Samsung showcases the new Gear S3 at IFA 2016, and as expected, there were numerous big improvements across the board.
Right off the bat, there are two variants in store for fans of the wearable tech. The first one is the Gear S3 frontier, and the second one is the Gear S3 classic.
As some may have guessed at this point, the South Korean company didn't bother to include a base model of sorts. That means the complete lineup consists of only the rugged-looking frontier and the updated classic.
On to the features, the new Gear S3 variants both sport a Gorilla Glass SR+, the latest layer designed for smartwatches from Corning. With that on top, they are definitely capable of staying safe and sound even outdoors.
More than that, they now have built-in GPS, an increased RAM from 512 MB to 768 MB compared with the previous generation, a speaker and MST for Samsung Pay, which is something that a lot of people have been waiting for.
To keep the lights on for long durations on every charge, Samsung loaded it with a 380 mAh battery, quite a step up from the 250 mAh pack the Gear S2 has.
"Now with the new Gear S3, we expand our Gear collection and introduce not only a great smartwatch, but a great watch. With smart capabilities and sophisticated, elegant design, the Gear S3 marks a significant addition to our smartwatch portfolio," Younghee Lee, executive vice president of global marketing at Samsung, says.
Of course, the Gear S3 wearables still feature rotating bezels, wireless charging support and a dual-core chip, not to mention that they're both still IP68 certified to resist water and dust effectively. Also, to no one's surprise, it's running on the company's Tizen OS.
A quick word on the dimensions, the new iteration is bulkier and heavier than its predecessor. The Gear S2 is 11.4 mm thick and has 20 mm bands, while the Gear S3 is 12.9 mm thick and has 22 mm bands. Despite retaining the 360 x 360 resolution, the S3 gets a larger display at 1.3 inches, which is a tad bigger than the 1.2-inch screen of the S2.
Compatibility-wise, they will work with any Android device running on 4.4 KitKat or later with at least 1.5 GB of RAM, just like the Gear S2. Support for iOS has also been confirmed, but when the Gear Manager app for iOS is rolling out has yet to be revealed. It shouldn't take long, though, as Samsung already kicked off the iOS beta program recently.
While the Gear S3 frontier has LTE and Wi-Fi capability, the Gear S3 classic only supports Wi-Fi. With that said, the LTE version of the frontier will be available at AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon.
As for the release date, they are expected to launch later this year at major retailers, including Amazon, Best Buy, Macy's and at Samsung's website. Unfortunately, there's still no word about pricing just yet.
What do you think of the Gear S3 frontier and Gear S3 classic? Hit us up in the comments section below and let us know.
