forerunner 245 Music |
| Company | Samsung | Garmin |
| Operating System | WearOS (One UI) | Garmin OS |
| Compatible Smartphones | Android (Works best with Samsung) | Android, iOS |
| Competition | Garmin Fenix 7, Garmin Instinct 2, Polar Vantage 2 | FR 955, Garmin Instinct 2, Fenix 7, Fitbit Sense, FR 55 |
| Sensors | Samsung BioActive Sensor (Optical Heart Rate + Electrical Heart Signal + Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis), Temperature Sensor, Accelerometer, Barometer, Gyro Sensor, Geomagnetic Sensor, Light Sensor | Multi-Frequency Positioning, Garmin Elevate heart rate sensor, Barometric altimeter, Compass, Gyroscope, Accelerometer, Thermometer, Pulse OX blood oxygen saturation monitor |
Price and Value:
| Galaxy Watch 5 Pro | Garmin Forerunner 255 Music | |
|---|---|---|
| Bluetooth/GPS | $449 | About $400 |
| LTE | $499 | No LTE Mode |
The price of a Garmin Forerunner 255 with music is an additional $50 on top of the base model’s $350 price. While the corporation may provide discounts on other products, they do not apply to watch sizes. The enthusiasts are justified in asking for a price cut on the Forerunner 255S, which has a lesser battery, screen size, and resolution.
The starting price of Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is an exorbitant $450, and it’s only available in one size (45mm). If you’d like the LTE version, you’ll have to fork up an extra $50.
While at first glance the Garmin Forerunner 255 Music appears to be the superior value, a closer examination of their respective feature sets reveals that the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro offers significantly more for its asking price.
Winner: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music
Design and Display:
| Galaxy Watch 5 Pro | Garmin Forerunner 255 Music | |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | 45.4 x 45.4 x 10.5 mm | 46mm: 45.6 x 45.6 x 12.9 mm | 41mm: 41 x 41 x 12.4 mm |
| Buttons | 2 Buttons | 2 Buttons |
| Weight | 46.5g | 46mm: 49g | 41mm: 39g |
| Colors | Black Titanium, Gray Titanium | 46mm: 45.6 x 45.6 x 12.9 mm, 49g | 41mm: 41 x 41 x 12.4 mm, 39g |
| Band Size | 20mm (M/L) | 46mm: 22mm (M/L) | 41mm: 18mm (M/L) |
| Casing Material | Titanium | Fiber-reinforced Polymer |
| Strap Material | Silicone | Silicone |
| Screen Size | 1.4 inches | 46mm:1.3 inches | 41mm: 1.1 inches |
| Screen Type | Super AMOLED | sunlight-visible, transflective memory-in-pixel (MIP) |
| Screen Resolution | 450×450 Pixels | 46mm: 260 x 260 pixels, 41mm: 218 x 218 pixels (active area) |
| Screen Protection | Sapphire Crystal Glass | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 |
| Always-on Display | Yes | Yes |
| Rotating Bezel | Touch | No |
| Waterproofing | 5 ATM (up to 50m) | Suitable for Showering, Swimming | 5 ATM (up to 50m) | Suitable for Showering, Swimming |
In comparison to the more modern Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, the Forerunner’s plastics case and 5-button design make it feel cheap. The Galaxy Watch 5 Pro has slimmer bezels and a more streamlined design. Because of its titanium frame and sapphire glass, it outlasts FR255. In terms of design, the GW5 Pro is just another example of how Samsung Watches consistently outclass Garmin’s offerings.
The high-resolution, Super AMOLED display of the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is more evidence of Galaxy Watch’s display dominance. When compared to the MIP display found on the FR 255, this one is noticeably brighter, crisper, and more colorful. The Galaxy Watch, however, stands out from the crowd because of its touchscreen interface. Compared to the FR 255’s 5 buttons, its interface is intuitive and simple to operate.
