Is an S4 coming?

[jgreg02]

Any evidence or word about an S4 watch?

 

[Darth Mo]

I haven't seen any mention of an S4 either way, but going by the general reception of the S3, I doubt we'll see a successor at the same level.

I say this because there have been basically zero third-party contributions to Tizen OS which leaves the platform severely limited still 18 months later. There is no native app for messaging such as Messenger, Hangouts, or WhatsApp. Most fitness oriented users rate the fitness functions as mediocre at best, with devices costing half or a third that of the S3 far outperforming it.

While I do believe it is an amazing piece of hardware, it's really just a glorified notification accessory with its lack of software support. For $300, one would expect the watch to be able to operate much more independently, at least when paired with a Samsung phone. But if it is not a text or phone call, I have constantly pull out my phone to do anything. Really, my Pebble Time was much more capable when it came to messaging as it would at least store messages from any app on the phone for retrieval and reply.

Honestly, if the wasn't capable of looking a real watch in design and watch faces, I probably would have replaced it long ago.

 

[Nakrohtap]

From rumors I have read, it looks like maybe August announcement and Sep/Oct release. Nothing confirmed at all. Just read what's out there and make your own guesses, basically. I just got the S3 last weekend, so the S4 is not even a thought for me.

 

[KruseLudsMobile]

I really hope they come out with an S4 fronteir. I would get the S3 but that's 2+ year old technology already!

 

[Nakrohtap]

I really hope they come out with an S4 fronteir. I would get the S3 but that's 2+ year old technology already!

The S3 is just as good if not better than any smart watch out right now. It was only updated like 4 months ago. Yes, the S4 will be more future proof, but you will still be waiting 6 months without anything. You can always pick up the S4 next year for a better price if it turns out to blow away the S3.

 

[michail71]

I haven't seen any mention of an S4 either way, but going by the general reception of the S3, I doubt we'll see a successor at the same level.

I say this because there have been basically zero third-party contributions to Tizen OS which leaves the platform severely limited still 18 months later. There is no native app for messaging such as Messenger, Hangouts, or WhatsApp. Most fitness oriented users rate the fitness functions as mediocre at best, with devices costing half or a third that of the S3 far outperforming it.

While I do believe it is an amazing piece of hardware, it's really just a glorified notification accessory with its lack of software support. For $300, one would expect the watch to be able to operate much more independently, at least when paired with a Samsung phone. But if it is not a text or phone call, I have constantly pull out my phone to do anything. Really, my Pebble Time was much more capable when it came to messaging as it would at least store messages from any app on the phone for retrieval and reply.

Honestly, if the wasn't capable of looking a real watch in design and watch faces, I probably would have replaced it long ago.

I've never used another smartwatch before but I really love my S3. Messaging is a bit limited but I haven't been able to not at least read anything. What are we missing out on?

I can turn off my phone's alarm from it, take calls and get texts when away from my phone, control my phone's audio playback and volume while streaming BT audio, locate my phone with it, track my heart rate 24/7, track sleep, use GPS to accurately track runs, hikes, etc., get quick access to weather for multiple cities, access my schedule, tap to pay at just about any register, etc. I actually turned off most notifications as I was getting information overload from it.

Most people are blown away if I just take a call on it or make a payment with it.

This was a device of scifi fantasy when I was little.

 

[Darth Mo]

I've never used another smartwatch before but I really love my S3. Messaging is a bit limited but I haven't been able to not at least read anything. What are we missing out on?

The biggest difference with messaging apps (again, Messenger and Hangouts) is that if you receive more than two or three messages, the older ones get pushed off the watch with no way to retrieve them. With the Pebble Time, it was able to store 50 messages from any app, so say if you were driving and received several messages, you could quickly review them on your watch at a stoplight without having to grab your phone. With group chats, this type of scenario happens all the time essentially rendering the watch useless with these types of messaging apps.

And again, this is purely a software limitation, I have nothing against the hardware. But without support from third-party developers, this is where we are. It would have behooved Samsung to go with Android Wear, but I'm guessing they figured they have such a large presence with phones that it would attract third-party developers to their proprietary watch OS, Tizen. But after several years now, that just simply isn't the case. And this isn't just the case with messaging, there are a lot of apps available for Android Wear would that would make the Gear S3 great, but we just don't have access to them.

 

[rinkeedink]

I'm a big fan of the S3. Have the classic. Had a Huawei and Motorola wear watches for a hot minute, and the Tizen GUI with the bezel blows them away in my opinion. I'd take a look at an S4, but don't see a reason to upgrade but for better battery life. Lack of developer support is a bummer though.