Related
As I was anticipating getting the Note 2, I realized as my phone got bigger, it would require a different way of use than a smaller device. With the rumored Note 7", if it's allowed to handle calls, it is even more important to me if I upgraded to that to have a convenient way to handle calls without having to pull the whole device out.. Imagine the device in your pocket as the communications hub - you pull it out when you need to deal with the screen, but for simple tasks like calls, your smartwatch and headset would be the only things you need to interact with.
In the past, there were bluetooth headsets with caller ID displays, but I found they're not practical as you still have to look at the display, then put in your ear or you have the display part hanging around your neck/clipped on your shirt like those Sony's I've seen. A watch which can show the caller IDs, incoming texts and emails is more appealing to me.
I read from reviews that other smartwatches were either too bulky, had miserable battery life, or had issues staying connected with the phone reliably. I found the last two issues to be the case with the Sony 2nd gen Smartwatch so sent it back. I loved the promised functionality, but in practice the battery life wouldn't even last the day, which was a dealbreaker. It also would randomly disconnect from my phones so the lack of reliability for what I wanted it for was frustrating.
It seemed the Pebble was everything I was hoping for (on paper, at least), so I backed on Kickstarter and was hoping it would be out by the time I got a Note, but since it's not shipping yet, I went and got the Metawatch Frame. So far I'm really liking it, even though there aren't a lot of widgets/apps developed for it at this early stage. My primary requirement of at least a days worth of battery life (actually can go several days) and reliable bluetooth attachment so that it instantly shows incoming caller ID is working great. Even shows the contacts picture on the watch (in low res monochrome). http://metawatch.myshopify.com - I got the Frame version since I thought Strata looks too bulky.
So far I have it set up to do email/SMS/Caller ID, weather forecasts. You can set up more notifications, but they will eat up battery life and I didn't want to always have every little notification show up on my watch.
You will have to update the firmware on the watch if it ships w/ 1.1 to 1.2 so it supports the Metawatch Community Edition - a simple email to their support will promptly get you a link and instructions to upgrade the FW.
Watch Manager you load on your phone: https://play.google.com/store/apps/...t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5tZXRhd2F0Y2gubXdtIl0.
Watch Manager Community Edition (has more features, but needs 1.2 FW): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.metawatch.communityedition&feature=search_result
Apps: https://play.google.com/store/search?q=metawatch&c=apps
Is anyone else using a smartwatch w/ their Note 2? How are your experiences with them?
Hi.
Do u run stock ROM? Android 4.1.2?
I have ordered the Metawatch frame and from what I have heard, metawatch and Android 4.2.1 is not a good match atm. (BT bug)
I'm useing CM10.1 on Note2
Sent from my GT-N7100 using xda premium
i was using the motorola motoactv until i decided to test how water resistant it was. needless to say, it didnt handle heavy rain very well.
My Motoactv meets my needs. While it isnt water proof, as the above user mentioned, I love it. You can get text, call, weather and Facebook alerts. Rooting the device can add more functions as well.
chino0131 said:
My Motoactv meets my needs. While it isnt water proof, as the above user mentioned, I love it. You can get text, call, weather and Facebook alerts. Rooting the device can add more functions as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mmm, i loved it. the only things missing were a vibration function and google maps/navigation out of the box.
considering buying another one.
Hmmm I wonder what is better, if the metawatch or the pebble... Im getting interested on something like this.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda app-developers app
lfrp said:
Hmmm I wonder what is better, if the metawatch or the pebble... Im getting interested on something like this.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
UPDATE: Just recieved my Metawatch see next page for update.
The Pebble first caught my eye a little while back and I was planning on getting one. But after learning about the Metawatch the other day and looking at the functionality of both, I just ordered a Metawatch. I read and watched several reviews in coming to my conclusion. I went with the Frame model instead of the Strata because the black model of the strata is on back order (I like simple understated colors).
The main reason was that the Metawatch currently offers more functionality, from what I can tell. Both offer notifications for calls, e-mails & text, but the Metawatch allows you to:
- Answer calls, dismiss calls or answer with speakerphone from the watch (Can't hear or talk from the watch of course, but can answer a take call over BT headset from the
watch after checking it for caller ID)
- Displays weather, something I haven't seen on the Pebble yet.
I also like having widgets on the Metawatch that allows you to have more info on one screen, Time/date, local weather and notifications (e-mail, SMS & calls). I rather have the option to have all this info on one screen.
Likes and dislikes of the Pebble are as fallow...
Like:
- The higher resolution screen than the Metawatche's screen.
- The supposed Runkeeper integration (though not available yet). AS a Runkeeper user this is big to me. (I may get one eventually if the
Runkeeper integration actually comes togeather.
- I like the look of the Pebble over the Strata (though I'm getting the Metawatch Frame witch I think looks as good or better than the pebble).
- The magnetic charging setup is superior the the Metawatche's clumsy silly looking clip.
Dislikes:
- Limited functionality compared to the Metawatch (ablitly to answer (preferably with a BT headset , dismiss or send calls to speakerphone).
I'm sure the Pebble's functionality will expand over time, but it's not yet there, not for me at least.
- The clock faces should have a sub-menu in the in the home screen so there not all in there with music, set alarm and settings options. Not to
mention that the three default clock faces are at the top of the above music, set alarm and settings option then any clock faces you download
are under the music, set alarm and settings options. Again not well thought out.
- It's will probably be 1-3 months before the catch up shipping and are able get watches out to new customers. I'd be willing to wait if it offered
more functionality, as it is I'm not willing to wait.
All things considered I find the Metawatch the more appealing option for me. Though the Runkeeper functionality the Pebble is promised to have in March or so really make me consider getting Pebble eventually. The Metawatch is suppose to have a run tracking app built in But I already use Runkeeper and would like to use one single app to track my runs. Thus far I have found no info in run tracking functionality on the Metawatch so I have no idea what to expect.
WIMM
I am currently using the Wimm One, but you can't buy them any longer. Mine works pretty good with either my GS3 or GN2.
Just like the OP, I needed something for caller ID, etc.
