If you are using a Galaxy watch 5 or 4 under Wear OS please Download the Wear OS app
Broadcast heart rate measured by the Samsung's built-in sensor to indoor training apps such as Zwift or to cycling head units.
Download the watch App for Tizen
Download HR2VP App for Wear OS (Galaxy watch 4)
More info about our Wear OS app for the Galaxy watch 4
New on 11.01.22 : a version of the app called HR2VP has been released for Wear OS. It is compatible with the Galaxy watch 5 & 4 and broadcasts heart rate and cycling power (but not running speed).
If you don't have a Samsung phone, you may have trouble finding it on the store as it is a paid app. In this case, pair temporarily your watch with a Samsung phone and buy the app. Then it will become available on your non Samsung phone.
You now have the choice in the Settings between 'standard' (by default) and 'raw' heart rate values. The best option for most devices is to use 'standard' but you need to enable continuous heart rate readings in this case and systematically start a manual activity in Samsung Health on the watch in parallel.
Continuous heart rate reading can be enabled in 2 ways:
Another point to check, the watch needs to be tight enough to your skin to ensure a good heart rate value. In addition, please check regularly your watch sensor and clean it with water if it is a bit dusty.
Pair your smartwatch with Zwift as with any standard Bluetooth Smart heart rate monitor or running speed sensor!
Here are a few advices on how to use the watch app:
Click on top right icon of Pairing Screen in order to select Bluetooth mode for Zwift
Select Bluetooth with Companion app for Zwift
Every GPS head unit that match with the Heart Rate Bluetooth Smart profile is compatible with the app. You will be able to broadcast heart rate directly from your watch to your head unit.
Here is a non exhaustive list of compatible GPS head units :
The Galaxy Active is not the only watch compatible with HR and Speed Transmitter app, other are :
Paid apps are unfortunately not available on the Samsung store on iOS.
The only solution to get the app is :
HR & Speed transmitter app for Samsung has been updated on the store on 2nd of December 2020, here are new features:
Feel free to contact us per mail if you have any question about the app.
Here are other apps which we developed for Samsung watches:
Let's review the Galaxy active watch.
Here are some pictures of the watch while unboxing. The watch comes in a nice small box measuring 9.5cm x 9.5cm x 5.5cm, well packed with only what you need : the watch, USB charging dock and an additionnal band.
The watch is light (25g), small and has a great modern look.
The documentation is behind the top cover : you need to pull it out. I discored this a few days after I bought the watch.
At first sight, I was surprised by the wrist band were you can find a hole, but after a few hours wearing the watch, I found this system very comfortable because the end is below the band and never goes out.
There are 2 different applications that you can use together with the Galaxy Active.
Galaxy Werable is usefull for watch configuration, updates, applications... You will have access to all the technical settings (vibrations, luminosity, battery...), add some widgets...
Samsung Health is more for user's statistics.
The watch has a nice 1.1 inch OLED screen with a resolution of 360x360. The touch sensitivity is good and the navigation in Menus is easy. If you swith from right to left, you will access the widgets you choose, from left to right the current notifications. The screen remains always readbale even in high luminosity.
The battery of 230mAh is not the best point of the watch. It allows you to use the watch for 1, maximum 2 days but no more. I personnally need to recharge every day, although I don't use it intensively (30 min bike activity in the morning and another 30 mins in the evening).
Of course you can track your sleep with the Galaxy Active watch. You will be able to compare each night to your average nights.
You can track :
The watch can be put into water for up to 5 ATM. It can be used for swimming. I did a small test and I must admit that the data is well accurate. I find the swim detection better than with the Garmin Vivoactive HR I had previously.
Of course, you get indications on :
GPS accuracy is nice and has been improved since first Gear S3 I previously owned. As you can see here below, we have an average speed of 28 km/h with the Samsung Galaxy Active vs 27.9 km/h with the Garmin Edge unit which is close. Max speed : 57.2 km/h vs 58 km/h.
The elevation gain was 335m with the Galaxy Active vs 364m with the Garmin which, I know, tends to be too optimistic. For this reason, the Galaxy Active may be more accurate!
With this ride, I was able to compare the heart rate from the Samsung Galaxy Active watch with a noname optical armband sensor. As you can see, the rate of the Galaxy Active sometimes drops out. The weather was a little bit cold on this day and the skin contact was not perfect. It still gives you an estimation on how hard you are training.
Strava Uploads are not that intuitive. You can pair with Samsung Health or simply download the Strava app on the watch but in this case you need to be aware that :
The Galaxy Active is much more than a fitness band, it is a very nice watch to wear everyday. It has an outstanding modern look and allows you to track a lot of interesting health and fitness parameters. Only the battery and conection to external Bluetooth Smart sensors could be improved.