Samsung Galaxy Watch: Google Play drains the smartwatch battery

According to reports from users, owners of Samsung smartwatches currently have to expect that the battery life of their watch will be significantly reduced. Affected users report that an update published a few weeks ago led to increased energy requirements.

Users report halved battery life

If the battery life of a smartwatch from the Galaxy Watch series has become noticeably shorter in recent weeks, this appears to be due to a problem with one of the latest updates for the devices. This is reported by affected users, according to whom the watches currently have to be reloaded more frequently than before. Like the colleagues from Android Authority citing user reports on Reddit, many Galaxy Watch models are currently affected by a sharp decline in battery life. The problem occurs equally on the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic, Galaxy Watch 6 Classic, Galaxy Watch 7 and the Galaxy Watch Ultra (2025), so it seems to affect practically all models that are still supported.

While the Galaxy Watch Ultra previously ran for four days without an always-on display, it now has to be charged again after just under two days, according to one user. Those affected identified the cause as an increased energy requirement of Google Play Services after taking a closer look at the battery usage statistics. Samsung has not yet commented on the matter. It is also still unclear whether an update is actually the cause of the increased energy requirement.

Instead, there is also speculation that a change on the server side has led to increased strain on the batteries through the Play services. The users would therefore have no opportunity to do anything about the problem. The affected owners of various Galaxy Watch models discuss possible solutions to their problems. Among other things, there is talk that resetting the smartwatches could provide temporary relief. Other users recommend deleting the Play Services app cache, although despite these counter measures the heavy battery drain seems to recur after a short time in most cases.