By
Andy Boxall
Published 2 minutes ago
Andy is a seasoned technology journalist with more than 15 years experience in the mobile industry, writing for Digital Trends, Wired, and more. During that time he has reviewed hundreds of smartphones and tablets, dozens of smartwatches, and a host of smart rings and smartglasses too.
His daily mobile tech life includes Android and iOS devices, smart rings, and a smartwatch unless it's a special ocassion, when a traditional watch takes its place on his wrist. He has attended multiple CES, MWC, and IFA tradeshows, has a passion for photography and cars, listens to far too much K-pop, and always has a strong opinion on the state of the tech industry.
You can find Andy's portfolio of work on his Authory page.
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The Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is supposed to be the most luxurious model in Samsung’s latest smartwatch line-up. What happens when it’s put up against a smartwatch made by a true luxury watchmaker?
I found out by wearing the Tag Heuer Connected Calibre E5 ahead of swapping to the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, and putting them against each other led me to a very pleasing conclusion.
Read our review
Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic: Big watch, big price
It does have that clicky bezel, though
Posts 7 By Taylor Kerns Aug 3, 2025Price and positioning
Reputation and status
Samsung makes a wide range of products, but it’s not what most would call a luxury manufacturer, despite making expensive devices from quality materials with cutting-edge tech.
Tag Heuer, on the other hand, is known for luxury products, mostly Swiss watches.
The Connected Calibre E5 may not have one of its automatic or quartz movements inside, but it’s still designed and built by Tag Heuer, using the same principles and materials used for its mechanical watches.
Whether you think Tag Heuer watches, or Swiss watches in general, are worth what they cost is beside the point here.
The Connected Calibre E5 is a luxury smartwatch, while the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is a “premium” smartwatch, which is reflected in the price.
A Tag Heuer Connected Calibre E5 will cost you at least $1,600 if you are happy with the 40mm model. The 45mm model in our photos costs $2,300.
A Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic starts at $499, and the LTE model in our photos is $549. It only comes in one size.
What do I mean by positioning? Tag Heuer is going after a different person with its smartwatch than Samsung is with the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic.
However, because of Tag Heuer’s reputation and status, it’s also aspirational, and that’s where some buyer crossover occurs. Will it be worth going all-out and getting the Calibre E5?
Materials used
Not all that different
The Tag Heuer Connected Calibre E5’s case comes in 40mm or 45mm sizes and is made of stainless steel and, in this case, with a Diamond-like Carbon (DLC) coating.
It has a sapphire crystal over the screen, a crown on the side coated in rubber, a metal case back, and a wide range of straps. It’s also available without the DLC coating, and in rose gold.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is also made of stainless steel and comes in a single 46mm case size, with a choice of white or black color schemes.
The bezel is its standout design feature, which rotates to control the menu system in the same way the crown does on the Tag Heuer.
The Watch 8 Classic also has a crown, which works as a quick-access shortcut to workout modes.
The Watch 8 Classic also has a sapphire crystal over the screen, but a plastic case back, which is unfortunate, and a small choice of different straps.
It’s a leather hybrid on my Watch 8 Classic, which is backed with rubber for grip and increased durability.
The Tag Heuer’s rubber strap is vastly more comfortable and higher quality, from the way it gently forms around your wrist to the vastly adjustable folded clasp.
Until you’ve worn a really good watch strap, it’s hard to understand how much difference there is between one and a cheaper strap.
The Tag Heuer pulls out an early lead here, with its higher quality build, materials, and strap.
Wearing both smartwatches
Interesting differences
The excellent strap makes a huge difference in how the Calibre E5 feels on your wrist, and the amount of time you can wear it without really knowing it’s there.
But it goes beyond this, making one smartwatch ideal for everyday wear, and the other less so.
It’s all about balance and lug design. The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic’s lugs are set at the very bottom of the case, which, combined with the large bezel, makes it top-heavy and unbalanced on your wrist.
The Calibre E5 has a far more standard lug design, tapering down from the top of the case and bezel and leading into the rubber strap.
It means the smartwatch remains centered on your wrist, while the Watch 8 Classic slips and moves around.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is the lighter of the two at 86 grams with the strap, while the Tag Heuer is 93 grams. However, hold them together, and the Calibre E5 immediately feels less bulky. Simply, the weight is better distributed.
It all adds up to a smartwatch I’ve happily worn all day, while I’ve often become frustrated by the Watch 8 Classic’s weird balance and poor weight distribution.
The ungainly looks unfortunately lead to an ungainly experience on your wrist, while the Tag Heuer is wonderfully designed for ultimate comfort and style.
Different software platforms
A very different experience, too
The Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic works with most Android smartphones and requires Samsung’s Wear and Health apps to operate, with a few features unique to those using a Samsung Galaxy phone with the smartwatch.
It has Google’s Wear OS 6 and Samsung’s One UI Watch software installed.
If you buy the Tag Heuer Connected Calibre E5, it’ll connect to either Android or iOS smartphones because it uses Tag Heuer’s own software and the Tag Heuer app.
It has been tailored to work best with iOS, and is Made for iPhone certified. However, you aren’t missing out on any features connecting to an Android phone.
