Rumors say Samsung is working on a follow-up to the Galaxy Watch Active, which it released earlier this year alongside the Galaxy S10 lineup of phones, and now new rumors suggest the smartwatch will feature ECG heart rate tracking.
Allegedly leaked renders of the device were published some time ago, alongside a handful of details, many of which appear to be borrowed from the Apple Watch Series 4. This time, however, Wearable has shared some more information on what to expect for the forthcoming device.
Galaxy Watch Active 2
Wearable says Samsung will release three Galaxy Watch Active models this August, presumably at the next "Unpacked" event. An additional report from SamMobile suggests the lineup will consist of an LTE model, a Bluetooth-only model, and an Under Armour variant to boot. All three are said to be coming in 40 mm and 44 mm size options, much like the Apple Watch Series 4, and all will run version 1.5 of Samsung's One UI operating system.
The publication adds that the Galaxy Watch Active 2 will be the first Samsung smartwatch to feature an ECG heart rate tracker. However, the feature allegedly won't be available immediately but will instead be added via a post-release update sometime in the first half of 2020. Which is to say the watch is expected to feature basic heart tracking only at launch, with the feature said to alert the user if their heart rate jumps too high or dips too low.
Why The Delay?
Samsung's previous smartwatches do have heart rate sensors, but these are merely light-based optical trackers, as in the case of the Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Watch Active. By contrast, electrocardiogram trackers measure electrical signals, making them more accurate and potentially capable of detecting underlying health conditions. But ECG requires federal approval before being added to a device, which is said to be the exact reason why the feature will be delayed.
The Apple Watch Series 4 features the same kind of heart rate tracker. The Cupertino brand released the watch in September, but the watch didn't receive an ECG update until December 2018 in the United States and March 2019 in the UK.
ECG heart rate tracking aside, the Galaxy Watch Active 2 appears to be a more conventional update to Samsung's smartwatch lineup. Make sure to check back with Tech Times as we learn more.
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