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I put a little review together after using this thing for past couple of days. Basically it is on its way back to Best Buy...
here it goes:
I owned first Gear as well as Gear S in the past and quite frankly Samsung is going backwards with their watches.
There is one Pro in this one - it is good looking, I like the design.
Well - 1/2 point for the rotating bezel. It is kind of cool but I am so used to the touch controls that barely used it.
The rest of review is pretty much all Cons:
1. Lack of speaker - ok, some say it looks silly to talk to the wrist but sometimes it was useful. Why removed if all previous watches hat one?
2. Lack of apps - seriously, there is NO useful app available for this watch. I had plenty of apps on Gear S and none of them is re-written for the round watch.
3. Vibrations are barely sensed - I had it set to strong and long and miss half of the notifications
4. Screen decides on its own if it wants to light up when the notification comes. Not reliable at all
5. Previous models had option to come back to the last used app after the screen turns off, very useful for timer, stopwatch, music control. This cames back to the watch screen always. Try to skip the tracks from the watch when you have to turn the dial to the music app every time.....
6. No auto brightness. Seriously? Go out - make the screen brighter by hand. Come back, dim it by hand...
7. Straps.... out of 4 halves I found in the box (2 to make a long strap and 2 to make a short one) I was able to attach 3 of them, the 4th would not fit. And I guarantee you that after couple replacements the mount will break....
8. No sleep patterns tracking on the watch
9. Battery - that's another screw up. Samsung advertises 2-3 days... Right...I liek to have the watch set to always on. Gear S had about 40% left at the end of the day. This garbage had 18% at 11pm last night....
10. No integration with Google Now - no cards, no reminders to be set... I thought Samsung finally understood that S-Voice cannot compete with any assistant available... I guess they are too stupid to get that
11. No integration with Google Maps - Here maps are great but on the watch it is a disaster, completely useless, slow, chews through the battery.
12. No way to choose if one wears it on the left or right wrist hence when you wear it on the right the buttons are above the watch and you cover the face of it while pressing.
13. no night clock mode while charging - all you see while being charged is a black screen.
There is probably more flaws but I either did not discover them yet or do not remember. Generally the watch is going back to Best Buy and I will wait for Moto 360 Sport or LG Urbane 2
And with Samsung phones going backwards as well (S6, Note 5) Samsung lost a customer (I own Note 4 now and I had Note 1, 2 and 3 in the past)
Nice review, I have the classic and love it , all of your cons are personal preference,not that something is wrong,no speakers,I hope you knew that before buying it,you must be the person that buy a green car and then says it is garbage because is green ?
well, speaker missing is just one , I would have accepted only this.
All other flaws combined are the tipping points.
4. Screen decides on its own if it wants to light up when the notification comes. Not reliable at all
Mine doesn't even light up at all when a notification comes in hahahahahaha
But most of what you said I do agree with. I actually came from an android watch (Huawei Watch) and I think I will be going back to the Huawei
The only things I feel the s2 are better at than the huawei is longer battery life, automatic light adjustment and better water resistance
I feel like most people who are okay with the shortcomings on the s2 have never used an android watch before
Well, you need to enable screen on upon notification in settings.
Funny thing i never had android wear, i had pebble for 3 days , garbage, then i had gear 1 for a year and gear s for another year. No shortcomings in both cases. Except i was pissed whennthey removed camera... This model is a disaster comparing to the previous ones. Somethimg like no sd card in their latest phones...
I don't buy stuff just for looks, otherwise I'd be fine as it is pretty indeed but the functionality is very limited.
Samsung will not rest easy tonight knowing they lost your loyal support as a customer. I can only try an comfort them with the knowledge that they gained one in me.
I havd learned over the years that they dk nkt give a s...t about the customers after the moneybis collected at the cash register. I don't think there is any company with worse customer support.
As long as they were making innovative products i was willing to cope with that. Now they are becoming apple, charge premium price for mediocre products in shiny cases
Not sure why you think there's no auto brightness. There actually is, unless you keep it at max. Then it can't go any brighter. I keep mine at 4, and it gets way bright anytime outside (in sunny Texas). Agree that it doesn't dim lower than your setting if you are in very dark place.
kufel said:
I put a little review together after using this thing for past couple of days. Basically it is on its way back to Best Buy...
here it goes:
I owned first Gear as well as Gear S in the past and quite frankly Samsung is going backwards with their watches.
There is one Pro in this one - it is good looking, I like the design.
Well - 1/2 point for the rotating bezel. It is kind of cool but I am so used to the touch controls that barely used it.
The rest of review is pretty much all Cons:
1. Lack of speaker - ok, some say it looks silly to talk to the wrist but sometimes it was useful. Why removed if all previous watches hat one?
2. Lack of apps - seriously, there is NO useful app available for this watch. I had plenty of apps on Gear S and none of them is re-written for the round watch.
3. Vibrations are barely sensed - I had it set to strong and long and miss half of the notifications
4. Screen decides on its own if it wants to light up when the notification comes. Not reliable at all
5. Previous models had option to come back to the last used app after the screen turns off, very useful for timer, stopwatch, music control. This comes back to the watch screen always. Try to skip the tracks from the watch when you have to turn the dial to the music app every time.....
6. No auto brightness. Seriously? Go out - make the screen brighter by hand. Come back, dim it by hand...
7. Straps.... out of 4 halves I found in the box (2 to make a long strap and 2 to make a short one) I was able to attach 3 of them, the 4th would not fit. And I guarantee you that after couple replacements the mount will break....
8. No sleep patterns tracking on the watch
9. Battery - that's another screw up. Samsung advertises 2-3 days... Right...I liek to have the watch set to always on. Gear S had about 40% left at the end of the day. This garbage had 18% at 11pm last night....
10. No integration with Google Now - no cards, no reminders to be set... I thought Samsung finally understood that S-Voice cannot compete with any assistant available... I guess they are too stupid to get that
11. No integration with Google Maps - Here maps are great but on the watch it is a disaster, completely useless, slow, chews through the battery.
12. No way to choose if one wears it on the left or right wrist hence when you wear it on the right the buttons are above the watch and you cover the face of it while pressing.
13. no night clock mode while charging - all you see while being charged is a black screen.
There is probably more flaws but I either did not discover them yet or do not remember. Generally the watch is going back to Best Buy and I will wait for Moto 360 Sport or LG Urbane 2
And with Samsung phones going backwards as well (S6, Note 5) Samsung lost a customer (I own Note 4 now and I had Note 1, 2 and 3 in the past)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow have you owned a smart watch before? I currently have a Moto360 and a Gear 2 Neo along with the Gear S2.........
1) 90% of smart watches don't have a speaker and the last one Samsung made with a speaker is the GEAR S which is 3G and has a speaker..... The Gear S2 has a 3g version and it has a speaker but they also have bluetooth versions without the speaker. So they have not went backwards they have added more options (you clearly didn't get the right model S2 if you wanted a speaker). Every other watch on the market besides the apple watch right now don't have a speaker.
