A good smartwatch is one that simply lets me screen (and sometimes even answer) my calls hands free, check my notifications when I'm on the go and control my music and audiobooks when my phone is out of sight. A great smartwatch adds health, fitness and sleep tracking features without breaking the bank.
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 4 (40mm) delivers on all those features, and if you're looking for a wearable, it's the one I'd recommend checking out before looking into the latest version of the Galaxy Watch series. Walmart currently has the 40mm version in either black or pink gold for $149.72 and $159.72, respectively.
One good way of not spending too much money when buying tech is choosing a previous version of a current device. It looks almost identical to the Samsung Galaxy Watch 5, which added only minor improvements to the Watch 4.
Sure, it's not the latest model of the Samsung Watch -- that would be the Samsung Galaxy Watch 7. But it still has all the main features, including ECG, blood pressure monitoring, sleep monitoring, Google integration for most things and Samsung Health.
I'm not a fitness fanatic, so I don't need all the latest tracking features, or even the improved battery life and bigger screen size of the Watch 7 (40mm), which will run you $300 and is currently up for pre-order. The Galaxy Watch 4 has the fitness tracking I need without being overly complex. (It has advanced workout tracking for six modes including running, rowing and swimming, if you like those auto-detected tracking features.)
One caveat: Some people have complained that their battery is depleting quickly lately. Samsung has advice on how to run a diagnostic on your watch and remedy the issue.