- Apr 25, 2005
- 5,440
- 44
- 91
About a month ago my OG Pebble up and died on me. The battery would no longer hold more than about 12 hours of battery life. I was quite happy with the Pebble honestly, but I would much rather have the upcoming model as opposed to the current one. As I was shopping around for a new watch, I kept coming across good reviews for the Gear S2, so I hit Swappa and picked up the Verizon 3G model for a good price.
Of all the smart watches I have seen with my own eyes, the S2 has the best screen by far. The rotating bezel is a really well thought out idea. I wouldn't be surprised to see that design element copied by other manufacturers in the near future. For the most part the watch can be used without needing to touch the screen, but it does have full touch functionality as well. There are something like 20 apps pre-loaded out of the box (this is a Samsung device after all) and I haven't really felt the need to add anything else in the month or so I have been using it.
Battery life is OK. Compared to my Pebble's 7-10 day battery life, the 2-3 days I get from the S2 is a little disappointing. The watch does sleep tracking for people interested in that stuff, but with such a short battery life I can't imagine not charging it at night. The wireless charger is a nice touch though.
Overall I am very impressed. Notifications are handled well, the heart rate monitoring seems accurate and the bluetooth and WiFi connections have been solid. The watch is completely lag free as well. The only real downsides are the need to install three or four Samsung software packages (at least on a stock non-Samsung phone) and the voice control. S-Voice on this thing is nothing short of terrible. When a command is actually recognized it takes several seconds and numerous sub commands to actually do anything. By the time you compose a text message and get it sent you would have been better off just using your phone. I don't do much voice control with anything so that isn't a big deal to me. The watch does have 3G if you get a carrier version so it can function as a phone . I haven't activated mine, but that could be a nice thing for people out for a walk or run.
I would say that unless voice control is a make or break feature the S2 (or probably the upcoming S3) is well worth a look. People on Verizon can pick one up for $50 right now with a two-year activation ($5 a month) so it isn't a super expensive entry into smart watches either.
Of all the smart watches I have seen with my own eyes, the S2 has the best screen by far. The rotating bezel is a really well thought out idea. I wouldn't be surprised to see that design element copied by other manufacturers in the near future. For the most part the watch can be used without needing to touch the screen, but it does have full touch functionality as well. There are something like 20 apps pre-loaded out of the box (this is a Samsung device after all) and I haven't really felt the need to add anything else in the month or so I have been using it.
Battery life is OK. Compared to my Pebble's 7-10 day battery life, the 2-3 days I get from the S2 is a little disappointing. The watch does sleep tracking for people interested in that stuff, but with such a short battery life I can't imagine not charging it at night. The wireless charger is a nice touch though.
Overall I am very impressed. Notifications are handled well, the heart rate monitoring seems accurate and the bluetooth and WiFi connections have been solid. The watch is completely lag free as well. The only real downsides are the need to install three or four Samsung software packages (at least on a stock non-Samsung phone) and the voice control. S-Voice on this thing is nothing short of terrible. When a command is actually recognized it takes several seconds and numerous sub commands to actually do anything. By the time you compose a text message and get it sent you would have been better off just using your phone. I don't do much voice control with anything so that isn't a big deal to me. The watch does have 3G if you get a carrier version so it can function as a phone . I haven't activated mine, but that could be a nice thing for people out for a walk or run.
I would say that unless voice control is a make or break feature the S2 (or probably the upcoming S3) is well worth a look. People on Verizon can pick one up for $50 right now with a two-year activation ($5 a month) so it isn't a super expensive entry into smart watches either.
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