2) yes watch came out 2 weeks ago and the apps for the old watches suck and the new round watch ofcourse have not even matched that yet. I'm not shocked here as the apps don't all appear as fast as the device is put into service which its 2 weeks old. Andriod Wear is way ahead and always will on apps. Tizen can't compete.
3) I don't have a problem with this and feels the same as the NEO, but the speaker on the correct version you should have got will help this. Your fault.
4) Not sure what you mean I have no problem with this. But is a huge issue on moto360 as most of the time it auto disconnects.
5) never tested or used this myself.
6) Never had this on any of my watches I leave then on full brightness along with my phone. If In a movie theater I might either turn it off or dim it manually then on both. Maybe its lack of a light sensor on the watches due to space and battery life. Do any watches have this option?
7) I have tested the shorter bands for my wife but it came installed with the long ones and that's all I used. I had no problems installing any of the bands. Having Samsung bands is a bummer in the sport but you have options on the classic. The 360 I have have changed out bands, the neo I have has stock bands.
8) I never used this on any watch and usually charge it during this time. I'm sure this back to app problem.
9) Battery..... Ahaha wait until you try the Moto360 or others. the 2-3 day as advertised it true, but it's not when you running everything including your "Always on". Moto360 without wifi (sucks and doesn't work right anyways unlike the s2) and ofcourse the moto 360 doesn't have always on either, it still don't make it from 7am to 9pm at night. It dies around 12 hour mark. 7 to 7 is about it. I had to charge it when I got home from work in order for it to last me when I went out at night. The NEO last me 3 day weekends when I went away for the weekend. I would say that without always on and wifi turned off I'm either right at or maybe just shy of 3 days on this gear s2. For a smart watch it's probley the best life on the market when you compair nfc, wifi and what other options you have turned on.
10) & 11) Don't use either on the watch so I'm unsure or have no positive or negative comments on those. I don't have google NOW and maps I do on the Phone.
12)Unsure what you mean, I always wear mine on the left hand so maybe I missed it, but the NEO, and moto360 are the same I never saw options. Hard buttons on outside are same for moto 360 neo only had one at bottom. When I rotate the bezel on the S2 I won't block the screen at all unlike the others. When I press on the screen, yes I block a good chunk of the tiny screen with my fat fingers.
13) I also think they should fix this and I think it will be. My moto360 shines on the charger, but it spends alot of time on there so I guess they had to dress it up a bit.
You never said what smart watch you had before but implied it was either a Gear 2 or Gear S as those are the only 2 options (out of 5 or so) they made with a speaker. I think for one you bought the wrong model of the Gear S2 seeing you want a speaker and louder notifications. I also think you have an unreal expectation of battery life on any smart watch. They are not like a FITBIT made to sleep with for 4 days before having to recharge. And generally all my watches go on the charger every night no matter if battery life is 1-5 days, same goes for my phone. moto360 is just a bit annoying to not even make it from when I wake up until I go to bed.
LG Urbane 2 will be a great watch (I'm gonna say the best out specs and option wise, not size or cost unless you mean big and expensive) when it comes out, but it is not in the same class as the moto360 sport or the basic S2. It's huge, cost alot more and has way more features. It's closer to the S2 3G (having cell service, speaker and everything) but will be priced higher then both. Your also comparing to sport watches to that which is opposite of a sport looking watch.
Tizen vs. Andriod wear is a huge problem or decision to make for which watch you go with.
Tizen works way better and battery life is better.
Tizen Just doesn't have the backing or support of the users and probley never will so it's always gonna lack apps and there for some software wows.
Andriod wear has way better watch faces and apps.
Andriod Wear is finicky, clumsy and hard to use. Try checking text messages when you get 2 or 3 in. And you can't see a bubble or chat list like on your phone. You can on tizen. On the moto I was forced to use hangouts for a bit to try and get my pictures and read the text if I got more then 1 at a time.
I knew this when I picked up the S2 having both a tizen and Android Wear device before. For me function/reliability just took first row over features. Automation on watch face was cool vs. what I have now on my Gears. But crappy user interface and swipe left for this right for this up for this, got confusing and everyone gets lost in it. My Wifi on the s2 has been tested with my watch at work and phone at home to work. Wifi info (SSID and Password) doesn't get set on the watch with S2 it automatically grabs that info from your synced phone. Moto360 doesn't do that and the Wifi sucks and never works. Even the Bluetooth keeps dropping lately.
kufel said:
I put a little review together after using this thing for past couple of days. Basically it is on its way back to Best Buy...
here it goes:
I owned first Gear as well as Gear S in the past and quite frankly Samsung is going backwards with their watches.
There is one Pro in this one - it is good looking, I like the design.
Well - 1/2 point for the rotating bezel. It is kind of cool but I am so used to the touch controls that barely used it.
The rest of review is pretty much all Cons:
1. Lack of speaker - ok, some say it looks silly to talk to the wrist but sometimes it was useful. Why removed if all previous watches hat one?
2. Lack of apps - seriously, there is NO useful app available for this watch. I had plenty of apps on Gear S and none of them is re-written for the round watch.
3. Vibrations are barely sensed - I had it set to strong and long and miss half of the notifications
4. Screen decides on its own if it wants to light up when the notification comes. Not reliable at all
5. Previous models had option to come back to the last used app after the screen turns off, very useful for timer, stopwatch, music control. This cames back to the watch screen always. Try to skip the tracks from the watch when you have to turn the dial to the music app every time.....
6. No auto brightness. Seriously? Go out - make the screen brighter by hand. Come back, dim it by hand...
7. Straps.... out of 4 halves I found in the box (2 to make a long strap and 2 to make a short one) I was able to attach 3 of them, the 4th would not fit. And I guarantee you that after couple replacements the mount will break....
8. No sleep patterns tracking on the watch
9. Battery - that's another screw up. Samsung advertises 2-3 days... Right...I liek to have the watch set to always on. Gear S had about 40% left at the end of the day. This garbage had 18% at 11pm last night....
10. No integration with Google Now - no cards, no reminders to be set... I thought Samsung finally understood that S-Voice cannot compete with any assistant available... I guess they are too stupid to get that
11. No integration with Google Maps - Here maps are great but on the watch it is a disaster, completely useless, slow, chews through the battery.
12. No way to choose if one wears it on the left or right wrist hence when you wear it on the right the buttons are above the watch and you cover the face of it while pressing.
13. no night clock mode while charging - all you see while being charged is a black screen.
There is probably more flaws but I either did not discover them yet or do not remember. Generally the watch is going back to Best Buy and I will wait for Moto 360 Sport or LG Urbane 2
And with Samsung phones going backwards as well (S6, Note 5) Samsung lost a customer (I own Note 4 now and I had Note 1, 2 and 3 in the past)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I picked up a S2 Classic and then returned it for the regular S2. I have been using it for a few days now and agree with a few of your observations. I am coming from the following: LG Urbane, Gear 2, Gear 1, G-Shock,
- I miss the speaker! I am disappointed that Sammy decided to move it to a higher price/feature tier. I would not mind the extra $50 for the device but I refuse to give AT&T $10 a month for the privilege of using it. I have yet to hear if the 3G model will work for calls via Bluetooth with no cell service activated. I would consider purchasing one without contract if so.