I really, really wanted an excuse to get the MotoActiv, but the lack of a vibrator motor was a deal-killer for me.
If and when my Wimm dies, I will definitely be getting a suitable replacement. I didn't back the Pebble because I had already had the Wimm.
I am going to go check out the Meta.
I LOVE the idea of a smartwatch! I've been doing extensive research and am intrigued by the available options.
My problem is, I would hate the look of a small color screen on my wrist. It simply doesn't look professional to me. While there are other alternatives out there, none of them does what I'm interested in or are within my price range.
I've looked at I'm Watch, Sony Smart Watch, Pebble, Martian, etc. The only one visually appealing to me is the cookoo. But its only for iPhone!! Who in there right mind would design and release a product that's for the smartphone market, yet be proprietary to one OS. Morons.
So. I'm on a mission to make something myself. And to be honest the design would be rather simple. A watch wjth the following capabilities.
Bluetooth, low powered.
Time mechanism with a separate power source
Vibrate motor
Notification ring light
Manual set time dial
Bluetooth pairing button
Dismiss notification button (long press show battery remaining)
Magnetic charging dock
Android / WP8/ iOS / BB10 App
All I want is a phone that shows me via customizable lights/vibrate pattern whats happening on my phone. I don't need to complete the actions on my watch, to me that's just silly. I can glance and simply see I have a pending email, text, Facebook/twitter notification etc. Best part is, the batter can last for weeks.
Too bad I have no means to complete this lol
The most interesting watch to me is the
Sent from my SGH-I317M using xda app-developers app
Hi,
To those who have purchased this watch did you have to purchase the charging clip separately? It's currently showing out of stock.
Also how much are you guys paying for shipping? My shipping costs are estimated at $61 Australian. Excessive but none the less I am still looking at purchasing one.
Thanks
Sent from my GT-N7105 using xda premium
Can someone tell me about the running/cycling app? I can find no info on this at all.
---------- Post added at 01:15 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:02 AM ----------
LuvinN1 said:
Hi,
To those who have purchased this watch did you have to purchase the charging clip separately? It's currently showing out of stock.
Also how much are you guys paying for shipping? My shipping costs are estimated at $61 Australian. Excessive but none the less I am still looking at purchasing one.
Thanks
Sent from my GT-N7105 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The charging clip should come in the box with the watch.
Wow, that shipping cost sucks! Have you considered getting one from e-bay. You can get it for less and save a bunch on shipping. This is where I ordered one last night. I wnet with the Frame model as I wanted it in black and the Strata is back-ordered for the black one.
Strata model:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Metawatch-m...266?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f21bf71ba
Frame model:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Metawatch-m...733?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f21cc73ad
or this Frame model from the UK:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Metawatch-B...es_Watches_MensWatches_GL&hash=item35c3e5fa04
RojasTKD said:
Can someone tell me about the running/cycling app? I can find no info on this at all.
---------- Post added at 01:15 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:02 AM ----------
The charging clip should come in the box with the watch.
Wow, that shipping cost sucks! Have you considered getting one from e-bay. You can get it for less and save a bunch on shipping. This is where I ordered one last night. I wnet with the Frame model as I wanted it in black and the Strata is back-ordered for the black one.
Strata model:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Metawatch-m...266?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f21bf71ba
Frame model:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Metawatch-m...733?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3f21cc73ad
or this Frame model from the UK:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Metawatch-B...es_Watches_MensWatches_GL&hash=item35c3e5fa04
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks mate. Forgot about ebay. The misses wants one too. You have saved me hundreds. Planning to get the white and black frames.
Sent from my GT-N7105 using xda premium
LuvinN1 said:
Thanks mate. Forgot about ebay. The misses wants one too. You have saved me hundreds. Planning to get the white and black frames.
Sent from my GT-N7105 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad I was able to be of service. I hope you enjoy. Mine should arrive this week, excited!
Oh and feel free to it the THANKS button if you like
added some info I had forgot to mention
Here's an update as my Metawatch arrived yesterday. I got the frame model instead of the more sporty Strata. See here:
http://metawatch.myshopify.com/collections/watches-all
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
UPDATE: 2/13/2013
After talking to a few developers (Special thanks to the developer of Augmented Smartwatch Pro) I switched to Community Manager from the Noah Edition of the Metawatch Manager, as recent updates to Noah seem to have caused issues. So far today I have had no freezes and the batter is still reading 100% two and half hours off the charger. Still to early to tell but at least some of the issues may have been related to the update to Noah edition. Noah had an update this morning, but I haven't tried it yet. I'll be trying Augmented Smartwatch Pro soon to see if that is also working better now that I'm using community edition.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
UPDATE: 2/14/2013
Since the update to the Community Edition and Noah Edition of the Metawatch Manager apps my watch has worked almost flawless, without freezes and the battery life has improved. Charges it and had it pared with my watch since last night so It lasted 20 - 24 hours. Not the 3 -5 days that the spec sheet claims but the could be the the Metawatch Manager app i'm using. Going to try Noah Edition again tomorrow as it been updated and should not give me the issues I was originally having when I first received my watch.
The screen is still had to read in anything but a well lit room or outdoors during the day. On the plus side it is very visible in direct sun light.
It this point I'm satisfied and don't regret getting the Metawatch.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
UPDATE 2/18/2013
Well, I'm happy to report that I seem to improved my battery issue. I tried as someone recommended and did a reset after charging (holding the two middle buttons for a few seconds). Yesterday my after about 12 hours my battery was at 87% instead of the 34% I was getting before.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
First the screen I'm not a big fan of. On the good side it is always on so you can tell the time with a glance (kind of). It is also easily readable in direct sun light. The problem is it's best viewable in a bright room. when I'm in room that not WELL lit it's hard to see the screen. You have to find the angle that allows the watch to catch the light. Yes, there is a LED light it the top, but it a bit of a pain and you I haven't found a way to change the time out. If you turn on the light and start doing something on the watch it will time out in 4 - 5 seconds then you have to keep hitting it to finish doing what you doing. The text is also small and often difficult to read and navigate. Ofter just a short time with the watch I really really wished it had a touch screen. Using the buttons to navigate with the tiny tiny icons that tell you their function get very tedious.
