That is what Altoid maker thought. And canned tuna makers. And etch a sketch makers. And playing cards makers.. until one day Apple perfected the rectangles with rounded corners. The rest is history. :)
"The screen sports a high-enough resolution that it could easily accommodate more information if one designed apps to take advantage of it..."
For sure. That "Alyssa Abbott" msg in the pic could easily accommodate another line of text, maybe two. (Date/time are probably not needed for a notification you'll be seeing immediately, by design.)
Hopefully, the OS will be great because that's the first smartwatch that really looks good and even looks more intuitive than Apple Watch. As long as Samsung stay on top of Tizen and keep pushing, they might have the watch to get IMO.
I'm on the fence as to the benefit of Tizen. Having used a Gear S since launch, I'm far from impressed, particularly when it comes to third party support. I worry that too many OSes are cluttering the market at this stage and the net result might be harming wearables more than helping. After all, a developer skeptical about the return on their investment might be less inclined to deal with smaller portions of a modest market. In turn that would seem likely to reduce overall third party support. Less apps would seem likely to result in slower adoption rates.
I'm honestly not too worried about 3rd party support on a wearable OS. This isn't a smartphone OS. Wearables just needs to do a handful of "basic" tasks, and do them really well with maximum battery life IMHO.
I've read lots of articles saying how Tizen is (or at least was) much lighter on the battery than Android Wear. If that's true, I believe that alone is a win.
Can we stop reporting on stupid useless watches. I don't know a single person who wants one. Most peoples reactions when you tell them about them "Why would i get a watch when i have a phone..". Which is the right reaction to have. These useless items would of been great before cell phones..but they already are extinct.
I would take a watch with phone function + bluetooth headset vs filling my pocket with a huge damn 5.5" brick any day. Unfortunately you can't cheat physics... needs more advanced battery tech to be possible.
This may be hard to believe but the entire tech world isn't based on your preferences or beliefs, just because you and your friends aren't interested in them doesn't mean no-one else is.
I have a smart watch myself and know a few others that do plus when I show people how the watch works people are generally interested mainly because it can be much more discrete than just a phone on its own. When I have a notification on the phone, no-one hears anything as I can have the phone completely on silent and I get a vibrate on the watch then instead of taking my phone out of my pocket, unlocking and checking the notification I just glance at the watch.
The new Samsung looks a good step forward for size and weight as most of the current devices are too bulky for my wrist, clearly some way to go for batterylife though. I chose a Garmin Vivoactive for its small size, weight, superb batterylife and the always on screen. It's a pretty basic device compared to others in that it doesn't really run much in the way of useful applications but in practice I find it's useful just to have the notifications pushed to the watch.
Face it, these watches are catered to geeks. Its no surprise that are a niche market considering they don't sell well. Its pretty bad when retailers that did have displays of smart watches switched them back on last month for Fitbit items.
Reporting on watches on anandtech is like reporting on new calculators.
Weird. It looks really good to me, EXCEPT the rotating bezel. I understand this control scheme is much better, but still. Maybe it has something to do with this particular implementation.
It will be fun for a while to watch sheeple try to degrade this, anyway.
In terms of smart watches, I somehow still prefer Pebble. The screen is not as fantastic, but its functional and don't drain battery. Also, the OS is simple without the clutter of Android, iOS or even Tizen.
We’ve updated our terms. By continuing to use the site and/or by logging into your account, you agree to the Site’s updated Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
31 Comments
Back to Article
MatthewTavares - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
Check out my prediction of this back in september when the apple watch came out:https://twitter.com/MatthewTavares/status/51051982...
whiteiphoneproblems - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
*golf clap*Samus - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
Too bad you don't have the business sense Steve Jobs and didn't pull a patent.lopri - Sunday, September 6, 2015 - link
I am pretty sure it is patented. So is Apple's watch "crown." Meaning, no other OEMs can replicate these "innovations."It showcases the pathetic nature of U.S. patent system.
Gigaplex - Monday, September 7, 2015 - link
I'm not sure how this could qualify as patentable as there is plenty of prior art of other watches using a rotating bezel.lopri - Monday, September 7, 2015 - link
That is what Altoid maker thought. And canned tuna makers. And etch a sketch makers. And playing cards makers.. until one day Apple perfected the rectangles with rounded corners. The rest is history. :)GTRagnarok - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
The Gear S2 is definitely a looker. Probably the first smartwatch I would consider buying.GTRagnarok - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
Gear S2 Classic, that is.jospoortvliet - Sunday, September 6, 2015 - link
I personally prefer the normal one, looks - wise. Actually so much I can see myself buy one.SunnyNW - Monday, September 7, 2015 - link
The Qualcomm website and others i had seen show the s2 having a snapdragon 400 am i missing something....can you please confirm?whiteiphoneproblems - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
"The screen sports a high-enough resolution that it could easily accommodate more information if one designed apps to take advantage of it..."For sure. That "Alyssa Abbott" msg in the pic could easily accommodate another line of text, maybe two. (Date/time are probably not needed for a notification you'll be seeing immediately, by design.)