- Apps have never been a deciding factor for me on a watch. I mostly need media controls and notifications. the built in apps more than cover what i need.
- Vibrations seem OK to me.
- My screen response is great. I feel like it senses when I rotate my wrist away as well as towards me. It goes off as soon as I rotate away. Probably a great battery saver.
- I most definitely agree that the option to remain on the last app used is a big missing feature. It is the first thing I looked for when setting it up. This can be easily added and we should all contact Samsung and let them know we miss it. I would also like the volume controls to be on the same page as the rest of the media controls. It is very satisfying to turn the dial to adjust the volume however.
- I very seldom adjust brightness and tend to remain at 6 or 7.
- I like the look of the straps on the S2. Very integrated. S2 classic just didn't work for me. I hope some good alternate material straps become available from other vendors.
- I am too busy sleeping to be tracking my sleeping.
- My battery has been good. I use a watch face that is always on and does not use the minimalist watch hands of the built in faces. I have had about 50% left after each day of 4am to 9pm use.
- I would like Google voice and maps. S-Voice works pretty well for me for most tasks.
- I wear it on the left hand as God intended. heh heh
- I would also like a clock mode. This could be added as well.
The user interface is way better than Android Wear. I gave my wife the LG Urbane and I have spent way to much time showing and reminding her how to do things. It is not intuitive...
No sleeptracking is really a desaster!!!
This is just nit picking, you knew the watch didn't have a speaker before buying it or at least you should have, and either way you want a speaker go get the 3G model. Fixed.
I enjoy apps as much as the next guy, but really? What apps could you really want for this round tiny screen? The apps that came out for the Gear S I downloaded and never used again, because apps on a watch are almost always pointless unless it's music or fitness related.
Bands? Get the Classic, again another simple fix that Samsung gave you an option for, or wait until they release new bands for the sport. Not really a big deal, at least they are swappable.
My Gear S2 light up brighter and dims automatically when needed with no problem.
Battery life is awesome, from 8am to usually around 10 or so (tonight I put it on the charger at 12am) and I always have about 78%-82% left. Screen on 2, watch face not always on (wrist flick works great) tons of notifications, weather updates about every hour. I've owned every gear so far, this thing is a real battery sipper.
But I do agree on the vibration, it's definitely weak, but so far that's the only major drawback, I'm sure it's due to smaller hardware so the watch stayed thin.
And I do miss my speaker function, but the added thickness of the 3G model turned me off.
Overall:
I personally enjoy Samsungs smartwatches for the built in functionality and especially with the S2 it's looks aesthetically. Any use able functional app available is a bonus, but notifications, music controls, health tracking, keeps me on track with my schedule and homework calender at a quick glance etc. That's plenty for me even with a $300 price tag, but I used to buy expensive normal watches too.
Bottom line people are NEVER happy, it's never enough, imagine trying to design something that pleases everyone .... impossible. And with owning every Gear to date I've seen people literally ***** about every add on and take away, people *****ed about the speaker and how it was stupid to talk into your wrist, then people ***** when the option is gone, same with the camera and IR blaster ... insane.
People *****ed about Samsungs cradles and stuff for charging, so they went wireless. People ***** that it doesn't work with any other qi chargers.
People *****ed about only offering certain styles, Samsung gave you the Classic option, people ***** it doesn't have a speaker.
Samsung told people what these watches do and are capable of a month before it even hit shelves. People bought it anyways, people *****.
There's always Android wear watches, if you don't mind ugly hardware and ugly interface. Has apps though ... for whatever you apps you think you'll use on your wrist.
Side note. I just sold my Gear S that had a monthly contract, thinking "oh man, I'll leave my phone at home now" nah, never happened, never even came off blutooth, you'll never replace having your phone handy, even if a watch can do everything the phone can, would you really want to use it on a small ass screen? Nah.
Dmac1984 said:
This is just nit picking, you knew the watch didn't have a speaker before buying it or at least you should have, and either way you want a speaker go get the 3G model. Fixed.
Bottom line people are NEVER happy, it's never enough, imagine trying to design something that pleases everyone .... impossible. And with owning every Gear to date I've seen people literally ***** about every add on and take away, people *****ed about the speaker and how it was stupid to talk into your wrist, then people ***** when the option is gone, same with the camera and IR blaster ... insane.
People *****ed about Samsungs cradles and stuff for charging, so they went wireless. People ***** that it doesn't work with any other qi chargers.
People *****ed about only offering certain styles, Samsung gave you the Classic option, people ***** it doesn't have a speaker.
Samsung told people what these watches do and are capable of a month before it even hit shelves. People bought it anyways, people *****.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You hit it right on the head; people are NEVER happy, and instead of focusing on the positive aspects of things, they search out and dwell on things they dont like..
Can't wait to get the 3g version in the next few days!
My pros and cons:
Pros:
- A very attractive normal watch design (Just can't warm up to Hwawei or Moto360 designs. Forget Apple and others.) Most people don't even know that I'm wearing a smart watch!!!
- Rotary bezel interface(far superior to touch control alone!)
- Standard 20 mm strap interface (changing straps to other good looking ones can be a joy! (i.e. ceramic strap or brown leather strap))
- Battery life (While I wish it could be better so that I can keep the full screen on all the time, it's better than others)
- Default apps work really well and smooth (This is more important to me than having many 3rd party apps available that I don't really use. I have a capable Note 4 for those.)
- Light weight and appearance of thin watch (Don't like the cylinder design of Hwawei and Moto360)
- Relatively reasonable price (when compared to other premium ones available. I think $250 would be a more ideal price, though.)
Cons:
- Weak vibration (If vibration was stronger, I don't think I'll miss the lack of speaker.)
- Lack of speaker (I miss this for rare occasions when I would like to answer the call without picking up the phone. Not a must but nice to have feature. Also this can be a good alarm instead of my phone alarm. With this feature, I can keep my phone on vibration or mute at all times! I know you can get the 3G model with this feature, but I like the Classic design better.)
- S-Voice ( I don't really need Google Now but the supported functions of S-Voice can work more reliably to make this a better watch.)
Other items that you pointed out are minor issues for me mostly.
As for me, the pros definitely outweigh the cons on Gear S2 Classic watch.
I'm really enjoying the use of my Classic now despite some cons.
Overall stunning display, great UI, battery seems good, great I can respond to WhatsApp now, but feel it is small for me and i would have liked at least a speaker, even if it can’t take calls, but to playback audio without a headset or phone. So sadly I will be returning it.
Been using the watch for 5 days now. I have owned the Gear Neo, then a very short spell with a Sony, also an Apple watch (well setup for a sibling) and finally the Gear 2 loved it and stayed with that for over a year and sold it as a pre-empt to the S2, but as poor app wise it was it did the basics very well and battery life was an easy 5 days.