If you use the Metawatch Manager Community Edition (A third party modified version of the official Metawatch manager that adds much more functionality) you can not only get notifications for calls, gmail, and text.... you can also answer you phone with a push of a button (with the use of a BT headset), or answer you phone via speakerphone from you watch. going into you phones setting>accessibility and giving the Metawatch software permission it you can notification from just about any app that shows notifications on you notification bar, I haven't figured out how to get notifications for my regular (NON-Gmail) e-mails. Also I like having my time, weather phone battery status and missed call and missed text on one screen.
The really bad so far, In the day and a half I've owned this watch I've had 4 - 5 freezes. The watch becomes totally responsive. I have to connect and disconnect it from the charging clip over and over and over (8 - 28 times) to get it to reboot. I was out today having a bite when this happened. Not having the clip and power source available made the watch useless until I got home. I decided to re-flash the latest firmware again (witch I did on day one) and see if that helps. I may try FW 1.2 as that may be more stable and still work with Community Edition.
To keep this short I'm just going to give you some pros and cons for the rest:
Pro:
- Good functionality: Can get all kinds of notifications (with Community Edition) and even Answer (with headset), ignore, or answer via
speakerphone.
- Can scroll and read entire messages (text, gmail)
- Nice looking watch compared to many others. Classy enough to wear in any occasion.
- I have a screen where options to: quick dial my favorites, put my phone in or out of silent mode or ping my phone (to find lost phone). Also
has a option titled, "voice search", but so far it doesn't seem to do anything. Oh, and an option to view a list of notifications (text, calls, any
and all notifications that have appeared on you phone.
- Vibrates with alarm clock (but only stock alarm, and I'm used to using Alarm Clock Plus).
- Vibrates with notifications something that the Motoactv dose not do ( I have a Motoactv on the way).
- Screen is always on and doesn't time out.
- Can see a calendar and with a button press can view a list of events on my calender.
Cons:
- Freezes too often. I hope re-flashing the firmware (1.3) or flashing the previous (1.2) firmware will fix this.
- Screen can be difficult to read if not in a well lit place.
- LED light at the top just seems so 1980's. Wish screen would stay lit with button presses so I could navigate with out having to continually turn
on the light. Text is small and hard to read at times. I think I'd prefer a Motoactv or Sony Smartwatch screen even if they are not always on.
- There often a delayed response to the button presses. Sometimes I push it it again thinking it didn't register only to then have to register two
button presses.
- It suppose to have a built in running and cycling app of some kind, but so far it just, "coming soon".
- Buttons and no touch screen makes navigation really start to feel tedious a times.
Battery is hard so say as I got the watch yesterday, but so far it not meeting their claims. It cam off the charger yesterday at about 5:00 or 5:30 pm and by 10:30 this morning it it was showing zero and I attached the charger. It came off the charger at about at around 12:30 or 1:30. It is now 2:23 am and it showing 54%, so it will probably not last past tomorrow morning. I'll give it some time before I make a final determination on battery life.
The freezing issue aside (hoping firmware will resolve) aside the screen is my biggest complaint. I would like something more readable and have come to the conclusion that a touch screen should be a must for a smartwatch.
I haven't tried the Augmented Smartphone Pro app that is said to bring some additionality functionality to the Metawatch (as well as Sony Smartwatch, Motoactv and Pebble). But will be seeing what if offers next week. Also next week I should have a Sony Smartwatch and Motorola Motoactv in my hands next week.
Though I like the more understated and classy look of the Metawatch I'm looking forward to receiving the Sony Smartwatch and Motorola Motoactv. I think I will enjoy the screens more both for readability of text and the touchscreen.
interesting and nice overall review. I'm temped to grab something like this. Just haven't been able not to talk myself out of it.
What you said about the screen seems to be the overall theme I've read from other reviews as well. It's the trade off from having some kind of LCD/touch screen which are more power hungry, and seem to only last a few hours. Can't necessarily argue against your point, but it may not be biggest knock, considering the trade off.
lovekeiiy said:
interesting and nice overall review. I'm temped to grab something like this. Just haven't been able not to talk myself out of it.
What you said about the screen seems to be the overall theme I've read from other reviews as well. It's the trade off from having some kind of LCD/touch screen which are more power hungry, and seem to only last a few hours. Can't necessarily argue against your point, but it may not be biggest knock, considering the trade off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its funny I read a lot of people talking about the Sony Smartwatch and how its battery is horrible. I bought mine when I had an SGS2 and the battery life was horrible. lasted <1 day. Also seriously drained my phones battery. When I got my SGN2 I pulled it out of my gadget drawer and set it up again. It works perfectly. Watch battery lasts around 3 days, and it doesn't impact the battery life on my phone at all. If anything a few percent per day. I do wish for an "always on" display, but I've gotta say the smartwatch works pretty well with my note2.
Thanks!
Thanks for taking the time to give us your initial experiences with the Meta.
I am still using my Wimm One, and before that, I had the Sony. I absolutely HATED the Sony. In fairness, it was their first-gen watch, but unless it has improved dramatically, I think you are going to be more disappointed in it than you were the Meta. The Sony can't even stand-alone and function as a watch without being paired to and in range of a phone.
I just wish the Moto had a vibration motor and I think it would be the undisputed choice.
So I have a STRATA coming soon. Got a really good deal on eBay (I am not sure how the price can be so low, so I am skeptical that something might be wrong with it). I also have a Pebble coming (Grey so who knows when I will get it) and I think I can use both. So thanks for your review I like the idea of having the widgets on the screen and think the small developer community is trying to really make a good device out of it. I looked at the Sony and the Moto briefly. The one thing about the Moto was it seemed like it was geared towards activity (running mostly) and I was looking for something that would show notifications (calling, email, etc), weather, ebay, really anything that can push information. How does the Moto fit there?
lovekeiiy said:
interesting and nice overall review. I'm temped to grab something like this. Just haven't been able not to talk myself out of it.
