Samsung’s upgraded sleep apnea feature has received approval from Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS). Instead of a simple yes-or-no result, it rates breathing disruptions as mild, occasional or frequent. In Korea, it reaches the Galaxy Ring from November, and older watches like the Galaxy Watch7 and Watch8 follow later.
What’s new in Samsung’s sleep apnea feature
US buyers have had this version since July, when it received FDA clearance and shipped on the Galaxy Watch9 and Watch Ultra2. The new step is Korean approval, which brings the upgrade to Samsung’s home market and to more devices there.
An AI algorithm estimates how often your breathing is disrupted per hour of sleep. Results are then sorted into three levels by frequency: mild, occasional or frequent. It runs through the Samsung Health Monitor app. To get a result, you need to record at least five hours of sleep twice within 10 days.
This is a screening tool, not a diagnosis, and Samsung says so itself. It flags signs of moderate-to-severe sleep apnea so you know to see a doctor. In Korea, it’s meant for adults 18 and over who haven’t already been diagnosed with sleep apnea. Samsung’s US release describes it as an over-the-counter tool for assessing risk in people not previously diagnosed.
Samsung cites US National Sleep Foundation figures: about 25% of US men and 10% of women have sleep apnea, and many don’t know it.
Which Galaxy watches get the upgrade in Korea
- From November: Galaxy Watch Ultra2, Galaxy Watch9 and Galaxy Ring
- Later, via software update: existing models running Wear OS 7.0 or later, such as the Galaxy Watch7 and Watch8
- Basic version only: other Galaxy Watch4 and later models on Wear OS 5.0 or above keep the original yes-or-no check
Samsung says the later expansion will arrive step by step. As of October 28, Samsung hasn’t said whether or when other countries get the Watch7 and Watch8 expansion. In the US, Samsung said in July that the Ring would get its FDA-cleared sleep apnea detection later this year.
The catch is the Wear OS 7.0 requirement. Owners of watches older than the Watch7 are left with the basic check, which only says whether signs are present. That group includes the Galaxy Watch4, which has reached the end of its software support. Watch9 and Ultra2 buyers are better placed, with five years of Wear OS updates promised.
Where the sleep apnea feature is approved
Samsung first won MFDS approval for the original feature as software as a medical device in September 2023. US FDA De Novo authorization followed in February 2024, and Brazil’s ANVISA approved it in 2025. The feature is now offered in 84 countries.
Sources: Samsung Newsroom Korea, Samsung Newsroom US
