Yes, The Samsung Galaxy Watch Has Fall Detection - Here's How To Use It

Smartwatches like the Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra have become must-wear accessories. From work to the beach, they go with us just about everywhere. Smartwatch manufacturers know this, and they've steadily incorporated features that have turned these devices into fully capable personal safety devices. One of the most important safety features Samsung Galaxy Watches come equipped with is fall detection. The fall detection feature debuted in 2020 on the Galaxy Watch3 and the Galaxy Watch Active2. If you fall while wearing a Galaxy Watch Active2, Galaxy Watch3, or any watch in the Wear OS line, your device will send out an SOS with your current location, notifying your emergency contacts immediately. You can also select an emergency number, like 911 in the U.S. or 112 in Europe, for it to call if it detects a fall.

The key to this feature is that it detects hard falls, so you don't have to worry about it going off every time you stumble as you go about your day. The watch's algorithms and sensors allow it to distinguish between a sudden fall and abrupt movements, like tripping while running up the stairs or the quick motion of flopping down on a couch. You can adjust the sensitivity of the fall detection feature, too, and decide if you want it to detect falls all of the time or only during workouts. While we often think of fall detection as something for seniors, whether you fall while hiking an isolated trail solo or slip on a wet bathroom floor and hit your head, it can be useful at any age. Just like a virtual medical ID could save your life in an emergency, your Samsung Galaxy Watch's fall detection feature could, too.

You should be running the latest version of your Galaxy Watch software to use fall detection, but the feature isn't enabled by default. Instead, you'll have to turn it on to take advantage of all it has to offer. While there are several apps worth downloading for your Samsung Watch, the Galaxy Wearable app is the one you need for the fall detection feature.

Follow these steps to turn on the fall detection feature: 

1. Open the Galaxy Wearable app on your phone.

2. Tap Watch settings, then select Safety and emergency.

3. Toggle the Hard fall detection button to On.

4. You must add at least one emergency contact to use this feature.

To add an emergency contact, open the Galaxy Wearable app and go to Watch Settings > Safety and Emergency > Emergency Contacts. If you've enabled fall detection on your watch and it detects a fall, an SOS pop-up will appear on the watch face, along with vibrations and a sound alert. You have 60 seconds from the time the alarm sounds to turn it off, or you can swipe to send the SOS alert immediately. You can adjust various hard fall detection settings from the Galaxy Wearable app. For example, you can enable "swipe to call," which requires you to swipe the call button when a hard fall is detected to prevent accidental calls. You can also select 911 (or the emergency number in your region) and have your watch call it automatically after five seconds when it detects a hard fall. If you only want your watch to detect falls during workouts, you can choose that option from this screen, or you can set it to always. Once you've done all of that, if you experience a hard fall, your Samsung Watch should detect it and notify both your emergency contacts and the emergency number you selected.