What you said about the screen seems to be the overall theme I've read from other reviews as well. It's the trade off from having some kind of LCD/touch screen which are more power hungry, and seem to only last a few hours. Can't necessarily argue against your point, but it may not be biggest knock, considering the trade off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I understand the idea behind the screen and battery life, but honestly I rather have something that is more easily read and navigated even if it has to time out and I have to charge it every night. It very easliy read out door in in the brightest of sunlight, but indoors you have to move the angles to find one in witch you can make it out (in less it a very well lit room. Heck, I charged it over night until about 11 am today, it now 10:15pm and it at 22% according to the display. The Sony and Motorola can do better than that.
It did lock up on me twice today. I e-mailed support and asked for firmware 1.2 to see if it was better, but they told me that FW 1.2 never made it out of beta and they recommend 1.3. They gave me some instructions to unpair the device and reinstall the app. Their instruction where for iOS and I'm on running Android (Galaxy Note II), so I unpaired the watch uninstalled the app and reinstalled it. I even rebooted the watch and phone. So we'll see if tomorrow brings any more freezes.
robroy90 said:
Thanks for taking the time to give us your initial experiences with the Meta.
I am still using my Wimm One, and before that, I had the Sony. I absolutely HATED the Sony. In fairness, it was their first-gen watch, but unless it has improved dramatically, I think you are going to be more disappointed in it than you were the Meta. The Sony can't even stand-alone and function as a watch without being paired to and in range of a phone.
I just wish the Moto had a vibration motor and I think it would be the undisputed choice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, the Sony Smartwatch has gotten some good updates, and is a much improved device from when it was first released. It can even keep time even if it looses it's connection to the phone. It's actually a pretty capable device at this point, especially when paired with an app called Augmented smatwatch Pro. The thing makes it a bit ugly is the built in clip that makes almost twice as think as it would be otherwise.
Character Zero said:
So I have a STRATA coming soon. Got a really good deal on eBay (I am not sure how the price can be so low, so I am skeptical that something might be wrong with it). I also have a Pebble coming (Grey so who knows when I will get it) and I think I can use both. So thanks for your review I like the idea of having the widgets on the screen and think the small developer community is trying to really make a good device out of it. I looked at the Sony and the Moto briefly. The one thing about the Moto was it seemed like it was geared towards activity (running mostly) and I was looking for something that would show notifications (calling, email, etc), weather, ebay, really anything that can push information. How does the Moto fit there?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Moto is geared to fitness activities, but it can also receive notifications. In fact you can answer call either via a wired headphones with mic (included) or wireless headset (I have the Motorola S11 Flex HD I use when running). Again the Augmented Smartphone app adds functionality as far as receiving notifications in the motoactv as well. You can get weather on the Motoactv also (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.motorola.notifier.plugin.accuweather&hl=en).
You can even root the Motoactv and run many Android apps (thought not all apps will work or have totally functionality). With it's built in WiFi, BT and GPS it's almost like a tiny tablet.
The only thing it lacks to make it what I would consider an awesome smartwatch is the lack of a vibrating motor for notifications. If it had vibrating alerts I'd consider making it my only smartwatch.
Got mine yesterday and so far would not recommend this watch to anybody. It has given me nothing but troubles. The community edition app kept freezing my watch so I'm using Noah's meta watch app and purchased augmented smart watch pro for extra functions.
The most irritating trouble I am facing apart from the freezes is with the phone call screen and messaging screen. When receiving calls or messages I cannot go back to the original or 1st screen. In addition none of my buttons under the action screen works.
I also purchased one for the misses to be used with the iphone. Does not crash or freeze but is useless with the limited functions available. Watch does not even vibrate during incoming calls even though I have enabled this feature. Her music control functions and toggling between screens works and seems smooth (mine does not work on android). Again the downside for her is with the limited functions and connectivity issues. It keeps disconnecting and connecting.
Now I am stuck with 2 useless watches. I wear mine only because I purchased it. I'm thinking of just placing it back in the box because I am about to lose my mind.
Sent from my GT-N7105 using xda premium
Hi,
I am an unfortunate owner of this POS. I also own a Pebble.
The battery life is 1 - 2 days. I knew this going in, but if you use it a lot outdoors (and have to turn the brightness up) then its much closer to 1 day.
The apps are terrible. Beyond terrible. Most dont work properly or at all. Eg. Evernote "recent notes", Tweet QuickView (which simply doesnt work - see my review and vendor reply on the app store.).
Notifications (surely the only thing that I *need* a smart watch for?) are pathetic. If I get a GMail, a Tweet etc then it tells me to look at it on the phone. I cannot add other apps into the notifications list... so Tapatalk, my own Android apps etc cannot send even a notification prompt to the phone.
Camera is poor quality and useless. Speaker is too quiet to use for calls (not that you would want to) and the Media Controller is not some clever OS level change - it just plays whatever music app is in "ongoing notifications". Same as Pebble and Augmented Smartwatch etc. So sometimes you dont play the media you want.
Do not buy this product. There is nothing good about it at all.
Neil
RealEvil_UK said:
Hi,
I am an unfortunate owner of this POS. I also own a Pebble.
The battery life is 1 - 2 days. I knew this going in, but if you use it a lot outdoors (and have to turn the brightness up) then its much closer to 1 day.
The apps are terrible. Beyond terrible. Most dont work properly or at all. Eg. Evernote "recent notes", Tweet QuickView (which simply doesnt work - see my review and vendor reply on the app store.).
Notifications (surely the only thing that I *need* a smart watch for?) are pathetic. If I get a GMail, a Tweet etc then it tells me to look at it on the phone. I cannot add other apps into the notifications list... so Tapatalk, my own Android apps etc cannot send even a notification prompt to the phone.
Camera is poor quality and useless. Speaker is too quiet to use for calls (not that you would want to) and the Media Controller is not some clever OS level change - it just plays whatever music app is in "ongoing notifications". Same as Pebble and Augmented Smartwatch etc. So sometimes you dont play the media you want.
Do not buy this product. There is nothing good about it at all.
Neil
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you just purchase it or??? If you just purchased it today you should take it back. I thought about purchasing it but I am going to wait. I usually jump on first gen stuff but I had the Inpulse watch, I had the Wim Labs prototype, I had the playbook (and see how that turned out).
