Samsung has been praised for rolling out One UI 8 to smartphones and tablets at a record pace – faster than any major update before, with even mid-range models getting the update in just a few weeks.

However, that hasn’t been the case with One UI 8 Watch, the update for Galaxy smartwatches. While mobile devices have been updated quickly, Galaxy Watch users have been left waiting.

One UI 8 Watch debuted alongside the Galaxy Watch 8 and Watch 8 Classic, but months later, older models still haven’t received the update. Even the Galaxy Watch 7, which is only a year old and has nearly identical hardware to the Watch Ultra, has been waiting a long time.

It is worth mentioning that the Watch Ultra – the most premium watch – was updated right from the start, even though the configuration is almost the same as the Watch 7. This difference makes many people think that Samsung is prioritizing expensive devices to create a sense of “privilege” for Ultra users – instead of deploying evenly to the entire product line.

This is quite unfortunate, because Samsung has proven that they are completely capable of fast and consistent updates on phones, while the Galaxy Watch line deserves to be treated more fairly, especially when the hardware difference between the models is not too big.

The difference in deployment is clear: One UI 8 for phones is deployed quickly, widely, and transparently, while One UI 8 Watch is slow, selective, and inconsistent.

Even the One UI Watch Beta testing program is limited to the US and Korea, while the beta for phones is expanded to at least 7 countries.

Although it may be too late to change now, hopefully, Samsung will learn from experience, so that future One UI Watch updates will be deployed faster, more synchronously, worthy of the expectations of the Galaxy user community worldwide.