Made the decision and picked up my gear 2 today.

[PortablePete]

Been lurking for a couple months at best buy looking at this thing. Finally saved up enough to get it. Best install experience that I have had with a device. Mated with my S5 without issue. Bought a few apps and all of them are pretty cool and might even be useful. Answered a couple calls and a few text. Takes a bit to work it all out but in a couple hours everything functions the way I would expect it would. I am sure the lack of Google Now will be a item that I might regret but that is not what I bought it for.

Things that make no sense:
S memo does not work while charging.
Video time limit is very short.
I have to use samsung messages on my phone.

Everything else is working itself out. I like all the customization possible. I am sure this will be on arm till I break it. I normally get about 18 months out of a regular watch. Something will snatch it, smash it, slip off into some oblivion, or just get fried when I get electrocuted again.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Mike-Mike]

It is a great watch. I am selling mine on EBay, but I am sad to see it go. I am tired of the terrible battery life of my otherwise perfect Note 3, or else I would keep the Gear 2.

Since I will be jumping ship to Motorola for the Droid Turbo, I knew I would not be able to keep my Gear 2.

I got a LG G Watch and every single day I just think it is inferior to the Gear 2 in every way.

And I think you will be surprised by the Gear 2, I bumped and banged it into everything and it held up like a champ.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[clitrenta]

Well that sucks Mike. This is a great watch and though it has some things that I'd like to change, it has proven to be very useful. No other smart watch comes close in my opinion. It occurred to me at some point that Samsung was very sneaky with this as now I am locked in to them if I want to continue to use this watch. It's ok though because I love both my Galaxy S5 Active and my Note 3 and will probably be adding the Note 4 at some point next year. And for you Pete, yes, the watch does have some iffy issues like you mentioned but it still a great watch and heads above the competition - even the future iWatch.

 

[jwt873]

I'm pleased with my Gear 2. I really like how it looks. I have no buyer's remorse.

Battery life isn't an issue at all for me. The reason is, that I can't wear a watch to bed. My wrists have always puffed up a bit overnight. I'll go to sleep with the band fitting comfortably and wake up with it cutting in to my wrist. So, I always take my Gear 2 off and put it on the charger overnight.

The only two complaints I have are:

- The Bluetooth disconnects if I fold my arms together and completely cover the watch with my opposite forearm even though the phone is close by. This is my biggest annoyance because the watch beeps when it disconnects and then beeps again when it reconnects.

- The camera performance is pretty bad in low light or backlit situations.

 

[clitrenta]

I'm pleased with my Gear 2. I really like how it looks. I have no buyer's remorse.

Battery life isn't an issue at all for me. The reason is, that I can't wear a watch to bed. My wrists have always puffed up a bit overnight. I'll go to sleep with the band fitting comfortably and wake up with it cutting in to my wrist. So, I always take my Gear 2 off and put it on the charger overnight.

The only two complaints I have are:

- The Bluetooth disconnects if I fold my arms together and completely cover the watch with my opposite forearm even though the phone is close by. This is my biggest annoyance because the watch beeps when it disconnects and then beeps again when it reconnects.

- The camera performance is pretty bad in low light or backlit situations.

Interesting. I tried to get mine to lose the connection by covering it with my body in various ways. I never lost it. As for the camera, I didn't expect anything amazing given it's on a watch with no flash and only 2mp (I think). It takes fairly decent pics in good lighting which is probably how I would use it most anyway.

 

[jwt873]

I was hoping someone would comment on my 'covering the watch comment'.

Mine does it when the phone gets to be 5 to 10 feet away. I keep my Note 2 phone on a kitchen shelf when it's not in my pocket. That gives me 'whole house' coverage.

The phone isn't deaf. If it's not covered it works as far as one would expect Bluetooth to work. I can even go a ways away from my house without losing the signal. I don't know why my body blocks the signal... I guess I have iron rich blood or something

 

[clitrenta]

OK, so I walked away from my phone (Galaxy S5 Active) and kept my watch firmly tucked into my armpit. I made it about as far as I normally due before I lose the connection (in my office). May just as likely an issue with your particular model of phone and the watch vs the watch by itself.

 

[Mike-Mike]

It occurred to me at some point that Samsung was very sneaky with this as now I am locked in to them if I want to continue to use this watch. It's ok though because I love both my Galaxy S5 Active and my Note 3 and will probably be adding the Note 4 at some point next year. .