I hope there are other people that will chime in about this. FWIW, I also think the pebble is crap. The support, I hear, is the same lousy support the company provided for the Inpulse watch.
Not surprised a bit
RealEvil_UK said:
Hi,
I am an unfortunate owner of this POS. I also own a Pebble.
The battery life is 1 - 2 days. I knew this going in, but if you use it a lot outdoors (and have to turn the brightness up) then its much closer to 1 day.
The apps are terrible. Beyond terrible. Most dont work properly or at all. Eg. Evernote "recent notes", Tweet QuickView (which simply doesnt work - see my review and vendor reply on the app store.).
Notifications (surely the only thing that I *need* a smart watch for?) are pathetic. If I get a GMail, a Tweet etc then it tells me to look at it on the phone. I cannot add other apps into the notifications list... so Tapatalk, my own Android apps etc cannot send even a notification prompt to the phone.
Camera is poor quality and useless. Speaker is too quiet to use for calls (not that you would want to) and the Media Controller is not some clever OS level change - it just plays whatever music app is in "ongoing notifications". Same as Pebble and Augmented Smartwatch etc. So sometimes you dont play the media you want.
Do not buy this product. There is nothing good about it at all.
Neil
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sucks to hear , the notifications seem like crap but apparently need to be updated by vendor. Someone mentioned a new API that would allow a 3rd party to setup a notification system. No idea how they could launch with such limited notifications.
Can you upload some camera and video samples ? One mans crap is another mans "ok"
xManMythLegend said:
Sucks to hear , the notifications seem like crap but apparently need to be updated by vendor. Someone mentioned a new API that would allow a 3rd party to setup a notification system. No idea how they could launch with such limited notifications.
Can you upload some camera and video samples ? One mans crap is another mans "ok"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hate to fan the fire between us but having read your mail I find myself asking if YOU actually own one? Why do you keep asking for pictures?
---------- Post added at 09:19 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:07 PM ----------
RealEvil_UK said:
Hi,
I am an unfortunate owner of this POS. I also own a Pebble.
The battery life is 1 - 2 days. I knew this going in, but if you use it a lot outdoors (and have to turn the brightness up) then its much closer to 1 day.
The apps are terrible. Beyond terrible. Most dont work properly or at all. Eg. Evernote "recent notes", Tweet QuickView (which simply doesnt work - see my review and vendor reply on the app store.).
Notifications (surely the only thing that I *need* a smart watch for?) are pathetic. If I get a GMail, a Tweet etc then it tells me to look at it on the phone. I cannot add other apps into the notifications list... so Tapatalk, my own Android apps etc cannot send even a notification prompt to the phone.
Camera is poor quality and useless. Speaker is too quiet to use for calls (not that you would want to) and the Media Controller is not some clever OS level change - it just plays whatever music app is in "ongoing notifications". Same as Pebble and Augmented Smartwatch etc. So sometimes you dont play the media you want.
Do not buy this product. There is nothing good about it at all.
Neil
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unsure what you where expecting. I am unhappy with the gear also but for different reasons. Oddly enough I have experienced zero software problems to date.
With care and respect I have to ask what you expected from the camera? Jeez its a toy and more or less just for fund snaps. I have this thing about phone cameras. I love photography so use a DSLR. I know little about the art but do know one cannot seriously expect great photos from a mobile phone., or wrist watch in this case.
It is sad as yet again I feel a major brand has introduced to a market a product that is not user ready. I mean the IP is IP55!! Water and this watch are not friends.
At present I am enjoying the learning curve and new toy. I said before I purchased it that it would end up collecting dust in some draw before long. Lets see. BTW I bought mine on the 27th and the battery only needed a charge this afternoon? £ days of decent usage and experimenting.
I expected to need to recharge every night. Not the case so far.
Don't set me of regarding the quality of that strap
In your shoes I would return it for a refund. Problem is for this type of device this is as good as it gets.
Kind regards..
I look forward to getting mine next week, but I will have 14 days to check it out and by the sounds of things I may not be happy (time will tell) and if I am not I will just return it and get something else.
BTW there is always the Omate TrueSmart watch which can be used without a SIM and is competely water proof.
Ryland Johnson said:
I hate to fan the fire between us but having read your mail I find myself asking if YOU actually own one? Why do you keep asking for pictures?
---------- Post added at 09:19 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:07 PM ----------
Unsure what you where expecting. I am unhappy with the gear also but for different reasons. Oddly enough I have experienced zero software problems to date.
With care and respect I have to ask what you expected from the camera? Jeez its a toy and more or less just for fund snaps. I have this thing about phone cameras. I love photography so use a DSLR. I know little about the art but do know one cannot seriously expect great photos from a mobile phone., or wrist watch in this case.
It is sad as yet again I feel a major brand has introduced to a market a product that is not user ready. I mean the IP is IP55!! Water and this watch are not friends.
At present I am enjoying the learning curve and new toy. I said before I purchased it that it would end up collecting dust in some draw before long. Lets see. BTW I bought mine on the 27th and the battery only needed a charge this afternoon? £ days of decent usage and experimenting.
I expected to need to recharge every night. Not the case so far.
Don't set me of regarding the quality of that strap
In your shoes I would return it for a refund. Problem is for this type of device this is as good as it gets.
Kind regards..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
he would return if he actully bought one....these are usually paid trolls by other companies....if i have bought sometime and im not satisfy with it.i will just take it back and not write stupid stuff about it.(beauty is eye of the beholder)i may not like something that dont mean the other person wont like it.
Ryland Johnson said:
I hate to fan the fire between us but having read your mail I find myself asking if YOU actually own one? Why do you keep asking for pictures?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Obviously I do not which is why I have given no opinion on it.
He started a thread claiming the picture and video quality being poor. Why wouldn't I ask for samples?
It's crazy to just take everyone's opinion and not ask for something tangible.
When people make negative threads they should expect to back-up claims.
Also I have taken no offense to your posts.
