Samsung Unveils New Gear S3 Smart Watch With GPS and LTE [Update: Will Support iPhone]

[Mac 128]

You're so full of yourself with these statements... Now J. Ive, who is recognized by many as a great designer, and who has designed many different products besides the iPhone, decided to go with a square shape for the Apple Wayne because he didn't want to take chances?! Right, that was certainly it, this decision didn't take into account many different things that you and I can't have an idea of. Okay.


I really think complications don't work so well inside, the music complication that sits under the analog, for example, is very useful, displaying the name of the song, that wouldn't be possible with a round design, or it'd look odd.

I think Apple chose a rectangular design that looks like the first iPhone, specifically because of the strong visual identity with some of the most successful products in the world -- iPhone and iPads. And I think it was the right decision for the first Watch, as well as the fact that it is easier to design for a rectangle than a circle, and Apple had a hard enough time getting the software to market, and even then it was incomplete over what they announced.

However, that doesn't mean that they don't have round in mind. Ive's own statement about the watch being used for glances seems to suggest that the reason everybody seems to think Apple chose rectangular -- to display loads of scrolling text -- is wrong. You don't need the most efficient text display method to present information suited for "glances".

Your opinion about notifications is nevertheless just that, an opinion reflective of personal taste. There's no right or wrong here -- in kdarling's Ranger photo example, the music complication could go right there where the Ranger logo is. And while you might think it looks odd, I have no trouble with it. There's plenty of room, and it would look kind of cool there. But that's me. Now I suppose we could conduct a study, and find out just how many of us would prefer your way vs. my way, or neither ... but in the end, there's going to be some sizable percentage that agrees with both of us.

And that's really the issue.

Yeah, I really don't like the way they render these promo images to make the watches look like mechanical ones because they will never look like that in real life. They give the watchfaces a sense of depth that is present in the actual faces.

Case in point -- personal opinion. I agree that the ads may be somewhat deceptive (as are some of Apple's), but I've seen plenty of these watches in person and I like the look of them, despite not living up to the marketing photos. But that's true for so much in life.

 

[OneMike]

Looks way better than Apple Watch to be honest

 

[fabio.lordelo]

I think Apple chose a rectangular design that looks like the first iPhone, specifically because of the strong visual identity with some of the most successful products in the world -- iPhone and iPads. And I think it was the right decision for the first Watch, as well as the fact that it is easier to design for a rectangle than a circle, and Apple had a hard enough time getting the software to market, and even then it was incomplete over what they announced.

However, that doesn't mean that they don't have round in mind. Ive's own statement about the watch being used for glances seems to suggest that the reason everybody seems to think Apple chose rectangular -- to display loads of scrolling text -- is wrong. You don't need the most efficient text display method to present information suited for "glances".

Your opinion about notifications is nevertheless just that, an opinion reflective of personal taste. There's no right or wrong here -- in kdarling's Ranger photo example, the music complication could go right there where the Ranger logo is. And while you might think it looks odd, I have no trouble with it. There's plenty of room, and it would look kind of cool there. But that's me. Now I suppose we could conduct a study, and find out just how many of us would prefer your way vs. my way, or neither ... but in the end, there's going to be some sizable percentage that agrees with both of us.

And that's really the issue.



Case in point -- personal opinion. I agree that the ads may be somewhat deceptive (as are some of Apple's), but I've seen plenty of these watches in person and I like the look of them, despite not living up to the marketing photos. But that's true for so much in life.

And that's been point throughout the whole debate. There's no need to bash the Apple Watch design saying it's trash because a lot of people like it, and that's going to be the same with Gear S3, as it already is with the S2. I'm in fact considering getting a pre-owned S2 so I have a different watch design to use sometimes and I'm interested in what Samsung is doing.

Regarding the ads, they really are kind of deceptive. But that can't be sad about the Apple Watch ads, the renders are really truthful to its design. In fact, I've seen many people saying that they think it looks better in person.

 

[Mac 128]

And that's been point throughout the whole debate. There's no need to bash the Apple Watch design saying it's trash because a lot of people like it, and that's going to be the same with Gear S3, as it already is with the S2. I'm in fact considering getting a pre-owned S2 so I have a different watch design to use sometimes and I'm interested in what Samsung is doing.

Regarding the ads, they really are kind of deceptive. But that can't be sad about the Apple Watch ads, the renders are really truthful to its design. In fact, I've seen many people saying that they think it looks better in person.

Respectfully, I disagree. The ads don't show the reflections, and poor performance in outdoor situations. I've been in situations where I had to turn out of direct sunlight to see the display. Most Apple stores I've been in have glare and reflections that make the watches unreadable in the case.

