Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra supports the Sleep Apnea feature | Image credit: PhoneArena
Modern smartwatches come with throngs of health and fitness features, which have become a necessity for customers these days. The ability to monitor blood pressure, heart rate and sleep just by wearing a smartwatch was something unthinkable several years ago.Samsung’s smartwatches are among the most advanced on the market, but there’s one issue that prevents them from being even better. Some of the health features that come with the Galaxy Watch series are not available in all countries because they haven’t yet been approved by the required authorities.
The Sleep Apnea feature on the Galaxy Watch series, which is available via the Samsung Health Monitor app, was initially released in 34 countries. That’s pretty low considering that the Galaxy Watch series is selling in just about every corner of the world.
The good news is Samsung is slowly rolling out the key health feature to more countries. Earlier today, the South Korean giant announced that Sleep Apnea has finally been approved by the European Conformity organization, allowing Samsung to expand the feature to 34 European markets.Because Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration and Singapore’s Health Sciences Authority approved the feature too, Sleep Apnea is coming to these countries as well.
The Sleep Apnea feature is available on Galaxy Watch 4 series and later models running Wear OS 5.0 or later and must be paired with a Galaxy smartphone running Android 12.0 or later.
The Sleep Apnea feature requires a Galaxy Watch 4 series or later model | Image credit: Samsung
With the addition of the new markets, the Sleep Apnea feature is now available in 70 markets, including Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kuwait, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norfolk Island, Norway, Oman, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Réunion, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Venezuela, Vietnam and Yemen.
The Sleep Apnea feature is meant to detect signs of moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea, which usually manifests in the form of significant breathing disruptions in adult users age 22 and older over a two-night monitoring period.
Naturally, Samsung designed this feature for on-demand use, so it’s not intended for those who have already been diagnosed with sleep apnea. Even so, Samsung warns Galaxy Watch users not to rely on this feature as a substitute for professional diagnosis or treatment by a qualified healthcare provider.
