Samsung's been known to load exclusive features onto its products in an attempt to beef up their selling point in contrast with direct rivals in the market, and because these exclusive services often fail to win consumers, they end up being ejected by the company after a brief shelf life.
In order to veer away from this trajectory, Samsung has confirmed that Samsung Pay won't suffer the same gatekeeping, with the service slated to be available on any Android phone.
Samsung Pay On Gear S3
Samsung announced via Twitter that its new smartwatch, the Samsung Gear S3, will still support mobile payments even when paired with other Android handsets, provided that they're running Android 4.4 Kitkat or higher. It makes sense for Samsung to do something of the sort, especially since many people remain iffy about using Samsung devices after the Note 7 faux pas.
@alexdobie Hi there - yes, #SamsungPay works on the #GearS3 with other Android devices running 4.4 Kitkat or above.
— Samsung Pay (@SamsungPay) November 18, 2016
Keep in mind that Samsung isn't pushing out Samsung Pay to all Android devices. It will simply give users the option to manage their Samsung Pay accounts via the Samsung Gear app.
It's a wise move for Samsung not to block non-Samsung smartphone owners from benefiting from its proprietary mobile payment service. Customers who want to take advantage of Samsung Pay may do so now, even without owning on the company's flagships, thereby giving the Gear S3 an added value for a wide range of Android owners.
Samsung Gear S3 Specs, Pricing And Availability
The Gear S3 is Samsung's followup to last year's Gear S2, coming with the same Tizen-based operating system with a 1.3-inch Gorilla Glass SR+ display. It's a little bit bulkier than its predecessor, but that's because Samsung has loaded this device with a GPS.
The Classic and Frontier editions of the Samsung Gear S3 have been out in South Korea for a week while also launching across other markets including the United States and the UK today. The differences between the two smartwatches are minimal, seeing as the Classic edition comes off as the more sophisticated end of the pair, while the Frontier edition sports a more rugged aesthetic package.
However, the Frontier edition supports LTE network connectivity, which is just par for the course considering that people would mostly strap this along onto their wrist during rigorous activities in outdoor locations without Wi-Fi.
Both the Gear S3 Classic and Gear S3 Frontier will start at $350. Several U.S. carriers are selling the Gear S3, which you may want to look into if you're planning to get the Gear S3 Frontier, given its LTE connectivity.
Are you getting the Samsung Gear S3? What feature are you most excited about? Feel free to sound off in the comments section below!