Well I instantly regretted selling my Gear 2.

So much, that now I'm considering getting the Note 4 instead of the Motorola Droid. At this point I have just taken off the LG G Watch and put it in the drawer. It will probably go on eBay tomorrow. Gear 2 has ruined me.

 

[Ntchwaidumela]

It is a great watch. I am selling mine on EBay, but I am sad to see it go. I am tired of the terrible battery life of my otherwise perfect Note 3, or else I would keep the Gear 2.

Since I will be jumping ship to Motorola for the Droid Turbo, I knew I would not be able to keep my Gear 2.

I got a LG G Watch and every single day I just think it is inferior to the Gear 2 in every way.

And I think you will be surprised by the Gear 2, I bumped and banged it into everything and it held up like a champ.

Posted via Android Central App

The Note 4 has much better battery life.

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

 

[Ntchwaidumela]

Been lurking for a couple months at best buy looking at this thing. Finally saved up enough to get it. Best install experience that I have had with a device. Mated with my S5 without issue. Bought a few apps and all of them are pretty cool and might even be useful. Answered a couple calls and a few text. Takes a bit to work it all out but in a couple hours everything functions the way I would expect it would. I am sure the lack of Google Now will be a item that I might regret but that is not what I bought it for.

Things that make no sense:
S memo does not work while charging.
Video time limit is very short.
I have to use samsung messages on my phone.

Everything else is working itself out. I like all the customization possible. I am sure this will be on arm till I break it. I normally get about 18 months out of a regular watch. Something will snatch it, smash it, slip off into some oblivion, or just get fried when I get electrocuted again.

Posted via Android Central App

The manual that you can download from Samsung is very helpful.

Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk

 

[PortablePete]

Ok, a week with this device and I am very pleased to have added it. I am surprised how many times I have used it as a bluetooth speaker. Notifications are perfect as well as taking a few quick photos. Very happy with the battery life charging it once this week. I have chess and blackjack on It for games to give me something to do while waiting in lobbies before meetings. The watch band is more comfortable than I thought it would be.
I do get more comments on the watch than I would like. My son thinks it is cool too. I was asked why not get the android wear device and I just do not want to be locked into yet another Google controlled environment and their BS cards. I do like Google Now but their card format is crap to me. If samsung makes a better gear 3, I might file this one away as a backup if the newer one was to get broken but I don't see replacing it with anything else.
Glad I waited and got the facts from the forum before the purchase. Thanks

Posted via Android Central App

 

[clitrenta]

Well I instantly regretted selling my Gear 2.

So much, that now I'm considering getting the Note 4 instead of the Motorola Droid. At this point I have just taken off the LG G Watch and put it in the drawer. It will probably go on eBay tomorrow. Gear 2 has ruined me.

Yah I hear ya there. I was rolling around the idea of different phones for my next upgrade until I figured out that I could not give up my Gear 2. I guess that does make the decision to go with the Note 4 easier. Like I said, "Well played Samsung". :-\

 

[PortablePete]

Going into week three and I am very pleased with the gear 2. There hasn't been anything that I have wanted to do that I haven't been able to do. A little notification overload from Google but I am adjusting that as I go. Pleased with the call quality on speaker and got it wet in a tank a couple of times. Snagged it at work a couple times and the band has stood up to my shenanigans. I take much more snap shots than I ever expected. I do not need a ton of detail for most of these pictures so it works out well. I have nearly 36 hours of music on the device and I do use it to listen to songs where I need both hands and no wires to snag. Jaybird bluebuds x work well with it. I am getting a solid 3 days out of a charge on the gear 2. All in all I am happy with the gear 2 as long as I remember it is just a companion device.

Posted via Android Central App

 

[Mike-Mike]

I regretted selling my Gear 2 and ended up buying a Gear 2 Neo

Posted via Android Central App on my VZW Note 3

 

[1812dave]

I regretted selling my Gear 2 and ended up buying a Gear 2 Neo

Posted via Android Central App on my VZW Note 3

Mike, what prompted you to sell the G2 in the first place?

 

[Mike-Mike]

Mike, what prompted you to sell the G2 in the first place?