Moving onto the S2, must admit it just lacks the premium feel, yes it looks bloody great, but it lacks weight and that metal feel, that are the elements that define premium. I know some want the light weight feel, but each to their own.
PROS
- Great looking
- Charger, love it magnet pull that ensures a fit and charging;
- PIN lock when off wrist, annoying at first then really appreciate this as a neat security feature;
- UI is very sleek and nice;
- Vibration is very good, stronger than my Gear 2, I like it, set mine to weak and long.
CONS
- On the small side, feels like my smallest watch and I have average wrists;
- Strap 20mm is too narrow and the strap feels cheap to me;
- Strap length, the long strap is too long and sticks out, the small one must be for midgets;
- Steps are wrong, I set mine to show the phone steps as the master, but still wrong;
- Round screen, pain to read messages that are a little long, need to use the bezel to get in centre to fit.
- Bezel not got the hang of this and find it needs a nice solid click with each turn;
- Notifications – I get a few and check my watch later under notifications and there is nothing, assumed as Gear 2 there’s a log;
- Charging was slow (3hrs from flat);
- Speaker – I feel for the odd convenience, or feedback and playing audio, I really missed this feature.
May I just say - waaaa. The watch looks great, functions well with time, notifications, health apps, and many other things I don't actually use. Batter life is adequate - not up to Pebble but looks better. I can read it in direct sunlight, its water proof, and its growing. As to apps, its an extension of my phone! I use apps there not on my watch so that's fine. Only negative I have is the weak vibration. That's it, at least right now. Only had it 6 days.
so far, so good, everything worked right out of the box once I called in and made sure my sim card was active, and what my phone number options were.
notifications seem fine, I am getting vibrate and sound for my notifications, so the combo of the two help out the weak vibrations
Sound is surprisingly good for a watch speaker, and making and taking calls is a breeze; you dont even have to hold the watch near your mouth to be heard loudly and clearly from the other party.
running a rooted AOSIP rom on my Nexus 6, and so far, everything samsung software wise works pretty well.
Yeap, got LG Urbane 2nd Edition with LTE. Happy now. Big screen. Thousands of apps. Everything works.No more Samsung garbage.
kufel said:
Yeap, got LG Urbane 2nd Edition with LTE. Happy now. Everything works.No more Samsung garbage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
lets see,
you cant use a bluetooth headset with it to make or receive phone calls
you can't stream music in any way with it
you cant use google voice through your headset
you can't use GPS independently without your phone connected
you cant use any map program without your phone connected
You still think EVERYTHING works better than a Gear S2?
kufel said:
Yeap, got LG Urbane 2nd Edition with LTE. Happy now. Big screen. Thousands of apps. Everything works.No more Samsung garbage.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol whatever floats your boat. Personally I don't like that lg built some necessary tech right into the watch strap. Plus the watch looks premium and somewhat classy but the strap is sporty...weird combination that you can't change even if you wanted to. Also way too big and bulky for my liking. Personal taste of course, but that's my point: what's perfect for one might be garbage for another
It's coming. In fact, if LG hadn't run into a problem with some custom hardware, the Urbane Second Edition, with full 3G/4G/LTE capability, would be in direct competition with the S2 right now.
My Huawei AW watch has a speaker. So it's ready to become a BT tethered calling device when that's released. It won't be long before AW watch manufacturers release a full LTE version like the S2.
So, when that happens, what does the S2 have over AW? One thing for sure is a better UI, including the clever rotating bezel. However, in terms of any other really significant features/capabilities, AW leaves the G2 in the dust.
I've got a G2, and it's my "daily driver" at the moment, but only because I can make and recieve calls on it. The 3G is simply an extension of that for me, but not critical; it's a nice feature.
Unless Samsung really steps up to the plate and fixes some serious problems with the G2 (S-Voice accuracy and capability tops the list), I'll be going back to AW when I can use my watch for calls.
Don't get me wrong... I really like the S2. But the edge it has right now -- UI design and 3G -- will evaporate quickly probably this year, and the main deal-breaker will once again be app availability and developer support. Something Samsung doesn't have a prayer of competing with Android on, especially considering the apparently meager resources and investment they're making to compete.
dwallersv said:
It's coming. In fact, if LG hadn't run into a problem with some custom hardware, the Urbane Second Edition, with full 3G/4G/LTE capability, would be in direct competition with the S2 right now.
My Huawei AW watch has a speaker. So it's ready to become a BT tethered calling device when that's released. It won't be long before AW watch manufacturers release a full LTE version like the S2.
So, when that happens, what does the S2 have over AW? One thing for sure is a better UI, including the clever rotating bezel. However, in terms of any other really significant features/capabilities, AW leaves the G2 in the dust.
I've got a G2, and it's my "daily driver" at the moment, but only because I can make and recieve calls on it. The 3G is simply an extension of that for me, but not critical; it's a nice feature.
Unless Samsung really steps up to the plate and fixes some serious problems with the G2 (S-Voice accuracy and capability tops the list), I'll be going back to AW when I can use my watch for calls.
Don't get me wrong... I really like the S2. But the edge it has right now -- UI design and 3G -- will evaporate quickly probably this year, and the main deal-breaker will once again be app availability and developer support. Something Samsung doesn't have a prayer of competing with Android on, especially considering the apparently meager resources and investment they're making to compete.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed. I love my Gear S2 3G but I would ditch it quickly once AW watches with speakers & 3G/4G and a true always-on mode come out with compelling designs.
Sent from my SM-G925P using Tapatalk
I really miss the call function from my Gear 2 - once again Samsung has a great feature and drops the ball only for a competitor to pick it and improve it
If Samsung keeps making devices as compelling as the S2 I will hang around. They need to keep building off the app market they started with the S2 so it becomes robust and not an issue for future iterations. The only other thing I feel needs real improvement is S-voice. Pretty happy overall with the S2, could see myself grabbing another one in a couple years.
obsydian said:
I really miss the call function from my Gear 2 - once again Samsung has a great feature and drops the ball only for a competitor to pick it and improve it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why not just get the 3g version if you wanted to make calls on the Gear S2?
That version is not for sale in my region and i really just wanted the same basic function as the Gear 2 - as in not 3G but the ability to take calls on the watch (tethered to the mobile via BT or WIFI)
IMO I think it will survive, just for the simple fact that there has to be more than just me that thinks making a phone call from the watch is silly..... gimmicky, maybe a bit "cool".....but still silly.
Me personally would not buy A Watch that has that option, I can only imagine the battery life. I see these "smart watches" as an extension of my phone, not a replacement. YOMV
bamfsig45 said:
IMO I think it will survive, just for the simple fact that there has to be more than just me that thinks making a phone call from the watch is silly..... gimmicky, maybe a bit "cool".....but still silly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are certainly more than you (indeed, I've encountered many )
However, keep in mind there are a lot of people out there. And there are plenty like me too, that not only do not find it silly, but find it a very useful, helpful feature in their lives. Indeed, this was the capability that tipped me over into spending the $$ and getting the S2, just a month after dropping bank on a Huawei AW watch (which I still have, and am not ready yet to give up; it has a speaker, so when calling capability comes to AW, it should be supported on the Huawei).