Hi,
The Samsung Experience Store in Westfield Shopping Centre (in London) told me that I cannot have a refund. I am now arguing with them that the product is defective as its clearly not "ready to be sold and is therefore defective". To be honest I am not going to stress too much on it as I *only* paid £200 as I bought with a Note 3 (which I love) and due to a pre-order offer I got a total of £100 savings for buying the 2 together. I will sell it on eBay if I have to and probably not lose much. And in case you cannot detect the cynicism - I do feel cheated that I spent £200 on this device as the only way to get it for this price was to pre-order it BEFORE the release, which meant I couldn't try the device before pre-ordering and pre-paying. As soon as I used it for more than a day I phoned them up and they told me that they do not accept returns for anything that is not defective.
Do you really need me to give you a photo sample? Reviews are full of them. The watch strap camera is poor. I didn't expect more, but it takes awful photos in anything other than good light. This is inline with my expectations going in, but it doesn't make it any less of a half baked feature.
The Apps are dreadful. Most S-Voice commands dont work via the watch. Whoever said they got 4 days battery life has had a very different experience to me. The battery life is very much linked to the screen brightness from my experience - and anything less that full brightness is not very readable outdoors. Indoors with low brightness I guess its possible that I would get 4 days... but I dont think I will own the device long enough to really test it.
RealEvil_UK said:
Hi,
The Samsung Experience Store in Westfield Shopping Centre (in London) told me that I cannot have a refund. I am now arguing with them that the product is defective as its clearly not "ready to be sold and is therefore defective". To be honest I am not going to stress too much on it as I *only* paid £200 as I bought with a Note 3 (which I love) and due to a pre-order offer I got a total of £100 savings for buying the 2 together. I will sell it on eBay if I have to and probably not lose much. And in case you cannot detect the cynicism - I do feel cheated that I spent £200 on this device as the only way to get it for this price was to pre-order it BEFORE the release, which meant I couldn't try the device before pre-ordering and pre-paying. As soon as I used it for more than a day I phoned them up and they told me that they do not accept returns for anything that is not defective.
Do you really need me to give you a photo sample? Reviews are full of them. The watch strap camera is poor. I didn't expect more, but it takes awful photos in anything other than good light. This is inline with my expectations going in, but it doesn't make it any less of a half baked feature.
The Apps are dreadful. Most S-Voice commands dont work via the watch. Whoever said they got 4 days battery life has had a very different experience to me. The battery life is very much linked to the screen brightness from my experience - and anything less that full brightness is not very readable outdoors. Indoors with low brightness I guess its possible that I would get 4 days... but I dont think I will own the device long enough to really test it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i totally not agree with you
we just have to wait... and i can explain you why
(before all, sorry for my bad english)
the notifications works bad, i agree, BUT it's a software problem that (hopefully) will be fixed by 3rd party apps
an example? do you use Line?
if you don't use it please throw whatsapp into the garbage and try line
Line has an app for the gear that not only shows very beautiful notifications style, but let you reply with some pre-selected stickers.
we just have to wait for software houses to update and code their own notification app
i'm confident this will happen soon
the gear have a GREAT potential... something that pebble doesn't have (i've got the pebble too)
let's wait a bit... it's out since few days.
PS: battery time 2 days for me
Yes, when someone on XDA says photos are garbage then photos are requisite.
I saw pics and videos and comments were nowhere near as negative as yours. If you post pics perhaps some kind of flaw or problem with your unit can be revealed. Or we come to the conclusion your "taste" is different from others.
You guys think way too highly of your "opinions" and expect them to be taken as gospel. Make a claim back it up let others scrutinize. That's how things work, that's how problems, bugs, hardware flaws get exposed. Not "it's garbage trust me".
Gear could be the crappiest waste ever... But if you say it is... Show people why.
faremoney said:
i totally not agree with you
we just have to wait... and i can explain you why
(before all, sorry for my bad english)
the notifications works bad, i agree, BUT it's a software problem that (hopefully) will be fixed by 3rd party apps
an example? do you use Line?
if you don't use it please throw whatsapp into the garbage and try line
Line has an app for the gear that not only shows very beautiful notifications style, but let you reply with some pre-selected stickers.
we just have to wait for software houses to update and code their own notification app
i'm confident this will happen soon
the gear have a GREAT potential... something that pebble doesn't have (i've got the pebble too)
let's wait a bit... it's out since few days.
PS: battery time 2 days for me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I dont think that anyone - not even Samsung - can release a brand new product which *requires* 3rd party app developers to do something to support it. Why would Google bother to update GMail to support a few thousand watch owners? I wouldn't.
What Samsung should have implemented - just like a lot of the supporting apps for Pebble (e.g. Augmented SmartWatch Pro) - is to "scrape" all notifications and allow them ALL to be sent to the watch. This way, 3rd party app developers don't *have* to do anything. They only have to write apps for the device if they wish to offer something extra.
RealEvil_UK said:
Hi, I dont think that anyone - not even Samsung - can release a brand new product which *requires* 3rd party app developers to do something to support it. Why would Google bother to update GMail to support a few thousand watch owners? I wouldn't.
What Samsung should have implemented - just like a lot of the supporting apps for Pebble (e.g. Augmented SmartWatch Pro) - is to "scrape" all notifications and allow them ALL to be sent to the watch. This way, 3rd party app developers don't *have* to do anything. They only have to write apps for the device if they wish to offer something extra.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes but in the moment we are talking, ebay JUST released Ebay for Gear.... and it works beautifully
and remember there is a market out there... the apps can be free or paid, so who comes first can find an open market... :good:
This product wont be a success. Samsung will learn from it and release a updated model with wider Android support and for half the price within the next 6 - 12 months. That v2 product will probably be worth considering, but I feel cheated as a v1 owner that this product has been very poorly thought out and is effectively a alpha product/proof of concept.
The most basic functionality of Smart Watch - to me at least - is notifications. Custom apps are potentially interesting but not the "vital" feature that I could use 20 - 50 times a day. And in this regard, the Galaxy Gear is a terrible failure.
I think, I don't know, that a number of us are disappointed with the gear for several reasons.
Most of us made this a re order purchase mea culpa, to this end not only where any hands on reviews thin on the ground but until launch date non of us even knew what it would even look like.
