Samsung's Galaxy Watch 8 struggles with Android 16 beta

Technology Jul 16, 2025

If you've got a shiny new Galaxy Watch 8 or Watch 8 Classic and you're trying to pair it with a phone running the Android 16 beta (like the Pixel 8a or Pixel 9 Pro Fold), you might be running into some annoying issues.
The Galaxy Wearable app keeps crashing and can't download what it needs, so pairing just doesn't work right now.

Pairing works fine on stable Android releases

The good news? If your phone's on a stable version of Android, everything works smoothly, and you even get some cool upgrades like a faster interface and stacked tiles.
Samsung recommends using your watch with public (non-beta) Android releases for the best experience—so if you're thinking about buying one, double-check your phone's software first!