Samsung officially takes the cake when it comes to launching smartwatches: It just announced the
Samsung Gear S
, its billionth smartwatch device launching this year. The Gear S has a few hallmarks that set it apart from the crowd, however, including a curved Super AMOLED display, which has a 2-inch diagonal measurement and 360×480 resolution, and a built-in 3G modem, which can let the wearable receive notification and messages, and even make and receive calls without any smartphone involved.
The Gear S is essentially a wrist-mounted smartphone, which is not something new to the industry. Samsung’s latest effort is Tizen-powered, like its Samsung Gear 2 and Gear Neo devices, and also has built-in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity, in addition to its cellular radio. The Gear S’s hardware design might be its more impressive feature, as we’re finally starting to see displays that wrap around the contours of the wrist, rather than sticking out as a traditional flat surface.
On the software side, the Gear S has HERE navigation provided by Nokia, as well as Spritz speed-reading. It also includes GPS sensors, an accelerometer, gyroscope, compass, UV detection, barometer and a heart rate monitor. IN terms of specs, it’s packing 4GB of internal storage and 512MB of RAM, plus a dual-core 1.0 GHz processor. It has IP67 dust and water resistance, and a relatively small 300mAh battery, which Samsung says will still manage to get it 2 days of usage under normal conditions.
Samsung is also launching the Gear Circle headset alongside the new wearable, which offers Bluetooth connectivity, as well as a vibration motor to provide silent notifications, and a mic for chatting as well as receiving voice commands.
The Gear S will be available starting in October, though pricing hasn’t been announced. Regardless of what Samsung asks consumers to pay for this device, it begs the question: How many smartwatches from one company can consumers stand? Especially one based on Tizen, now that Google has thrown its weight behind Android Wear?
