Samsung’s Galaxy Watch Ultra is gearing up for a real follow-up this year, and expectations are naturally high. The original Galaxy Watch Ultra arrived in July 2024, then received only a small refresh in 2025. Now, two years on, the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 is expected to be the first truly meaningful successor in the lineup.
But a new leak hints that buyers may not get the same “flagship” experience in every region. In particular, Europe could end up with a less advanced version than the United States, especially when it comes to performance, connectivity, and future-facing features.
Early beta firmware spotted on Samsung’s servers points to two separate model numbers for the upcoming smartwatch: SM-L716 for the US and SM-L715F for Europe. Samsung’s naming patterns offer an important clue here. Model numbers ending in “5” typically signal an LTE variant, while “6” has often been associated with a more advanced modem setup. If this pattern holds, the US version is likely to ship with a Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear Elite platform paired with 5G, while the European model may stick with Samsung’s Exynos W1000 and a 4G modem.
On paper, these chips share a similar CPU layout: one ARM Cortex-A78 performance core and four Cortex-A55 efficiency cores. The difference comes down to how far the platform can be pushed. The Snapdragon Wear Elite is expected to run at noticeably higher clock speeds and may bring newer standards that matter for a premium wearable in 2026, including Wi‑Fi 6 and ultra-wideband (UWB). Qualcomm has also positioned its wearable chip around improved power efficiency and stronger graphics performance, which can translate into smoother animations, more responsive apps, and potentially better battery life depending on how Samsung tunes the software.
If the leak is accurate and Europe does receive the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 with the Exynos W1000 again, the upgrade could feel more incremental than exciting. For shoppers who were hoping the next Ultra model would be a major leap—especially those prioritizing next-gen wireless features and top-end performance—regional chip differences could become one of the biggest talking points around the Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 launch.
For now, nothing is official until Samsung announces final specifications. Still, the appearance of beta firmware strongly suggests the company is already testing multiple variants, making this a regional split worth watching closely as more Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 details emerge.