seanlumly - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
Gorgeous. Simply gorgeous. And I'm not opposed to the BSD-derived TizenOS either. I may actually get this smartwatch!seanlumly - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
Whoops.. Linux-derived TizenOS. My mistake!FunBunny2 - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
That's OK. Everybody knows that Apple owns all BSD derived OS. :)Gigaplex - Monday, September 7, 2015 - link
That better be a really bad joke, as it's not even remotely close to being true.MikhailT - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
Hopefully, the OS will be great because that's the first smartwatch that really looks good and even looks more intuitive than Apple Watch. As long as Samsung stay on top of Tizen and keep pushing, they might have the watch to get IMO.lilmoe - Friday, September 4, 2015 - link
Don't worry. Tizen is well and alive, and Sammy intends to keep it that way for a good while.HHChadW - Sunday, September 6, 2015 - link
I'm on the fence as to the benefit of Tizen. Having used a Gear S since launch, I'm far from impressed, particularly when it comes to third party support. I worry that too many OSes are cluttering the market at this stage and the net result might be harming wearables more than helping. After all, a developer skeptical about the return on their investment might be less inclined to deal with smaller portions of a modest market. In turn that would seem likely to reduce overall third party support. Less apps would seem likely to result in slower adoption rates.lilmoe - Monday, September 7, 2015 - link
I'm honestly not too worried about 3rd party support on a wearable OS. This isn't a smartphone OS. Wearables just needs to do a handful of "basic" tasks, and do them really well with maximum battery life IMHO.I've read lots of articles saying how Tizen is (or at least was) much lighter on the battery than Android Wear. If that's true, I believe that alone is a win.
Daniel Egger - Saturday, September 5, 2015 - link
Actually I would disagree that the Urbane looks like a weapon on your wrist; from the photos it actually *looks* like a better fit than the Gear S2.Lord of the Bored - Saturday, September 5, 2015 - link
But that Huawei is HILARIOUSLY thick.Daniel Egger - Saturday, September 5, 2015 - link
I totally agree. ;)imaheadcase - Saturday, September 5, 2015 - link
Can we stop reporting on stupid useless watches. I don't know a single person who wants one. Most peoples reactions when you tell them about them "Why would i get a watch when i have a phone..". Which is the right reaction to have. These useless items would of been great before cell phones..but they already are extinct.wavetrex - Saturday, September 5, 2015 - link
I would take a watch with phone function + bluetooth headset vs filling my pocket with a huge damn 5.5" brick any day.Unfortunately you can't cheat physics... needs more advanced battery tech to be possible.
Johnmcl7 - Sunday, September 6, 2015 - link
This may be hard to believe but the entire tech world isn't based on your preferences or beliefs, just because you and your friends aren't interested in them doesn't mean no-one else is.I have a smart watch myself and know a few others that do plus when I show people how the watch works people are generally interested mainly because it can be much more discrete than just a phone on its own. When I have a notification on the phone, no-one hears anything as I can have the phone completely on silent and I get a vibrate on the watch then instead of taking my phone out of my pocket, unlocking and checking the notification I just glance at the watch.
The new Samsung looks a good step forward for size and weight as most of the current devices are too bulky for my wrist, clearly some way to go for batterylife though. I chose a Garmin Vivoactive for its small size, weight, superb batterylife and the always on screen. It's a pretty basic device compared to others in that it doesn't really run much in the way of useful applications but in practice I find it's useful just to have the notifications pushed to the watch.
imaheadcase - Sunday, September 6, 2015 - link
Face it, these watches are catered to geeks. Its no surprise that are a niche market considering they don't sell well. Its pretty bad when retailers that did have displays of smart watches switched them back on last month for Fitbit items.Reporting on watches on anandtech is like reporting on new calculators.
wavetrex - Saturday, September 5, 2015 - link
Sweeeeeeet...Ok, so the look & feel is resolved.
Make it a 3-day average battery life (to cover a full weekend out) and +1 customer for smartwatches.
Michael Bay - Sunday, September 6, 2015 - link
Weird. It looks really good to me, EXCEPT the rotating bezel. I understand this control scheme is much better, but still. Maybe it has something to do with this particular implementation.It will be fun for a while to watch sheeple try to degrade this, anyway.
KPOM - Sunday, September 6, 2015 - link
How easy is it to change the bands and will they have a women's version?Tedtalker1 - Sunday, September 6, 2015 - link
Which smartwatch would Dick Tracy want?watzupken - Monday, September 7, 2015 - link
In terms of smart watches, I somehow still prefer Pebble. The screen is not as fantastic, but its functional and don't drain battery. Also, the OS is simple without the clutter of Android, iOS or even Tizen.