Samsung Gear 2 watches - worth getting?

BenEadir

Hi all,

I was very underwhelmed when Samsung launched the original Gear watches last year, I just didn't see the point in having a watch which basically told you when emails and tests arrived etc.

The new Gear 2 range has just been launched http://www.extremetech.com/computing/177132-samsung-unveils-gear-2-gear-2-neo-and-gear-fit-smartwatches-and-none-of-them-run-android and it looks much more interesting to me.



The Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo have a built in heart rate monitor which I'd find useful for training (I do a few 10k runs a year just to keep fit) and I also like the ability of the Gear 2 to have my music loaded onto it's 4GB of memory which could be paired with some bluetooth headphones for use when running or in the gym. No messing with wires, no forgetting the MP3 player and your heart rate monitored as you train. All that sounds good to me but not good enough to justify buying a Gear 2.

Does anyone know if the Gear 2 has standalone GPS capability (as opposed to using a paired smartphone's GPS) and if so are there any golf GPS apps which run on the Gear 2?

If I was able to use it in the gym/running for music and heart rate monitoring + use it as a golf GPS that would seal the deal for me.

What do you think? Is it pure gimmickery/gadget or could it actually be a useful thing to have?

Ben

touts

Too Big to wear but too small to use. Also very very ugly.

BUT the Gear FIT looks to be a better prospect. It doesn't try to do too much but still has useful features (call answering, text/mail preview, clock, fitness tracking etc). And it looks a lot better than the Gear 2.

BenEadir

touts wrote: »

Too Big to wear but too small to use. Also very very ugly.

BUT the Gear FIT looks to be a better prospect. It doesn't try to do too much but still has useful features (call answering, text/mail preview, clock, fitness tracking etc). And it looks a lot better than the Gear 2.

Have to disagree with you there Touts. I think the Fit looks pretty feminine and it's very limited in what it can do e.g. it doesn't have storage for music and I doubt it has it's own GPS.

I do agree the Gear 2 looks a bit big but I like big watches and I don't think it's ugly at all. I think it's sleek and functional but then beauty as they say is in the eye of the beholder.

Ben

Venom

These smart watches use Samsung's Tizen OS instead of Android like the Sony and Pebble and and only work with certain Samsung Devices again unlike the Sony and Pebble devices.

gbob

Yeah was very underwhelmed by them too, take a look at the omate truesmart, it's a full android phone about the size of the gear, takes a sim and has wifi gps 3g etc and still works as a companion to an android phone for notifications. Ordered one in November from the kickstarter campaign and still waiting for it, hoping it's way more useful than the gear.

BenEadir

gbob wrote: »

Yeah was very underwhelmed by them too, take a look at the omate truesmart, it's a full android phone about the size of the gear, takes a sim and has wifi gps 3g etc and still works as a companion to an android phone for notifications. Ordered one in November from the kickstarter campaign and still waiting for it, hoping it's way more useful than the gear.

Although it's impressive I really don't want another device which requires a sim and I can only imagine that running Android the battery life must be pretty poor. Looks amazing though but a bit too 'beta' for me. I'll wait for a couple of later versions before taking a proper look at it.

Wouldn't be surprised if one of the big tech companies doesn't buy up the company before then!

Ben

White Heart Loon

I've no interest a it's Tizen but I'd have an interest in a Nexus one

Venom

White Heart Loon wrote: »

I've no interest a it's Tizen but I'd have an interest in a Nexus one

It's looking like LG are making the Google/Nexus watch.

http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/23/5440222/lg-reportedly-building-google-smartwatch

http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/26/5448894/google-watch-motorola-smartwatch-leaked-photos-rumor

gbob

BenThere wrote: »

Although it's impressive I really don't want another device which requires a sim and I can only imagine that running Android the battery life must be pretty poor. Looks amazing though but a bit too 'beta' for me. I'll wait for a couple of later versions before taking a proper look at it.

Wouldn't be surprised if one of the big tech companies doesn't buy up the company before then!

Ben

Yeah it's definitely still beta as both the hardware and software is still being tweaked.

Battery life is reported as comparable to a normal smartphone, and the sim is optional as it can be used in standalone or companion mode.

I only came across it after searching for a smartwatch with everything the gear is missing, like I said the gps wifi 3g capabilities along with pretty much any android app was the clincher.

spireland32

Where in a dublin shop would these be available to purchased? Want to get one in my hand to see what its like rather than purchase online blind.