Again I guess, It is perhaps significant that many of us purchased the Note 3 and the Gear as a pre order purchase at a discount price. Like many here I made a saving on the Gear by purchasing the two items together. Call me suspicious but perhaps and only perhaps, Samsung knew this was very much a project in the making and sold the Gear discounted knowing it would soften the blow? This is of course pure conjecture.
I made this purchase for several reasons. I have enjoyed my past Samsung mobiles, the Nexus S, SGS2, 3 and Note 1. I am a gadget freak, love the stuff always have. Lastly I collect watches, that's in by blood.
One can imagine my response when a new mobile AND watch came out together. Geek nirvana.
The Gear IS expensive, its not a cheapo try it and bin it. IF the concept had worked it would have been acceptable. With due respect to Samsung I cant see this as a consumer ready device.
Okay. The camera. Again with due respect and care for the OP I am unsure what any of us could reasonably expect from a 1,9 MP camera?
Its a sales gimmick and something to use to snap a quick shot, though even that doesn't work.
What does concern me the most is that strap and clasp. The clasp is the type that has a history of being the most problematic and is generally found on the cheaper end of the market for watches if used at all these days. When we close the clasp and here that 'click' that sound is made by a tiny piece of pressed steel bending slightly into a hole and binding with the other half of the clasp. What happens is after time that tiny tiny piece of metal weakens and eventually no longer 'clicks' into place.
What customers then do is try to bend it back so it again will hold and this further weakens the pressed steel part. I wont write again about the material used to produce the strap-under body as I simply cannot for see the future. What I can guess, again, is this strap is perhaps not going to last too long, it just doesn't feel durable and is certainly not vulcanised rubber. The strap is an integral part of the watch and cannot thus be replaced, hence my over concern regarding the strap.
As for the software, I am still learning how to use it and have come across some possible flaws BUT it may be ignorance on my part and until I read the manual and try to resolve the problem I am experiencing I will not complain.
Lastly I do agree with those owners who suggest this is very much a work in progress and should perhaps have been delayed for further development until at least the water resistance could be improved etc....
ALL opinion form an owner. Time is going to be the best teacher.
Kind regards.
Here is my take on this. I don't own Gear, yet, and my opinion is based on reading other reviews and opinions and in general based on the fact that I review gadgets on XDA as a full time hobby (check out link in my signature ).
A success of smartwatch is based on hardware and software. So far the main gripe I heard about hardware is battery life which to my pleasant surprise people reporting to as lasting1-2 days rather then "less then a day", all that with typical use or perhaps higher then average since everybody wants to play with camera. I suspect that might even improve with some software optimization in the future. Other then that, I also heard some people saying wristband is not was they expected (in terms of material) - oh well, this is not your typical $500-$1000 watch but rather an electronic gadget you strap to your wrist. So basically most of the complains are with software which we all know going to be fixed, sooner (from Samsung) or later (maybe even with some rooting or custom ROM, etc.) Once 4.3 updates start rolling in to cover S3/S4/N2 users and US market going to see N3 release that's when the real "beta" testing going to start. Right now, you guys are alpha-testers, early technology adopters. Everyone's expectations was that it will work straight out of the box. Well, it happened to some extent but not 100%. I'm sure the improvement will happen in the next few months, just have to be patient if you decide to stick around and keep this smartwatch.
Just my 2 cents.
RealEvil_UK said:
Hi, I dont think that anyone - not even Samsung - can release a brand new product which *requires* 3rd party app developers to do something to support it. Why would Google bother to update GMail to support a few thousand watch owners? I wouldn't.
What Samsung should have implemented - just like a lot of the supporting apps for Pebble (e.g. Augmented SmartWatch Pro) - is to "scrape" all notifications and allow them ALL to be sent to the watch. This way, 3rd party app developers don't *have* to do anything. They only have to write apps for the device if they wish to offer something extra.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Android 4.3 has the APIs to do just that.
I'm working on that app right now. Will keep XDA updated with progress
vectron said:
Here is my take on this. I don't own Gear, yet, and my opinion is based on reading other reviews and opinions and in general based on the fact that I review gadgets on XDA as a full time hobby (check out link in my signature ).
A success of smartwatch is based on hardware and software. So far the main gripe I heard about hardware is battery life which to my pleasant surprise people reporting to as lasting1-2 days rather then "less then a day", all that with typical use or perhaps higher then average since everybody wants to play with camera. I suspect that might even improve with some software optimization in the future. Other then that, I also heard some people saying wristband is not was they expected (in terms of material) - oh well, this is not your typical $500-$1000 watch but rather an electronic gadget you strap to your wrist. So basically most of the complains are with software which we all know going to be fixed, sooner (from Samsung) or later (maybe even with some rooting or custom ROM, etc.) Once 4.3 updates start rolling in to cover S3/S4/N2 users and US market going to see N3 release that's when the real "beta" testing going to start. Right now, you guys are alpha-testers, early technology adopters. Everyone's expectations was that it will work straight out of the box. Well, it happened to some extent but not 100%. I'm sure the improvement will happen in the next few months, just have to be patient if you decide to stick around and keep this smartwatch.
Just my 2 cents.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
I will 'try' one more time....The strap. The cost of the Gear is immaterial in terms of the strap. What is vital is the strap lasts so the watch can function. No strap no watch? The watch could be 50.00€-500,000.00€ BUT once that strap goes so does the watch, its a non replaceable part. I just cant explain this point any clearer.
Regards
Personally I am holding off on this watch for two main reasons... One may be possible with third party apps, the other can't. I am not a fan of svoice and want to be able to type a reply to a text vs saying it. Most of the time I am at work and don't want svoice going off and talking to my watch to send a replay of "lol" or "ok". Omate has a keyboard but I hate the look of it. Second is the camera... I wish they made a gear without a camera. That hump on the strap is so ugly. I want the watch to look semi professional and that hump kills it. Wish I could combine omate and gear... Would be perfect for me.
Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 2
Wow, just got a call from Samsung who have agreed to take the watch back and give me a refund. Nice.