The ads don't show that, ever. And personally I think the ads make the Watch as a whole look worse than it actually is ... But that's my subjective opinion.

Now if you're talking about the 3D aspects, I'd say different watches look different under different lighting conditions. I haven't seen the s3 so I can't comment. But again, anyone expecting actual 3D from any LCD is misleading themselves, and it's also ironic that people assume 3D off of a 2D image.

Either way, it's a matter of personal choice and perception.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Might not be the same watch face; doesn't matter. The PR shots are rendered to look like a mechanical watch but that's not what these watches look like IRL.

Rendered or not, they do look like that in real life. You obviously never seen it in real life.

On my S2 classic, I can put the brightness on 1. But any camera will make it look like it's on a much higher brightness, even if you set the exposure low. I would need a professional camera to make it look as realistic as it does in real life.

 

[fabio.lordelo]

Respectfully, I disagree. The ads don't show the reflections, and poor performance in outdoor situations. I've been in situations where I had to turn out of direct sunlight to see the display. Most Apple stores I've been in have glare and reflections that make the watches unreadable in the case.

The ads don't show that, ever. And personally I think the ads make the Watch as a whole look worse than it actually is ... But that's my subjective opinion.

Now if you're talking about the 3D aspects, I'd say different watches look different under different lighting conditions. I haven't seen the s3 so I can't comment. But again, anyone expecting actual 3D from any LCD is misleading themselves, and it's also ironic that people assume 3D off of a 2D image.

Either way, it's a matter of personal choice and perception.

Reflections are a common problem for most screens, that is the case with all smartwatches but the pebble. Of course the ads won't show that. Personally I don't have problems using the Apple Watch outdoors, of course, sometimes there's a lot of glare when under direct sunlight, but it has never been impossible to read it.

And I agree that the ads make the Apple Watch look worse. I remember that I didn't love it when I first saw it, but I loved the design when I got to try it.

 

[Night Spring]

Complications have traditionally been inside round watchfaces, and believe me, there's plenty of room for them. For example, here's one of my favorite round Android Wear faces, the Ranger:

View attachment 648138

It has:

1. time, including seconds
2. 24 hour time indicator,
3. weather forecast,
4. temperature,
5. date,
6. watch and phone battery levels,
7. compass, and
8. how far you've walked today.

Is that enough complications? Other faces add even more, like timers and alarms.

That looks nice, with the hands carefully arranged to not obscure any of the complications. In actual use, one or more of the complications would often be obscured by the hands. I never liked that in mechanical watches, and I don't want that on my digital watches, either.

 

[kdarling]

That looks nice, with the hands carefully arranged to not obscure any of the complications. In actual use, one or more of the complications would often be obscured by the hands. I never liked that in mechanical watches, and I don't want that on my digital watches, either.

Fair enough.

Cheers!

PS. Interesting point, since it would seem that a digital version could easily avoid the problem by drawing behind or translucently. In fact, let me check when I get a chance...

 

[Night Spring]

Interesting point, since it would seem that a digital version could easily avoid the problem by drawing behind or translucently.

Yes, that'd be great! Now let's hope some watch face engineers are thinking outside the box.

 

[Keirasplace]

And that's been point throughout the whole debate. There's no need to bash the Apple Watch design saying it's trash because a lot of people like it, and that's going to be the same with Gear S3, as it already is with the S2. I'm in fact considering getting a pre-owned S2 so I have a different watch design to use sometimes and I'm interested in what Samsung is doing.

Regarding the ads, they really are kind of deceptive. But that can't be sad about the Apple Watch ads, the renders are really truthful to its design. In fact, I've seen many people saying that they think it looks better in person.

Huh! Who are those people, not me. All Samsung watches look like crap and very cheap in person.
They only look good in renders.
[doublepost=1473050733][/doublepost]

Rendered or not, they do look like that in real life. You obviously never seen it in real life.

On my S2 classic, I can put the brightness on 1. But any camera will make it look like it's on a much higher brightness, even if you set the exposure low. I would need a professional camera to make it look as realistic as it does in real life.

Right.. We live in the jungle of Montreal and never seen a smart watch from Samsung, LG, etc.... Never...
I just go into store that have them like 20 times a year and specifically steer far away even if I need to do a detour /s
Give me a break. Calling a cheaply looking thing like the S2 "Classic" is ridiculous.