I knew I was getting the Droid Turbo and it wouldn't be compatible. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I ended getting a S5 as a work phone. So I still get to use the Gear 2 Neo

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[Ramsin Essapour]

I knew I was getting the Droid Turbo and it wouldn't be compatible. Unbeknownst to me at the time, I ended getting a S5 as a work phone. So I still get to use the Gear 2 Neo
Posted via the Android Central App

Mike which OS do you prefer Android wear or Tizen.
Are the notifications done better on Android, also can i get a keyboard for android AND will it show my complete facebook notifications IE it will actually tell me what the person said. Oh another quick question can you download a keyboard for the Gear 2?
Thanks for your help

 

[Mike-Mike]

Mike which OS do you prefer Android wear or Tizen.
Are the notifications done better on Android, also can i get a keyboard for android AND will it show my complete facebook notifications IE it will actually tell me what the person said. Oh another quick question can you download a keyboard for the Gear 2?
Thanks for your help

At first I would have said Hands Down the Gear 2. However with the recent updates, Android Wear is growing on me. That is contingent on using the right apps. I have posted before, but without 8sms, Android Wear would be useless to me. I like to be able to mark my texts as read from my watch.

As far as waht Notifications are better, that will vary by app. For example, I don't like how Android Wear or Google in general handles Calendar reminders. I think Samsung does that the best of any Calendar I've ever used. And it works on the Gear 2 watch just like it does on the phone, you can slide to snooze or dismiss. With Android Wear it just pops up in Google Now card, and if you have multiple calendar cards, you're kind of screwed. Gmail of course works much better on Android Wear.

I personally don't like using Voice stuff. So I'm never talking to my watch. What I do like, is the Gear 2 is that you can have templates to respond to texts. You can type them and save them on the phone, and then with two taps you can reply to a text with one of the templates directly from the Gear 2. A simple "I'm Driving" or whatever you put in there. Other text apps may do that for Android Wear, but so far the ones I have tried do not have that option, it has been all Voice only replies.

I believe there is a keyboard app for the Gear 2, but I have never tried it, and I wouldn't be interested in that. I like the pre-written text responses, but that's as far as I'm going on the watch. Like I said before, I don't like using Voice related features, but I did answer a call on my watch once with the Gear 2. That worked great. That's obviously not an option on the Android Wear devices due to no speakers.

I don't use Facebook, so I can't answer any of those questions.

Android Wear's battery life has improved, but so has Tizen. The Gear 2 at this point lasts me several days.

 

[Ramsin Essapour]

At first I would have said Hands Down the Gear 2. However with the recent updates, Android Wear is growing on me. That is contingent on using the right apps. I have posted before, but without 8sms, Android Wear would be useless to me. I like to be able to mark my texts as read from my watch.

As far as waht Notifications are better, that will vary by app. For example, I don't like how Android Wear or Google in general handles Calendar reminders. I think Samsung does that the best of any Calendar I've ever used. And it works on the Gear 2 watch just like it does on the phone, you can slide to snooze or dismiss. With Android Wear it just pops up in Google Now card, and if you have multiple calendar cards, you're kind of screwed. Gmail of course works much better on Android Wear.

I personally don't like using Voice stuff. So I'm never talking to my watch. What I do like, is the Gear 2 is that you can have templates to respond to texts. You can type them and save them on the phone, and then with two taps you can reply to a text with one of the templates directly from the Gear 2. A simple "I'm Driving" or whatever you put in there. Other text apps may do that for Android Wear, but so far the ones I have tried do not have that option, it has been all Voice only replies.

I believe there is a keyboard app for the Gear 2, but I have never tried it, and I wouldn't be interested in that. I like the pre-written text responses, but that's as far as I'm going on the watch. Like I said before, I don't like using Voice related features, but I did answer a call on my watch once with the Gear 2. That worked great. That's obviously not an option on the Android Wear devices due to no speakers.

I don't use Facebook, so I can't answer any of those questions.

Android Wear's battery life has improved, but so has Tizen. The Gear 2 at this point lasts me several days.

Thanks man appreciate the feedback, I really like my Gear S if I stick with Tizen though I think Im getting the Gear 2. My only concern is i have a feeling Samsung is not going to succeed with Tizen, and we know Android wear is not going anywhere but up. If Android wear had 2 things, Answer calls/Speaker, Keyboard it would be a no brainier for me, those are the most important things I want, unfortunately I get those with Tizen and I feel like Tizen OS is a deadman walking

 

[Mike-Mike]

Samsung is huge, Tizen is not going anywhere

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