I haven't worn my Huawei for a month. First month I had the S2 I went back and forth, and truly had an opportunity to weight the pluses of AW (Google NOW, app selection) against the pluses of the S2.
S2 is winning at the moment. However, as soon as I can make calls on the AW watch, we'll be going back and forth again evaluating.
Right now, I think the S2 is still gonna win, but it's going to be very close for me. The UI on the S2 is superior, but there may be apps on AW that I "need".
I'll have more to say in this thread after AW supports calling. The S2 will still have a big edge for me because of it's 3G capability, making standalone. We'll see...
dwallersv said:
There are certainly more than you (indeed, I've encountered many )
However, keep in mind there are a lot of people out there. And there are plenty like me too, that not only do not find it silly, but find it a very useful, helpful feature in their lives. Indeed, this was the capability that tipped me over into spending the $$ and getting the S2, just a month after dropping bank on a Huawei AW watch (which I still have, and am not ready yet to give up; it has a speaker, so when calling capability comes to AW, it should be supported on the Huawei).
I haven't worn my Huawei for a month. First month I had the S2 I went back and forth, and truly had an opportunity to weight the pluses of AW (Google NOW, app selection) against the pluses of the S2.
S2 is winning at the moment. However, as soon as I can make calls on the AW watch, we'll be going back and forth again evaluating.
Right now, I think the S2 is still gonna win, but it's going to be very close for me. The UI on the S2 is superior, but there may be apps on AW that I "need".
I'll have more to say in this thread after AW supports calling. The S2 will still have a big edge for me because of it's 3G capability, making standalone. We'll see...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I absolutely respect your opinion. But I'm hard pressed to think the speaker wont be load enough unless your in a quiet environment.
I also had the Huawei watch, Moto 360 2nd gen, and Asus zen watch 2. I've returned all of them because after trying so many I realized it wasn't the watch I didn't like. It was the software. I too think the Tizen UI is superior to AW...at least at the moment.
bamfsig45 said:
I absolutely respect your opinion. But I'm hard pressed to think the speaker wont be load enough unless your in a quiet environment.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Again, nothing to argue about. You like chocolate, I like coffee. There is no "best" flavor of ice cream.
For the record, I've been using a smartwatch for calling since the original Gear 1 running Android. So I've had plenty of time and experience to learn whether or not the feature is useful to me, when/where/how, etc. Of course, in very noisy environments, or places where I'm concerned about privacy, I pull out my phone. However, in those cases more often than not I answer immediately with my watch, tell the person to "wait a sec, I'm on speaker", then get the phone out.
The vast majority of the time, I don't need to do this. Calls are often short (daughter calling to update me on her plans, when coming home, for example), nothing personal enough that I care if anyone overhears.
The convenience is just huge. Phone is usually in my pocket. Watch rings, I look at who's calling, either send it to vmail with a swipe or say, "answer" and have the quick conversation.
However, I well recognize that is is highly personal, like food tastes. It works very well for me, and my life, and has become nearly indispensable. I find that when I don't have my smartwatch and only my phone, it's like a thousand cuts of annoyance.
So, for me, the introduction of standalone 3G was a ginormous feature leap. I've left the house several times now without my phone to run an errand -- few unintentionally and then, after that great experience, deliberately a few times -- and I'm hooked.
If I was in your situation, I certainly would not have paid the extra $$ for 3G, and would only care about the speaker for things like alarms, notification sounds, etc.
I'd have been perfectly happy with a non 3G version that at LEAST had built in GPS. That's the only feature i'm sorely missing from the 3G version...so much so that i'm exploring buying a used 3G from any carrier with no intention of using the 3G, just so that I can have GPS.
GPS plus cellular functionality sold me on the Gear S a year ago. Before that, I could not see the point of smartwatches. As a runner, being able to leave my large and heavy phone behind and still be reachable and have a way to track my runs and communicate seemed invaluable. I was happy with the Gear S, but frustrated with the desert that is the Tizen app store, Samsung's non-support and the constantly breaking charging cradles. Nevertheless, the Gear S served me well.
Then the LG watch urbane 2nd edition LTE came along and I never looked back. I sold my Gear S, and have a much nicer watch, better UX, more mainstream apps, the knowledge that even more apps will work with AW, global functionality, and a crazy long battery life. If this is representative of other upcoming AW watches, Tizen watches are in trouble.
I own three smartwatches atm: gear s, gear s2, huawei w1. The gear s is the SMARTER watch. The S2 is much better looking than original and much much polished OS but is so small. The huawei is the one I am wearing avery day now. Every one of them has something special. It's a matter of personal taste.
By nou I had all the samsung watches, moto 360 and lg watch r. I ALWAYS RETURNED TO TIEZEN. But if the next update will implement calling from the watch the Android wear will be closer to tiezen. Gear S has it's own place in the market and it's the smarter watch of all.
me and my wife have a few smartwatch, such as sony SW1 SW2, the G watch, and the S2, base on our experience the best is still sony SW1 SW2 due to have lot of app, and between S2 and Android watch, I prefer AW, just best it is better intgergrate with android, my wife S2 still need a few tweak such as a fast voice command respsonse, more app, and be more compatible with different IM.
The samsung app store and sony app store is really good when compare to google which is hard to look for watch specific app, but samsung app store currently cannot access in canada, I still able to access few weeks ago when in HK, and sony already phase out its own watch OS.
I myself own a 3g tmobile version of the watch. If LG didn't run into hardware troubles then I would have to make a choice and LG would probably be a winner
xendula said:
Then the LG watch urbane 2nd edition LTE came along and I never looked back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You must be one of the lucky 3 people or so that got one before they were pulled from the market?
If it hadn't been, I wouldn't even be posting in this group at all.
DummyPLUG said:
me and my wife have a few smartwatch, such as sony SW1 SW2, the G watch, and the S2, base on our experience the best is still sony SW1 SW2 due to have lot of app, and between S2 and Android watch, I prefer AW, just best it is better intgergrate with android, my wife S2 still need a few tweak such as a fast voice command respsonse, more app, and be more compatible with different IM.
The samsung app store and sony app store is really good when compare to google which is hard to look for watch specific app, but samsung app store currently cannot access in canada, I still able to access few weeks ago when in HK, and sony already phase out its own watch OS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in Canada and the samsung app store works fine with my note 4 and gear s/s2.
darekz said:
I myself own a 3g tmobile version of the watch. If LG didn't run into hardware troubles then I would have to make a choice and LG would probably be a winner
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same. I really liked the looks of that watch, the big battery and I would have given AW a try with cellular capability.
sefrcoko said:
I'm in Canada and the samsung app store works fine with my note 4 and gear s/s2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The problem is related to region, that's means a S2 with asia region firmware will not work in other place, same apply for NA region. (at least for current firmware/app)
I had solve the problem by using a asia sim and vpn back to hong kong, but this is not something accecptable.