 

[Fenez]

Huh! Who are those people, not me. All Samsung watches look like crap and very cheap in person.
They only look good in renders.
[doublepost=1473050733][/doublepost]

Right.. We live in the jungle of Montreal and never seen a smart watch from Samsung, LG, etc.... Never...
I just go into store that have them like 20 times a year and specifically steer far away even if I need to do a detour /s
Give me a break. Calling a cheaply looking thing like the S2 "Classic" is ridiculous.

Wow. Just how sour are those grapes?

 

[davidgolfer]

Went to the lake this weekend with several other families. All of the guys had large gps sport watches that looked the size of the S3. I had to leave my Apple Watch at home because it isn't waterproof. the large watches looked good made me want to check out the S3

 

[aduteau]

All this thread shows is that the marriage between fashion and technology gets so many different opinion from people.
Fashion itself gets many different opinion from everyone ... thats what the world of fashion is all about...
But I do have to give credit for Apple in understanding this detail from the start of their gen 1 apple watch.
They understood that not everyone wants the same size and have bigger or smaller wrist.
They made swapping wrist bands easy and quick ... before them doing this ... most smartwatches just had a wristband that could NOT be interchanged and was just part of the watch.

Remember all this in a Gen 1 product ... Now .... how versions of smartwatches did it take Samy to get here and that they made obsolete and cant get any software upgrades ???

 

[OllyW]

All this thread shows is that the marriage between fashion and technology gets so many different opinion from people.
Fashion itself gets many different opinion from everyone ... thats what the world of fashion is all about...
But I do have to give credit for Apple in understanding this detail from the start of their gen 1 apple watch.
They understood that not everyone wants the same size and have bigger or smaller wrist.
They made swapping wrist bands easy and quick ... before them doing this ... most smartwatches just had a wristband that could NOT be interchanged and was just part of the watch.

Remember all this in a Gen 1 product ... Now .... how versions of smartwatches did it take Samy to get here and that they made obsolete and cant get any software upgrades ???

All they need to understand now is that not everyone wants a rectangular smartwatch.

 

[aduteau]

All they need to understand now is that not everyone wants a rectangular smartwatch.

I guess that this is now the form factor that stands out from the rest ... When you see a rectangular smartwatch, its pretty much an AppleWatch ... and people know this now. All other smartwatches are round now. The form factor is now as iconic as the home button on the iPhone.

Maybe we will get a round Applewatch someday ... (not tomorrow). People used to say that the iPhone would never change size because of one hand use being affected ... and fast forward to today ... we now have 3 sizes !

Maybe the next version of watchOS will have two screen form factors who knows !

 

[jamesrick80]

I guess that this is now the form factor that stands out from the rest ... When you see a rectangular smartwatch, its pretty much an AppleWatch ... and people know this now. All other smartwatches are round now. The form factor is now as iconic as the home button on the iPhone.

Maybe we will get a round Applewatch someday ... (not tomorrow). People used to say that the iPhone would never change size because of one hand use being affected ... and fast forward to today ... we now have 3 sizes !

Maybe the next version of watchOS will have two screen form factors who knows !

You should look at the Samsung gear fit 2......only needs to be a bit wider and the design would be perfect

 

[aduteau]

You should look at the Samsung gear fit 2......only needs to be a bit wider and the design would be perfect

that's the thing ... would be perfect for you ... not everyone, that's the thing with wearables its an extension of the body and no two persons are the same and have same taste. Its a hard market to please everyone

 

[acousticbiker]

Looks like S3 is getting closer. Any updates on iOS compatibility?

 

[lowendlinux]

You mean like how the Apple Watch's battery can heat up while charging, and melt/push the cheaply glued back off the watch case?



Likewise, why put a rotating watch crown on a wearable computer (especially a crown that collects dirt and has to be washed), or sell traditionally watch-centric bands like the Classic or Milanese?

Or have your main designer drone on and on about studying horological homages. And even make a pompous industrial video showing how cases are made... in the exact same way that millions of other Chinese watch cases are made?

Answer: because Apple knew no one would buy their geeky shaped device if they called it a wearable computer, that's why



I think it's obvious why they went with that shape. It's because J. Ive has always had success with it and didn't want to take chances.

View attachment 648139



Complications have traditionally been inside round watchfaces, and believe me, there's plenty of room for them. For example, here's one of my favorite round Android Wear faces, the Ranger:

View attachment 648138

It has:

1. time, including seconds
2. 24 hour time indicator,
3. weather forecast,
4. temperature,
5. date,
6. watch and phone battery levels,
7. compass, and
8. how far you've walked today.

Is that enough complications? Other faces add even more, like timers and alarms.

That's the face I use..I discovered it digging around in the play store and you're right it has everything you need at a glance and is only a couple bucks