Android smart watches - dealing with large size of N7

jj2339

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Jun 7, 2012
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So I like to be active, like hiking and mountain biking. I worry the n7 is a bit fragile for jostling around in a pocket, or don't want to trust a drop if it falls out of my pocket while one run. My iPhone 6s has survived several drops, but since the n7 is glass encased, I don't want to risk it. Ideally, I'd like a watch with gps and lte so I can leave the phone at home and stream using google play music.

I have been looking at options....thought I would turn to this group to see what options you might have. Thoughts so far:

1.). Gear s3 frontier looks like a great match, except it's awful big for a workout watch, and looks like it won't tie into any 3rd party apps like mapmyfitness or myfitnesspal. I don't want to use s health. I love their phones, but hate how Samsung likes to wall off their stuff, especially when their stuff isn't up to par. But damn, it looks good! And that battery life is appealing, if accurate. Just sad it won't tie into the android watch App Store.

2.). Motorola and fossil have some great looking watches, but that black bar at the bottom is ridiculous.

3.). That lg urban looked interesting, but I don't think it has gps? Anyone have one and like it? Reviews on Amazon aren't positive, and doesn't appear to be on sale?

4.). The Hawie phone looks good, but the fitness tracking uses jawbone up, who don't seem to be long for the world.

Am I just asking for too much from a watch? Lol!! That gear s3 looks the best, but lack of apps worries me, and that size I'd have to see in person. Thoughts?
 

JeanRuse

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LTE is still very rare on smart watches, especially in conjunction with GPS. The best option, then, would be to download your music onto the watch beforehand. Also, more features are being added all the time. I'd advise waiting it out for this year's releases, as they're rumored to be more robust in their feature set. That, or check out the BLOCKS modular smart watch, which enables you to add in and swap out features through the watch links.
 

jj2339

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Thanks JeanRuse. I did see that s2 had a 3g version which would be fine with me if it had music streaming, so am going to look in that direction.

That block watch is intriguing! I'm curious how many apps they will have, since it's not based on Android wear but rather Android marshmallow! Intriguing!
 

Serkle K

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Not sure this is a direct answer to your question, but I'm using a Polar V800.

It's not exactly a smartwatch in terms of the ones you mentioned. So, with that said, for my runs and workouts, I use a spibelt. It's low profile, and doesn't bounce around like a traditional "fanny pack." It holds a decent amount of stuff, and they now have different versions, and styles of it. My fiancée has the regular one for her use at the gym, and I have the waterproof one for outdoor runs and the gym.

It may be an alternative for you as well for the time being.
https://spibelt.com/
 

keepnitreel

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The Gear S3 seems to have all the features that most other watches lack... The larger size shouldn't be a big deal being that most of the watchs out are already that size. And having Samsung pay with the MST/NFC tech on the watch, makes it an all around standalone...