It might but Samsung just love churning out hardware and software is an after thought. Normally within 6 months of launch and product support is dead.
I just purchased it. I'm on the T-Mobile but the watch is on AT&T. I read some stuff in another thread about it here but I'm not sure if that's outdated.
First, how is Tizen and using this watch for someone coming from AW? I lost my Urbane and just bought this because I purchased the S7 Edge.
What am I going to not be able to do, if anything, because the watch and phone are on different carriers?
How is the build quality and water resistance?
Thanks!
Also, is there any way to just "unlock" it and work with another carrier?
yugendreams said:
I just purchased it. I'm on the T-Mobile but the watch is on AT&T. I read some stuff in another thread about it here but I'm not sure if that's outdated.
First, how is Tizen and using this watch for someone coming from AW? I lost my Urbane and just bought this because I purchased the S7 Edge.
What am I going to not be able to do, if anything, because the watch and phone are on different carriers?
How is the build quality and water resistance?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. I dont mind Tizen at all. Its no android wear but it does everything but navigation. Least as good as AW. But notifications work well and typing old T9 isnt hard at all. Love the rotating bezel though. Also there are not many apps but there some pretty decent watch faces.
2. Build is pretty solid, the strap connector seems pretty weak but you can always get another. Some people bands have broke but mine i still going fine. Havent tried to get mine wet but it works after walking in the rain a few times but nothing major.
3. Far as the unlock, I am not the person to ask. Is it attached to the ATT network or just a ATT model? You can always just is it with BT only. You should be fine using an ATT watch on tmobile. Since all it really does is call forward missed calls it really shouldn't mater.
burtonfamily101 said:
1. I dont mind Tizen at all. Its no android wear but it does everything but navigation. Least as good as AW. But notifications work well and typing old T9 isnt hard at all. Love the rotating bezel though. Also there are not many apps but there some pretty decent watch faces.
2. Build is pretty solid, the strap connector seems pretty weak but you can always get another. Some people bands have broke but mine i still going fine. Havent tried to get mine wet but it works after walking in the rain a few times but nothing major.
3. Far as the unlock, I am not the person to ask. Is it attached to the ATT network or just a ATT model? You can always just is it with BT only. You should be fine using an ATT watch on tmobile. Since all it really does is call forward missed calls it really shouldn't mater.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How bad is S-Voice? That's my only real concern at this point.
yugendreams said:
How bad is S-Voice? That's my only real concern at this point.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well all I can say it works, the main thing is that you have to basically relearn how to talk to it. AW is much easier to use but it does work. I honestly don't ever use it. I usually always just the Google voice on my phone to make appointments etc. Id rather use T9 to respond to sms rather to s-voice.
I'm on tmobile but also have at&t model s2 sport and just use the watch on bluetooth. Wish there was a way to unlock so I could switch it to tmobile even though I'm not even sure I'd activate it through either. That's probably why it didn't matter which esim watch I bought. Haven't used s voice as using t9 isn't difficult ever with my finger being damn near the size of the screen, I do sometimes hit to fast, but it workseems nice. I've been itching to just jump into a pool with both watch and s7even, but a little nervous. In have let it hit the shower for a few secs just to show my girlfriend it was alright to get wet. Still waiting for Samsung pay so I wouldn't have to reach for the phone
I've got a Gear S2 Classic Platinum that I like very much (my wife would say love). Really the only thing I'm missing is full Samsung Pay support - having only NFC is kind of making me more crazy than it should.
The speaker for phone calls/reminders on the S3 BT version is nice, but it's really Samsung Pay (which I use almost exclusively) that I want.
Wondering if other Classic users who switched from S2 to S3 are regretting it at all, primarily concerned about the larger size of the S3.
And were there any other things about the S3 that you discovered you liked a lot that surprised you?
Appreciate your feedback.
I switched, not because I wanted to. Warranty exchange and that's all they had.. It's bigger, that's obvious. It's also thicker. It took about 3 days to get used to it. I wear it on the INSIDE of my wrist, so it may take you shorter or longer.
That being said. I don't use pay. I never remember.
Battery DOES last noticeably longer. Huge plus. Sleep mode tracking works consistently for me. Another plus. It's bigger, so easier to type on to reply to a quick message.
Negative: GPS tracking of exercises is spotty. Sometimes it'll track, sometimes it'll 1/2 track then drop.
Other than that, same lack of apps, same lack of firmware updates, same issues as the S2. If you can get used to the size, it's an upgrade.
Compusmurf said:
I switched, not because I wanted to. Warranty exchange and that's all they had.. It's bigger, that's obvious. It's also thicker. It took about 3 days to get used to it. I wear it on the INSIDE of my wrist, so it may take you shorter or longer.
That being said. I don't use pay. I never remember.
Battery DOES last noticeably longer. Huge plus. Sleep mode tracking works consistently for me. Another plus. It's bigger, so easier to type on to reply to a quick message.
Negative: GPS tracking of exercises is spotty. Sometimes it'll track, sometimes it'll 1/2 track then drop.
Other than that, same lack of apps, same lack of firmware updates, same issues as the S2. If you can get used to the size, it's an upgrade.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Odd that you would have gps problems. I use mine twice a week with a golf gps app and probably on average once a week hiking and I've yet to see it drop the signal. It's every bit as reliable as my Motorola phone.
Compusmurf said:
I switched, not because I wanted to. Warranty exchange and that's all they had.. It's bigger, that's obvious. It's also thicker. It took about 3 days to get used to it. I wear it on the INSIDE of my wrist, so it may take you shorter or longer.
That being said. I don't use pay. I never remember.
Battery DOES last noticeably longer. Huge plus. Sleep mode tracking works consistently for me. Another plus. It's bigger, so easier to type on to reply to a quick message.
Negative: GPS tracking of exercises is spotty. Sometimes it'll track, sometimes it'll 1/2 track then drop.
Other than that, same lack of apps, same lack of firmware updates, same issues as the S2. If you can get used to the size, it's an upgrade.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks...I found an open box at local Best Buy for $275, so I went ahead and picked it up last night. Not as bad in terms of increased size as I thought it would be. I'm 6'3", so have enough room to wear it w/out it looking like I have a dish on my hand.
I really like it overall so far - the larger screen is nicer/easier on my eyes, the ability to use the watch as a phone has already won me over, and I'm a big Samsung pay user, so looking forward to leaving my phone in my pocket when I pay.
New band on the way (I only use steel bands) to get the feel and look I like, and I think this one is a keeper.
The only issue I have right now is I have one of the watches where the bezel clicks when you tap it anywhere - can't tell yet from what I've read if that is an issue worth returning the watch for or not. Any thoughts on that?
Thanks for your feedback.
I have a great S2 Platinum I can give you a deal on if you want to go back to an S2.
No none at all
Sent from my SM-G935F using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Tel864 said:
Odd that you would have gps problems. I use mine twice a week with a golf gps app and probably on average once a week hiking and I've yet to see it drop the signal. It's every bit as reliable as my Motorola phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can assure you, I'm NOT the only one with this issue. I can link you to threads here, on android central and on reddit where folks have the exact same issues.
