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Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

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Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#41

Post by pisarzp »

plg wrote: post #4

prediction 1: we will soon see smartwatches incorporate biometric measurement full force. After all unlike a mobile phone, a smartwatch is (typically) always attached to your body, right up against the skin. prediction 2: once prediction 1 starts to happen, and people realize that (1) there is a device measuring physiological signals from their body, (2) it also has a gps tracker, (3) it is also connected to "the clo…

> prediction 1: we will soon see smartwatches incorporate biometric measurement full force. After all unlike a mobile phone, a smartwatch is (typically) always attached to your body, right up against the skin.

That's why I think Basis B1 [1] is the most interesting of all "smartwatches". It's a pity they are basically out of stock since several months.

[1] http://www.mybasis.com/

Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#42

Post by msoad »

ChuckMcM wrote: post #3

And so the 'production' smartwatch era begins. Notionally kicked off by the InPulse and iPod Nano wrist straps, "proven" by the Pebble kickstarter, now in jumps Samsung and if rumors are to be believed Apple and possibly Google. It is a testament to the new sensibility that something like this can be worn in public and be "cool." I had a CASIO Data bank watch that was really cool but man the nerd-griefing I got if I…

Smartwatches need more sensors than advanced UIs. They can do much better in sensing world around them.

Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#43

Post by psbp »

blinkingled wrote: post #29

The Gear does not feel like a complete gimmick - not having to take out your (big screen) SmartPhone out for emails/texts/pics/shares etc. is kinda useful to the mainstream people. But the problems are Price, Performance(Battery life, responsivness) and Limitations that make it work only with Samsung phones. For those reasons I think the Gen 1 of the Gear will flop. And who knows what kind of apps Samsung is running…

I wonder if Google has an even greater (more so than with phones and tablets) inherent disadvantage to Apple because it's going to be beholden to a more generic UI given the diversity of devices by the android OEMs.

The Google card UI is slick and very user friendly, but it can stagnate pretty quickly given the potential for a more accommodating, dynamic UI that a company like Apple can make with a limited range of devices. I think it's not just a simple visual gimmick that Apple demonstrated a parallax effect as a major visual feature of iOS 7.0. If the iWatch is some sort of wrap-around your wrist screen, then layers of visual information could be really interesting.

Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#44

Post by commandar »

ChuckMcM wrote: post #3

And so the 'production' smartwatch era begins. Notionally kicked off by the InPulse and iPod Nano wrist straps, "proven" by the Pebble kickstarter, now in jumps Samsung and if rumors are to be believed Apple and possibly Google. It is a testament to the new sensibility that something like this can be worn in public and be "cool." I had a CASIO Data bank watch that was really cool but man the nerd-griefing I got if I…

>It is a testament to the new sensibility that something like this can be worn in public and be "cool."

I really think this remains to be seen. I'm a pretty geeky guy, and there's no way I'd wear any of the smart watches I've seen to date in public.

Wearing a watch just isn't a common thing among people under 40 these days in general. Those who do wear them tend to do so primarily as a fashion accessory. The simple fact is all the watches I've seen so far have been flat out ugly. They absolutely recall the old calculator watches you're referring to. But at least wearing a watch was a fairly normal thing back then.

I'm not saying it's impossible for there to be a cool smart watch, just that I haven't seen it yet. Everything out there so far is going to be serving a very niche market, IMO.

Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#45

Post by blinkingled »

nuclear_eclipse wrote: post #39
blinkingled wrote: post #29

The Gear does not feel like a complete gimmick - not having to take out your (big screen) SmartPhone out for emails/texts/pics/shares etc. is kinda useful to the mainstream people. But the problems are Price, Performance(Battery life, responsivness) and Limitations that make it work only with Samsung phones. For those reasons I think the Gen 1 of the Gear will flop. And who knows what kind of apps Samsung is running…

Keep in mind that not only is it limited to Samsung devices, but it doesn't even support their entire range of currently-sold devices. No launch support for the Galaxy S4, their flagship device and the one that they sell the most. No promised support for their brand-new Galaxy Mega 6.3. No support for any of their other devices that are still on the shelf being sold even today...

Yeah, probably something to do with BT 4.0 LE - only Android 4.3 supports it - so all those other devices will have to painfully wait for their respective carriers to release the 4.3 update. As good as not gonna happen!

Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#47

Post by green7ea »

ChuckMcM wrote: post #3

And so the 'production' smartwatch era begins. Notionally kicked off by the InPulse and iPod Nano wrist straps, "proven" by the Pebble kickstarter, now in jumps Samsung and if rumors are to be believed Apple and possibly Google. It is a testament to the new sensibility that something like this can be worn in public and be "cool." I had a CASIO Data bank watch that was really cool but man the nerd-griefing I got if I…

Don't forget the Qualcomm Toq:

http://toq.qualcomm.com/#toq-hello

Qualcomm isn't big in the consumer space but mirasol displays seem promising.

Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#48

Post by clarky07 »

i saw a video earlier today that suggested perhaps some features of a phone could be more convenient in watch form just as some things are more pleasant on phones and tablets than on desktops. that it wasn't a replacement, rather a supplement

i could maybe get behind that.

but if it can't do anything on it's own, without the phone, it loses like 99.5% of it's appeal. if your phone or tablet had to be tethered to a laptop or desktop, it would be useless.

i'd think a huge part of the appeal of smart watch would be the fitness stuff. i know my wife doesn't really like using her phones because it is too big for running. she likes her garmin watch better. if you have to take a 5.7 inch phone with you, wtf good is the watch? Sure there is a slight bonus to just putting phone in pocket instead of on arm and using the watch to check stuff, but man it feels like this is missing the point.

i'm not convinced i want a smartwatch, but i'm pretty sure i want it to be able to do "something" on it's own. As it is, this is a dumbwatch second screen for phone.

Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#49

Post by blinkingled »

psbp wrote: post #43
blinkingled wrote: post #29

The Gear does not feel like a complete gimmick - not having to take out your (big screen) SmartPhone out for emails/texts/pics/shares etc. is kinda useful to the mainstream people. But the problems are Price, Performance(Battery life, responsivness) and Limitations that make it work only with Samsung phones. For those reasons I think the Gen 1 of the Gear will flop. And who knows what kind of apps Samsung is running…

I wonder if Google has an even greater (more so than with phones and tablets) inherent disadvantage to Apple because it's going to be beholden to a more generic UI given the diversity of devices by the android OEMs. The Google card UI is slick and very user friendly, but it can stagnate pretty quickly given the potential for a more accommodating, dynamic UI that a company like Apple can make with a limited range of d…

Well Apple had their chance with iPod Nano Touch - it doesn't look any different than iOS. Besides the key on these tiny displays is going to be how minimalistic you can get - get the UI baggage out of the way and present as much info as possible.

Re: Samsung unveils Galaxy Gear smartwatch with built-in camera, 70 apps

#50

Post by jahansafd »

marincounty wrote: post #5

Well, I wouldn't trade my Omega Seamaster for it yet. Sometimes, I just want to wear a watch to tell the time, and I'm used to a certain amount of weight on my left wrist. I don't even see the need for complicated movements, but I'm an old man in this tech world--45. My demographic is not very important anymore.

I totally get it. It's similar to how I just keep a phone to make and receive calls. But it does seem a little ludicrous when you think about all the things you can do with a smart phone. As the number of apps increases, I think smart watches will be accepted and used in a similar way. A huge plus point for smart watches is it's accessibility. Compared to the time spent pulling out a smartphone from your pocket, you'll be able to to instantly check news updates, emails, weather and etc right on your wrist.
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