latest
Samsung Gear S3 from 2016 gets a taste of Wear OS thanks to this unofficial build
It works surprisingly well, too, if you don’t mind forfeiting GPS and NFC functionality
Smartwatches have been around for well over a decade now, but Wear OS as we know it didn't arrive until 2018. Even then, by a lot of accounts it wasn't until the big G partnered with Samsung for Wear OS 3 that the wearable operating system started becoming a force to reckon with. Right now everyone's paying attention to the existing watches that eventually will be updated to that release, but what about those that never will? Or didn't even run Wear OS in the first place? One clever developer has some thoughts about that, and has somehow managed to bring Wear OS to the Samsung Gear S3, an ancient Tizen smartwatch from 2016.
How do you feel about Google's big Wear OS (and Tizen and Fitbit) news today?
Google's announcement at I/O will shape the future of Android wearables
Wear OS isn't great. That's an opinion that seems to be fairly universal (with the usual exceptions), especially when you start comparing Android-powered wearables to those from Samsung, Fitbit, and of course, Apple. Google knows this, and they're working on it. Never has that been more apparent than at today's Google I/O developer conference keynote.
Here's how to get Samsung's Galaxy Watch3 for just $140 right now
It's easy if you have the right trade-in device lying around
Samsung released its latest Galaxy Watch3 smartwatch late last year. We think it's a pretty solid smartwatch as long as you don't pay full retail price for it. Luckily, Samsung is offering some nifty discounts on its latest wearable right now — and if you trade in the right device, a Galaxy Watch3 can be yours starting at just $139.99.
Bixby comes to Samsung Gear S3 smartwatches ahead of S-Voice shutdown
I guess Bixby is probably better than not having a voice assistant?
Samsung's smartwatches are one of the better choices when it comes to the Android side of wearables. The company released its Gear S3 watch back in 2016 to solid reviews, and it has kept owners on their feet with new updates since then. Last year, the S3 received an update to Samsung's One UI, and now it looks like a new update, System Update 7, is rolling out.
Ever since Samsung forsook Wear OS and decided to blaze its own trail with Tizen, the company has been churning out some great smartwatches. The Gear S3 Frontier may be three years old now, but it still remains stylish and performant today as a smart companion for your phone. After fluctuating quite a bit on price lately, it has settled down to $189 at Amazon.Although the Gear S3 Frontier is older than the Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Watch Active2, it's still a very competent, and downright good, wearable. It features a great 1.3" 360x360 AMOLED display, intuitive and satisfying rotary bezel for UI navigation, 4GB of onboard storage, a speaker and microphone, a great battery life, and full Samsung Pay (both NFC and MST support).
Customizable watch faces are an integral part of the smartwatch experience. What good is a digital display if you're not going to use it to make your watch look exactly like you want it to? That's why there are hundreds of designers making faces for every wearable platform, and apps such as Pujie Black that let you create your own. The popular app was previously restricted to Wear OS but is now also compatible with Tizen OS, namely Samsung's Galaxy Watch, Watch Active, and Gear Sport. Support for the Gear S3 is coming soon.
When the Galaxy Watch Active launched earlier this year, it brought with it Samsung's new One UI look for wearables. That updated interface is now rolling out to the company's earlier smartwatch models, namely the regular Galaxy Watch, Gear S3, and Gear Sport.
It's no secret that a lot of us at AP have switched from Wear OS-running smartwatches to Tizen-based watches by Samsung. If you've been thinking of jumping ship too, the Gear S3 Frontier (my daily driver) is currently marked down to $110, an all-time low.
Read update
If you want a smartwatch, and Google's Wear OS isn't appealing to you, Samsung's Tizen watches are the next-best thing you can use with Android phones. The Gear S3 is one of the company's older watches, as it came out in late 2016, but it's still supported and has some features the newer watches lack. Now you can get it for just $199.99 on Amazon — around $20 cheaper than the typical price, and $150 below the original MSRP.The Gear S3 Frontier has a large 2.76-inch circular screen, a rotating bezel for navigating apps, a 380mAh battery, and Samsung's proprietary Tizen OS. The band is 23mm wide, and you can replace it with any standard 23mm band. It also has a heart rate sensor for limited health tracking, and Samsung Pay is supported.
Samsung introduced its revamped One UI interface in November. The company claims the new design is more intuitive and requires less finger movement on large screens. In addition, it brings a dark mode for stock apps and system elements, which looks sleek and saves battery on OLED displays.
