Samsung made its all-new Gear S2 running on its homegrown Tizen OS compatible with plenty of premium Android devices, which is not surprising, considering Samsung has other smartwatches running on Android Wear.
However, the South Korean electronics maker raised a lot of eyebrows at the IFA 2015 when it announced that it is considering making the Gear S2 compatible with iOS.
In a report by Digital Spy, a Samsung executive reportedly said that the company was not closing its doors to making its newest smartwatch work with an iPhone. Although it is not likely to happen soon, the executive said opening its Tizen-powered smartphone open to iOS is something the company is currently thinking of doing.
"We are looking at possibilities to open it up to iOS," the executive said. "Because we opened it up to Android, we are looking at this."
Making the Gear S2 compatible with iOS means Samsung has a lot of work to do because it requires the company to create an entirely new framework just for iOS users alone. Moreover, Samsung and Apple are not exactly the best of friends, considering the companies' long history of patent litigation.
However, doing so could open up the Gear S2 to a broader market, one that is not limited to users who own a Tizen or Android-powered smartphone, and could potentially attract a new user base of iPhone owners who prefer Samsung's round watch face to the Apple Watch's square-faced design.
The news comes just after Google announced that it is making Android Wear compatible with iOS, starting with the LG Watch Urbane smartwatch on Monday,Aug. 30. Meanwhile, the Gear S2 is currently compatible with many of the most popular Android smartphones, including the Nexus 6, Asus ZenFone 2, HTC One M9, LG G4, Motorola Droid Turbo and Sony Xperia Z3, among many others.
Unveiled at IFA 2015 in Berlin, the Gear S2 is a round-faced smartwatch well received by the technology press. It features an innovative rotating bezel to help users navigate through the OS and use the apps more effectively. The smartwatch also has a 1.2-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 360 x 360 and a 250mAh battery. It is powered by one of Samsung's Exynos processors, has 512GB RAM and 4GB of storage. The Gear S2 is also dust and water-resistant, and like the Apple Watch, can be controlled via voice.