Seems to affect SHEALTH tracking of run and walk. If I use watch only/gps, no wifi, no bt it works better than if I have my phone with me and connected. But still not perfect.
I have a whole history of "1/2" tracked walks.
Someone suggested wipe it and start over, I tried. No fix.
First of all, thanks again so much to all of those who helped me with my question of whether I should upgrade from my Gear S3 - your input was greatly appreciated, and my ultimate decision in no way invalidates it - I agree with all of the points you made. But after finally pulling the trigger and picking up a GW4 Classic 46mm, all I can say is... meh.
Nothing about the watch 'wowed' me. In fact, there wasn't even anything that I really liked, unlike my Gear S3. OK, maybe having Google Maps is cool, and I'm sure once we get Google Assistant - but right now, out of the box - meh. Plus, there were too many things that irritated me.
This watch is expensive - even with a $100 Best Buy discount - and that skinny, cheap @$$ed band (in only one size too!) really irritated me (although, TBF, it is comfortable). I've realized the health features are more of a gimmick to me than actually useful features (and the main ones aren't even natively available in Canada).
I hated the look of the Wear interface. I hated that the number pad is not optimized for a round watch like in Tizen. I couldn't find one watch face I really liked. Not one. (And what's with that stupid initial that's always present on the stock watch face, even when you customize your initials??)
I love the punchy, blue Frontier face on my Gear S3 - those mostly greyscale stock GW4 watch faces don't do anything for me. Sure, I might be able to find one from a dev, make one, etc. - but I shouldn't have to, and when I shell out big $$ for a piece of tech, I expect it to have at least something I love, and a few things I really like.
The GW4, at least in it's current state, does nothing (or perhaps more accurately, nothing that I need) that my Gear S3 doesn't do. My Gear S3 will continue to suit my needs just fine for the foreseeable future.
I completely understand why others might like it's design, features, etc. - but, for me, I realize now I was just eyeing it and buying it because it's new and shiny and, for my money, it's got to do more than that. It should at least impress me, 'wow' me somehow, in some way - and it doesn't. It's going back. Sorry guys.
*UPDATE* OK, so - I decided to keep it after all. Well, I did return the first one, but then they went on sale for a lower price in addition to the $100 trade-in discount, so I couldn't resist at that price. And I figured I should give it more time, and see how things go. Not gonna lie, I tried out the Google Maps navigation on the bike today, and was thoroughly impressed, with the directions on my wrist and voice turn-by-turn through my Galaxy Buds - so, finally a 'wow' feature.
*UPDATE #2* GBoard is a treat too - the swipe typing and voice input are so much better/easier to use than T9.
Anyway, thanks again everyone for all the advice, your experiences etc. - let's see how Samsung and Google do with this thing.
Have you heard of paragraphs? I don't think anyone is going to read that unformatted wall of text.
shawkes said:
Have you heard of paragraphs? I don't think anyone is going to read that unformatted wall of text.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, sorry - I guess I'm not used to writing such long posts, and it's kinda hard to break up a rant - but good point, fixed that.
Thanks for the writeup.
Interesting to see everyone's reviews, quite a few have your take on it. Personally, I upgraded from a gen 1 Moto 360 so I this was a definite nice upgrade.
While it would be nice to have Google assistant, I rarely use it (and don't see using Bigby either) so it's not a game changer for me. Love being able to use Gpay on it though. I was having issues with Riru and being able to use Gpay on my phone for a while so being able to pay with the watch was a life saver.
Having upgraded fro Gwa2 to gw4c, I must say that the watch is indeed an upgrade, save for the battery life though. I was charging my Gwa2 every 3 4 days for the first 1.5years of ownership and once every 2 3 days the last months before it died on me while swimming.
Considering tho that I only spent 75euros to get the gw4c 46mm (I got a credit from Samsung for the cost of the Gwa2, instead of them repairing it, which was WAY too perfect for me since it happened one month before the gw4 official release), I can only say good things for the watch; if I could only stretch the battery to charge it every two nights, for the time being it barely makes it.
rmiles7721 said:
Thanks for the writeup.
Interesting to see everyone's reviews, quite a few have your take on it. Personally, I upgraded from a gen 1 Moto 360 so I this was a definite nice upgrade.
While it would be nice to have Google assistant, I rarely use it (and don't see using Bigby either) so it's not a game changer for me. Love being able to use Gpay on it though. I was having issues with Riru and being able to use Gpay on my phone for a while so being able to pay with the watch was a life saver.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I was looking forward to using GPay (in addition to Samsung Pay) as I have a credit card linked to GPay that Samsung Pay won't accept - but it turns out that GPay can't use that card for tap payments either.
I do think Google Assistant will be useful for starting navigation, making calls etc., as it is simply so much better and accurate than Bixby.
thanito said:
Having upgraded fro Gwa2 to gw4c, I must say that the watch is indeed an upgrade, save for the battery life though. I was charging my Gwa2 every 3 4 days for the first 1.5years of ownership and once every 2 3 days the last months before it died on my while swimming.
Considering tho that I only spent 75euros to get the gw4c 46mm (I got a credit from Samsung for the cost of the Gwa2, instead of them repairing it, which was WAY too perfect for me since it happened one month before the gw4 official release), I can only say good things for the watch; if I could only stretch the battery to charge it every two nights, for the time being it barely makes it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know my rant may leave the wrong impression for a lot of folks, so I just want to be clear that there is no question that the GW4 is an upgrade over its predecessors, especially my old Gear S3 - what I was really trying to say is that my Gear S3 does all the basic things I need it to do (notifications and calls while my phone is in my daypack on the bike, and Samsung Pay, even with international phones that can't use Samsung Pay). And I like the look and feel of it and Tizen better.
But beyond that, the folks who provided advice as to whether to upgrade or not were absolutely right, the GW4 is definitely an upgrade - I just struggle with justifying the cost when the Gear S3 does what I need it to do already, and so many things about the GW4 bugged me. Samsung is imitating Apple more and more it seems, and being cheap as f*ck doing it, too (i.e., just compare the Gear S3 box to the GW4, the chargers, the straps - and for less money!).
I should add that battery life and charging times were two areas where I was pleasantly surprised. I was expecting the worst, but I found that the watch charged fairly quickly, and battery life wasn't as bad as I was thought it would be (although nowhere near the 3+ days I get on the Gear S3 of course).
You already know from my previous post I did the same transition and did have similar thoughts about the differences between the Gear S3 and the GW4 but for me it was worth the change. From reading across XDA and Reddit on the GW4 it is definitely not meeting everybody's expectations. There is a good deal of room for Samsung to improve the software (not unexpected for me given the Tizen journey) and this is an area it is not fulfilling expectations. Battery life is another as again there does appear room for better optimisation but I am not very optimistic about that.