While I like the way Tag Heuer’s software is designed — the pizza-slice style makes sense, and is easy to navigate — the speed and smoothness can’t compare with Wear OS on the Watch 8 Classic.
The rotating crown on the Calibre E5 feels underused, and sometimes it can be confusing about which button to press for functions like going back a step.
This is never the case with the Watch 8 Classic. The rotating bezel is a tactile wonder, and even though you don’t use it all the time, it’s an occasion when you do.
There’s a lot more functionality on the Watch 8 Classic, and it’s a lot faster to access due to Wear OS’s Tiles system, unlike the less intuitive menu system on the Tag Heuer.
Notifications are reliable enough on both, but there’s no interactivity on the Calibre E5, but there is on the Watch 8 Classic.
The other major difference is that the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic can access the Google Play app store and comes with key apps, including Google Maps and Gmail.
You can’t access an app store on the Tag Heuer Connected Calibre E5, and it doesn’t have apps like Maps.
Samsung’s experience with software and user interfaces shines through here, and although there’s plenty to like about the Tag Heuer software, the Watch 8 Classic has a more cohesive, more feature-packed, and better-performing software.
Fitness and health tracking
Samsung pulls ahead
If you want the most fitness, health, and sleep tracking features, read no further and buy the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic.
The Tag Heuer Connected Calibre E5 only tracks workouts with its heart rate sensor, and doesn’t track sleep or blood oxygen levels at the time of writing.
However, just because it has more features doesn’t mean they’re all useful. Take the Antioxidant Index, a wellness feature that doesn’t really tell you much that will help you in everyday life.
All the other health features are excellent, and the Samsung Health app is a great way to dig into your data. The Tag Heuer app isn’t as well-designed.
When I reviewed the Calibre E5, I noted some discrepancies in its fitness-tracking data compared to my Oura Ring 4 and the Apple Watch Series 11.
How does it compare to the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic? After tracking a simple 30-minute walk with both, the Watch 8 Classic recorded a 114bpm heart rate average and a 157kcal burn.
The Tag Heuer recorded an average 107bpm heart rate and a 248kcal burn, but which is more likely to be accurate?
The Oura Ring 4 tracked the same walk with a 110bpm heart rate average and a 106kcal burn, so it’s hard to say for sure.
However, I’d be surprised if the Tag Heuer’s 248kcal burn was accurate.
Battery and charging
Some important differences
Tag Heuer pulls back some points with the way it’s charged.
It comes with a small charging stand that holds the watch up, so the screen faces forward, showing a helpful bedside clock display. There’s even a neat, illuminated Tag Heuer logo on the base.
The Galaxy Watch 8 Classic uses the same magnetic charging puck as the Galaxy Watch 8 and many previous Galaxy Watch models. It does the job, but it’s very basic.
It takes about 90 minutes to fully charge the 445mAh battery, which is the same as the Calibre E5’s 419mAh battery charge time.
Samsung claims a 30-hour usage time for the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, and in our review, we reached two days of use with the always-on screen, sleep tracking, and daily exercise tracking.
Tag Heuer claims the Connected Calibre E5’s battery will last up to three days on a single charge with the Low Power mode.
In our review, we found that without Low Power mode, the battery lasted for two days with the always-on screen and daily activity tracking.
However, this is without sleep tracking, and this will further impact battery life when the feature eventually arrives.
Is luxury worth the price?
It has been fascinating to wear both the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic and the Connected Calibre E5, then view them both through a luxury lens.
I can say with certainty that the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is not a luxury smartwatch, and the design and wearability is not only far worse than the Tag Heuer smartwatch, but also its smaller sibling, the Galaxy Watch 8.
The Connected Calibre E5 is a fabulous watch to wear. It’s really comfortable, so well-balanced, and beautifully designed. It has character, enhanced by the fantastic watch faces, and I’ve loved wearing it.
I feel nothing for the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic and consider the design ungainly and not as pleasant to wear as it should be.
Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic
Case size
46mm
Case Material
Stainless steel
Display
1.34" Super AMOLED
Display resolution
438 x 438
CPU
Exynos W1000
RAM
2 GB
$499 at Samsung
$499 at Amazon
$499 at Best Buy
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However, Tag Heuer’s go-it-alone software is missing features, can’t access an app store, and isn’t as intuitive as Wear OS.
It’s fine for general use, but it won’t satisfy a tech fiend’s craving for advanced features or provide much room for growth over time.
Both are really good smartwatches, but have downsides. The design and comfort go against the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, while the Tag Heuer’s lack of compelling and varied features let it down.
What we’ve ended up with is two different smartwatches for two different types of people, and this isn’t a bad thing.
Tag Heuer Connected Calibre E5
6/10
Case size
45mm / 40mm
Case Material
Steel / Titanium
Display
1.39-inch / 1.2-inch
Display resolution
454 x 454 / 390 x 390
CPU
Qualcomm Snapdragon 5100+
Battery
419mAh / 300mAh
$1600 at Tag Heuer
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To answer the question, yes, the Tag Heuer Connected Calibre E5’s luxury is worth the price, but equally, the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic’s tech makes it worth buying too. We really have been spoiled with great smartwatches recently, and it’s fantastic to have so much choice.
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