Read update
- According to Tizen Help, owners of the AT&T Gear S3 Classic and Frontier are starting to see the Tizen 4.0 update, as well. Thanks to reader Madhav for the heads up.
Verizon is pushing an update to the LTE variants of the Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier that brings Tizen version 4 as well as some cool new features. This update aligns the smartwatches with the non-LTE counterparts that got the update last week. The OTA packages for the Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier carry the version numbers R775VVRU1CRL8 and R765VVRU1CRL8, respectively.
Gear S3 owners were greeted with a large software update for their watches today. Not only does the ~300MB file mark the arrival of Tizen v4, but it adds a host of other improvements and changes. We'll take a look through the changelog first.
As far as smartwatches go, Samsung is still one of the best options to go with. Though the Galaxy Watch is new kid on the block, its predecessor the Gear S3 is still a very competent, and downright good, wearable. And you can pick up the Frontier version for just $199.99 over on B&H, a nice $100 off.
Pulse is one of the best SMS clients available to Android, partially because it allows you to view and send messages from more than just your phone. There are client applications for macOS, Windows, Linux, Wear OS, Android TV, the web, and now Tizen.
Pre-Black Friday sales continue to trickle out a full week ahead of the day itself, and Samsung is the latest to publish its own preview for upcoming discounts. The variety covers everything from wearables to TVs and even smart home gadgets(and we're happy to tell you about them, too), but the promotions that have us most excited are for the company's latest Note and Galaxy-series phones. Starting on the 18th you can get a Note 9 for $800 unlocked, and a Galaxy S9 and S9+ for $520 and $640, respectively.
Yesterday was big news among us Android enthusiasts. Despite having a good idea of the announcements ahead of time thanks to all of the leaks, we got to see the new Pixel 3 phones for real and we've already started on our review. But in the meantime, Amazon has an interesting bundle offer on one of the best Android phones around: the Galaxy Note9. For today only, if you buy a 512GB Note9, you'll get a free Gear S3 Frontier smartwatch, saving you about $300 (going based on the watch's MSRP). Now, the top-end Note9 isn't cheap, coming it at a whopping $1,249.99. Still, you get a lot for your money, including the best display around, a stellar camera experience, the ever-so-popular S Pen, and other top of the line specifications. It's a powerhouse of a phone and with 512GB of internal storage, it can be a (local) media consumption and gaming monster.
The Gear S3, though now succeeded by the Galaxy Watch, is still a fantastic smartwatch. I prefer the looks of the Classic myself, but that's just me. Keep in mind that it's the Bluetooth-only version in this bundle, not the LTE one.Samsung bundle deals aren't new, but this one is especially good. If you've been eyeing the Note9, but held off to see what Google had in store, then this bundle deal might be of interest to you, granted that you want to drop $1,250 on a phone. Though you're confined to the 512GB option, you do have the choice between the Ocean Blue and Lavender Purple color variants. This bundle is good through the rest of the day (about 14.5 hours remaining at time of writing), so don't wait too long.Source: Amazon
We've been hearing about the upcoming Galaxy Watch from Samsung for quite a bit now, but if you're in the market for a Samsung smartwatch right now, Best Buy currently has some great deals on the Gear S3 line. Both the S3 Classic and S3 Frontier have been discounted to $279.99 with a free $100 Best Buy gift card thrown in.
Read update
- SamMobile has now confirmed the rumor, saying the Galaxy Watch will run Tizen 4.0, which was announced last year.
What comes after 2016’s Samsung Gear S3 and last year’s not-exactly-a-sequel Gear Sport, both of which run the company’s Tizen OS? Why, the Galaxy Watch, of course, because names are fun. But if you were expecting someone else besides Armani, Hublot, Skagen and the rest of the traditional fashion brand horde to join Google in trying to save Wear OS, odds are you will have to wait a little while longer.
Samsung's Gear S3 Classic is about a year old now, but it's still Samsung's latest and greatest smartwatch and performs just fine even today. So if you were looking to snag one on the cheap, Daily Steals is offering Grade-A refurbished Verizon/unlocked Gear S3 Classic LTE units for just 9.99 with our exclusive code.
Samsung is building bridges between its different devices through its Flow app. The app can already let you unlock your computer with your phone, sync notifications between your phone and PC/tablet, easily create a hotspot between them if you're not near WiFi, and quickly transfer files. The newest update pushes things even a little further.