More than happy with my transition, the benefits of working Samsung Pay, physical size and feel and fulfilling all the uses I put the Gear S3 to makes it a win for me. The only drawback thus far has been the slightly less (on average about 12 hours less than the Gear S3) battery life.
Getting a £115 trade in for the Gear S3 also tipped the balance in terms of overall value of the change.
Regards
spangelaregreat said:
You already know from my previous post I did the same transition and did have similar thoughts about the differences between the Gear S3 and the GW4 but for me it was worth the change. From reading across XDA and Reddit on the GW4 it is definitely not meeting everybody's expectations. There is a good deal of room for Samsung to improve the software (not unexpected for me given the Tizen journey) and this is an area it is not fulfilling expectations. Battery life is another as again there does appear room for better optimisation but I am not very optimistic about that.
More than happy with my transition, the benefits of working Samsung Pay, physical size and feel and fulfilling all the uses I put the Gear S3 to makes it a win for me. The only drawback thus far has been the slightly less (on average about 12 hours less than the Gear S3) battery life.
Getting a £115 trade in for the Gear S3 also tipped the balance in terms of overall value of the change.
Regards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, thank you so much spangelaregreat, your posts were very helpful, especially your review under Review/Comparison (Gear S3) & Mods. I definitely wondered (and still wonder, as I haven't actually made the trek back to Best Buy yet) if I shouldn't give it more time. I may still change my mind, not least because I know you're right, the GW4 is still new, and will no doubt improve rapidly, and I know I might regret it if I take it back. I'll be sure to let folks know if I do. Thanks again!
No problem.
I just rec'd my GW4-44mm late yesterday afternoon. I quickly set it up and swapped out my GA2 for it. I'd agree there's very close to zero wow factor since they are so similar physically, and One UI makes them operate similarly too. I purchased the GW4 because of the things Tizen can't do...namely Google Maps (when you're out walking or biking), Google Pay (my cards aren't supported on Samsung Pay), Google Keep. The display also seems a bit blacker/sharper but it's subjective.
So, it does what I expected it to, but it's a point upgrade. Unlike with Tizen, the watch can actually get better if there are more and different apps.
mickliq said:
I just rec'd my GW4-44mm late yesterday afternoon. I quickly set it up and swapped out my GA2 for it. I'd agree there's very close to zero wow factor since they are so similar physically, and One UI makes them operate similarly too. I purchased the GW4 because of the things Tizen can't do...namely Google Maps (when you're out walking or biking), Google Pay (my cards aren't supported on Samsung Pay), Google Keep. The display also seems a bit blacker/sharper but it's subjective.
So, it does what I expected it to, but it's a point upgrade. Unlike with Tizen, the watch can actually get better if there are more and different apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed - and this is something I was very conscious of as I weighed my decision - that is, as much as I like Tizen, it's a dead end, whereas as much as I dislike Wear OS, it can only (hopefully) get better.
I will be very disappointed however if Samsung and Google don't sort out the bugs, and bring Google Assistant to the GW4.
mickliq said:
I just rec'd my GW4-44mm late yesterday afternoon. I quickly set it up and swapped out my GA2 for it. I'd agree there's very close to zero wow factor since they are so similar physically, and One UI makes them operate similarly too. I purchased the GW4 because of the things Tizen can't do...namely Google Maps (when you're out walking or biking), Google Pay (my cards aren't supported on Samsung Pay), Google Keep. The display also seems a bit blacker/sharper but it's subjective.
So, it does what I expected it to, but it's a point upgrade. Unlike with Tizen, the watch can actually get better if there are more and different apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you get Google Keep to work, mine just keeps saying syncing?
I didn't do anything special. I went into the Watch Play store, picked "apps on phone", selected Keep (among others), and when I first launched it, it asked me what account I wanted to sync.
Returned mine Watch 4 as well. Not much improvement over my Galaxy Watch 3. It maybe has sharper display, but I would love slightly bigger display area.
carlitos66 said:
Returned mine Watch 4 as well. Not much improvement over my Galaxy Watch 3. It maybe has sharper display, but I would love slightly bigger display area.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would definitely hang on to a Watch 3 for a while - my Gear S3 is 5 years old! I have swapped out the battery though - not sure how easy that is to do on the Watch 3. Yearly upgrades are out of the question for me, regardless.
See my update in the original post above - decided to keep the GW4 after all, and see how it goes.
jtOttawa said:
*UPDATE* OK, so - I decided to keep it after all. Well, I did return the first one, but then they went on sale for a lower price in addition to the $100 trade-in discount, so I couldn't resist at that price. And I figured I should give it more time, and see how things go. Not gonna lie, I tried out the Google Maps navigation on the bike today, and was thoroughly impressed, with the directions on my wrist and voice turn-by-turn through my Galaxy Buds - so, finally a 'wow' feature.
*UPDATE #2* GBoard is a treat too - the swipe typing and voice input are so much better/easier to use than T9.
Anyway, thanks again everyone for all the advice, your experiences etc. - let's see how Samsung and Google do with this thing.
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I have to agree with you on the Google Maps integration. I did not believe I would ever use this when I got watch. Without even thinking about this I was getting directions on my phone to a destination 3.2 miles from me in Chicago last weekend. I was walking. I was holding up my phone and walking and when I got to the street where I needed to turn at the watch vibrated. I looked at the watch and it showed that I needed to turn. I quickly realized I did not have to have my phone out at all. So nice to just walk along without holding up my phone glancing at my watch whenever it vibrated.
Thankfully there is option to turn off auto launch when driving. To me this is annoying as hell
fliptwister said:
I have to agree with you on the Google Maps integration. I did not believe I would ever use this when I got watch. Without even thinking about this I was getting directions on my phone to a destination 3.2 miles from me in Chicago last weekend. I was walking. I was holding up my phone and walking and when I got to the street where I needed to turn at the watch vibrated. I looked at the watch and it showed that I needed to turn. I quickly realized I did not have to have my phone out at all. So nice to just walk along without holding up my phone glancing at my watch whenever it vibrated.
Thankfully there is option to turn off auto launch when driving. To me this is annoying as hell
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Thanks fliptwister - I'm thinking this will also be particularly useful when travelling and exploring a new city, etc. - not having the phone out in some cities would be a lot safer, as well as easier and less distracting.
BTW, I should receive that AliExpress watch band you posted about by Monday - when I do I'll be sure to upload a pic and let you know what I think in that thread about the bands. EDIT: Just got it, in fact - should be able to post about it in a few minutes.
carlitos66 said:
Returned mine Watch 4 as well. Not much improvement over my Galaxy Watch 3. It maybe has sharper display, but I would love slightly bigger display area.
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This is where I'm leaning. I'm tempted by the SpO2 sleep monitoring, so I may trial to see if that's accurate enough. But that seems to be the only improvement over GW3. Well, and I'm really interested to see if two of my WearOS apps work, except it sounds like most apps aren't compatible without some development tweaking to work with WearOS3.
So waiting to see if Google/Fitbit have cooked anything up. Otherwise, I guess maybe I'll wait for the GW5...