Winner: Galaxy Watch 5 Pro
Smart Features:
| Galaxy Watch 5 Pro | Forerunner 255 Music | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating System | WearOS | Garmin OS |
| Connectivity Options | Bluetooth 5.2, Wi-Fi (802.11 a/b/g/n 2.4+5GHz), GPS, LTE | Bluetooth, ANT+ |
| Processor | Exynos W920 | Not Specified |
| RAM | 1.5GB RAM | Not Specified |
| Storage | 16GB | 4G & up to 500 songs |
| Speaker & Mic | Yes | No |
| Companion App | Galaxy Wearable | Connect IQ |
| Contactless Payment (NFC) | Samsung+Google Pay | Garmin Pay |
| Standalone Calling and Texting | Yes (LTE model) | No |
| Voice Assistant | Bixby, Google Assistant | No |
| Timer & Alarms | Yes | Yes |
| Popular Apps | Strava, Spotify, Google Maps, Youtube Music, Google Keep, Google Pay, Nike Run Club | Strava, Spotify, Google Maps, Nike Run Club, Garmin Pay |
As opposed to the Samsung Watch, the Garmin Watch works with both Apple and Google’s mobile operating systems. The Forerunner 255 Music’s only other features are music storage (500 songs) and streaming (on Spotify and Amazon Music), near-field communication (NFC) payments through Garmin Pay, and smartphone notification alerts.
Especially if you go with the LTE model, the Samsung Galaxy Watch Pro can function without the help of a phone. It accepts Samsung Pay and Google Pay (NFC), can be used to surf the web and comes with a built-in voice assistant. The Galaxy Store and the Google Play store are good places to look for new apps.
And the Galaxy Watch 5’s UI provides the best smartwatch experience available. It’s quick, pretty, and simple to operate. If you didn’t know, the newest Samsung watches are powered by Google’s Wear OS 3, which means you can use the Google Wearable Suite and thousands of other apps developed for the platform.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro
Health and Fitness Tracking:
| Galaxy Watch 5 Pro | Forerunner 255 Music | |
|---|---|---|
| Heart Rate Tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Sleep Monitoring | Yes (Advanced) | Yes (Basic) |
| Stress Tracking | Yes | Yes |
| ECG Monitoring | Yes | No |
| Blood Oxygen Saturation (SpO2) monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Body Composition | Yes | No |
| Blood Pressure Tracking | Yes | No |
| Workouts | 30+ | 50+ |
| Automatic Workout Tracking | Yes | Yes |
| GPS Tracking | Yes +Glonass/Beidou/Galileo | Yes + GLONASS, Galileo |
Except the Samsung Watch’s ECG and blood pressure monitoring, both gadgets offer identical health tracking capabilities.
Both monitor physical activity, energy expenditure, oxygen levels, and restful sleep. It all comes down to the watch’s companion app and how precisely and effectively it presents and employs this raw data to provide you with actionable information. The Garmin Connect app is easier to use and provides more detailed data.
Differences become more apparent when discussing exercise logs. While Samsung’s watch may come with more workouts preloaded, the Garmin Forerunner 255 excels in precision and depth of data.
Take running as an example. The Garmin Watch’s GPS and heart rate monitoring are far more precise than those of the Samsung Watch. On the other hand, the Garmin watch measures such as PacePro, VO2 Max, Heart Rate Zone, Recovery time, Training Readiness, and many others provide a wealth of information that can be used to fine-tune your running technique.
Winner: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music
Battery Performance:
| Galaxy Watch 5 Pro | Forerunner 255 Music | |
|---|---|---|
| Battery Size | 590mAh | Not Specified |
| Expected Battery Performance | Almost 80 hours | Up to 6.5 hours to 14 days (mixed usage) |
| Fast Charging Support | Yes | No |
The accompanying table compares the battery life of the two devices so you can see which one is more suitable for your needs. Aside from the questionable accuracy of the Samsung Watch’s battery life estimate, the Garmin Forerunner 255’s performance is unrivaled.
It would be reasonable to attribute Garmin’s poor battery life to the device’s low-resolution MIP display, but recent models of the Garmin Venu 2 and Venu 2 Plus with AMOLED displays have shown comparable results.
Although the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro came in second place in the battery race, the inclusion of rapid charging is a nice touch. However, a full charge for the Samsung Watch only takes 30 minutes, while the Garmin Watch requires 2 hours.
Winner: Garmin Forerunner 255 Music
Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro vs Garmin Forerunner 255 Music: What should you pick?
However, not everyone will benefit from a Garmin watch because of its singular concentration on sports monitoring and angular design. Samsung has made it clear that it wants a piece of the outdoor market with the release of the Galaxy Watch 5 Pro, but the company has made no effort to water down the wristwatch experience that is integral to its reputation.
As a result, your needs and preferences for a wristwatch will determine which watch is best for you. Go for the Garmin Forerunner 255 Music if you’re looking for a mid-range smartwatch that prioritizes exercise and has excellent battery life. It’s as clever as you need it to be, and it has all the health-tracking capabilities you could want.
Contrarily, the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5 Pro is the best smartwatch if you want all the features.
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