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

engadget.com

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

#61

Post by kamjam »

cliveowen wrote: post #37
kamjam wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, sorry, cross post with everyone else. Still, I think it is a valid gadget, it won't be for everyone, but useful for some. It's not that much different from using the iPod Nano as a watch - http://www.engadget.com/2010/11/18/ipod-nano-review-as-a-wat...

Yeah, It's not at all different, but I was the first to say that using an iPod nano as a watch was a stupid idea. I can understand testing the water with some prototype like Google Glass (those just look ridiculous, we're several iterations from something approaching a real product) but it's a stretch to go from prototype to mass product.

If they could incorporate a heart rate monitor and GPS then this would be my ideal workout companion, and I could use it for bike rides and snowboarding in the winter - the separate costs of all these would be more than $300. I don't think it will become mass market, BUT you can only make the watch so small after which the interface become unusable - esp if you have fat fingers like me! You do require the the revolution before the evolution though, like with the Google Glass hopefully.

But regardless of the size of this, have you been to a watch shop recently? Some of the sizes of the watches are ridiculous and I presume they sell... so this might do just fine!

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

#62

Post by psbp »

jahansafd wrote: post #58
psbp wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Imagine looking down on your wrist and it immediately lights up and shows you the time and date and some notification that you have messages. Rotate your wrist clockwise and you can see some more details about the message (the subject, who it's from, etc.) and you can decide whether you want to take out your phone or tablet and address it. Rotate your wrist counter-clockwise and you see slowly start to see more relev…

or simply a circular motion with the tip of your finger could work too?

Great joke..The scroll wheel worked before touch was great, and touch works before simple, naturalistic motions can be perfected.

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

#63

Post by yapcguy »

commandar wrote: post #44
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 f…

Are there any health issues with having an active bluetooth device next to your privates, and another one strapped to your wrist?

I don't think there is any research which says wearing a bluetooth headset everyday is bad for you, but based on some anecdotal stories I've read, and my gut feeling, it doesn't seem like a good idea.

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

#64

Post by kamjam »

psbp wrote: post #52
blinkingled wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

Imagine looking down on your wrist and it immediately lights up and shows you the time and date and some notification that you have messages. Rotate your wrist clockwise and you can see some more details about the message (the subject, who it's from, etc.) and you can decide whether you want to take out your phone or tablet and address it. Rotate your wrist counter-clockwise and you see slowly start to see more relev…

Presumably it would have a built in gyro you you could tip it left/right and up/down so scroll through screens, go into menus etc. It might go a bit crazy when you are running down the road though :-p

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

#65

Post by krrrh »

taude wrote: post #55

Put an Ant+ sensor on it, and I could see the benefits of using it over my Garmin cycling computers, especially with a small mount for the bike.

This uses Bluetooth 4 LE (low energy) which offers the same advantages as Ant+. This protocol will probably completely supplant Ant+ in the next year or two because it's part of the Bluetooth spec and supported natively by most smartphones released in the last year. Ant+ is proprietary and has only a handful of phones with onboard chips.

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

#66

Post by psbp »

kamjam wrote: post #64
psbp wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Imagine looking down on your wrist and it immediately lights up and shows you the time and date and some notification that you have messages. Rotate your wrist clockwise and you can see some more details about the message (the subject, who it's from, etc.) and you can decide whether you want to take out your phone or tablet and address it. Rotate your wrist counter-clockwise and you see slowly start to see more relev…

Presumably it would have a built in gyro you you could tip it left/right and up/down so scroll through screens, go into menus etc. It might go a bit crazy when you are running down the road though :-p

Hence the eye contact.

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

#67

Post by vijayr »

ddeck wrote: post #9

This really feels like a "because we can" product. Given the specs and features, it seems to be purely a companion device...and for $300? After reading the press release, I'm still trying to understand what legitimately useful functionality is provides beyond your phone. I'm amazed they didn't at least include some bio measurement capability (beyond accelerometer). I would have thought it would be a key potential app…

They don't have any bio measurement stuff, but they have an app for EBay. Wonder what the logic there is (shop from a tiny screen, while in the elevator?)

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

#68

Post by robg »

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…

At Neumitra:

1) We build more medical watches than gadgets. Right up against the skin means great data quality if you take biometric data seriously in terms of the problems that can be solved. But comfort and fit are extremely important to get right.

2) We build around a data co-op model. If you share your data we show how your health data relates to everyone else. You get more info by giving. If you choose not to share, we can't share the crowd with you. You become an island unto yourself.

P.s. We're hiring: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6311608

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

#69

Post by jewel »

The problem with an LCD screen on a watch is that you have to wake up the device to see the time. As far as I can tell that is the case with this device too.

Watch the video here at the 2:00 mark to see it power off: http://reviews.cnet.com/samsung-galaxy-gear/

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