As a few people have commented - it will get better. But I am not sure Samsung will have the patience for this particular model, and they will likely release much better hardware within then next 6 - 9 months.
They could massively improve the device via software updates - no question. But I think they can only really do this by taking a step back and starting with the position that no app maker should have to *do* anything for it to be compatible with the Smart Watch. THIS is where the device needs to start. At the very least, all notifications should be on the watch and ideally actionable. Surely thats a better starting position than with a App Store model that no big app developer will bother with?
I just picked up a Gear a few hours ago, and all I can say is WOW. After reading all the negative
reviews, I was expecting a quick look and then a return to the store, but after playing with this watch
for the last few hours, I have come away VERY impressed. This is the 4th smart watch I've owned,
and it's head and shoulders above the ones I used previously (MetaWatch, Wimm Labs, and Sony 2nd Gen).
Those watches all had their plusses and minuses, but this watch it a much more complete package. And it
should be, since it's not cheap. But still a lot cheaper than the Tag and Omega that I have
First off, the look is great. I got the jet black version, and it has a very understated tech look. It fits great on my wrist,
and is very light.
Second, everything I have tried so far works, and works the way I would expect it to. Calling, charging, s-voice, and all
the apps I have tried. The camera is great, and works well with the wine label app. The display is gorgeous, much
better than the displays on the previous smart watches I've tried.
My long term concerns will be battery life and sustained connectivity, which were 2 of the biggest issues I had with
other smart watches. If it can pass those tests, then it's a keeper.
I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but I wonder if a lot of the reviewers that just destroyed this watch don't have a little heartburn
that Apple wasn't first to market. This watch will get very good very fast if they add apps quickly to the market.
I'll finish by saying that if you're on the fence on this watch, pick it up. If you temper your expectations (don't expect a DSLR
on your wrist, understand that 3rd party apps may be limited initially and sometimes buggy), you'll be very happy with it...
glad to hear your enjoying yours.
yes it does come off as weird why these tech sites are very eager to proclaim it as failure or DOA. we shall see though who is right but based on the reviews here its not as piss poor as they make it out to be.
theverge even called it samsung's worst product
j4falcons said:
I just picked up a Gear a few hours ago, and all I can say is WOW. After reading all the negative
reviews, I was expecting a quick look and then a return to the store, but after playing with this watch
for the last few hours, I have come away VERY impressed. This is the 4th smart watch I've owned,
and it's head and shoulders above the ones I used previously (MetaWatch, Wimm Labs, and Sony 2nd Gen).
Those watches all had their plusses and minuses, but this watch it a much more complete package. And it
should be, since it's not cheap. But still a lot cheaper than the Tag and Omega that I have
First off, the look is great. I got the jet black version, and it has a very understated tech look. It fits great on my wrist,
and is very light.
Second, everything I have tried so far works, and works the way I would expect it to. Calling, charging, s-voice, and all
the apps I have tried. The camera is great, and works well with the wine label app. The display is gorgeous, much
better than the displays on the previous smart watches I've tried.
My long term concerns will be battery life and sustained connectivity, which were 2 of the biggest issues I had with
other smart watches. If it can pass those tests, then it's a keeper.
I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but I wonder if a lot of the reviewers that just destroyed this watch don't have a little heartburn
that Apple wasn't first to market. This watch will get very good very fast if they add apps quickly to the market.
I'll finish by saying that if you're on the fence on this watch, pick it up. If you temper your expectations (don't expect a DSLR
on your wrist, understand that 3rd party apps may be limited initially and sometimes buggy), you'll be very happy with it...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I completely agree, I got my watch on Saturday and I have to say that I'm impressed and that's amazing considering I pair it with GS3 and some features still don't work! It was quite amusing today in the office with people couldn't actually believe it was real lots of iphone owners asking would it work with their phone ! I'm not sure why all those negative reviws, not sure what people expected, but if you take it for what it is - it's an amazing piece of technology! By the way, I charged it last night and got home tonight and it was on 70% battery - that's much better than what I hoped for!
I also think the watch is much better than how major tech reviewers are rating it in their reviews.
Pros:
1. Good looking design with some choice material- Sapphire glass, brushed stainless steel and high quality band
2. Very nice display
3. Smooth and lag-free operation
4. Nice and tight integration with smartphone
5. More than acceptable phone and camera capability
6. Limited to Note 3 for the moment ( this pro is applicable to me as a Note 3 user for a while~ )
7. Great to have the event and message reminder via a gentle vibration on the wrist!
8. Built-in pedometer and health apps
Neutral:
1. Battery performance- acceptable for a day's operation but could use a bit of margin.
2. Wrist band- acceptable but would be nice to have the flexibility to change the color
Cons:
1. Insufficient notification support for Gmail and Facebook apps (SW)
2. No calculator! (SW)
3. No compass (SW, HW?)
4. No on-screen keyboard (They could've put together a creative keyboard layout to fit the wonderful screen for sure ) (SW)
5. High price
6. Limited choice of phone models (only if Samsung wants this product to succeed on its own merit, that is. With Samsung selling twice as many smartphones as Apple now, I don't see any reason why they need to make the watches compatible to other brand phones necessarily, as it can be yet another reason to buy a Samsung phone for those on the fence.) SW
So, really, other than the relatively high price, I don't see critical shortcomings of this watch that can't be fixed by software updates and apps support down the road. The knock-on feature of G2 would be nice to have on this watch to wake it up and shut it down as necessary, in addition to the motion sensor-based wake on feature that it already has.
they should hurry with the updates, I can see this gaining more traction with more phones
Lets not forget what the critics said about the original Note 1. The press hammered that mobile yet it went on to give birth to a whole new generation,, the 'phablet'. Many brands have tried to copy the idea but non have come even close to selling the amount Samsung has and the note is now in its third year and on the third iteration having sold millions.
Smart watches in general have not yet been taken to by the market. This is in reality the first truly smart watch. Other brands will now rapidly try to play catch up as they have with the Note 1
In terms of Android devices Samsung appear to date to be the innovators in terms of technology.
Regards
Only issues are small software related ones. I am getting great battery life. Give it a little time for some developers to fill the gaps on the notification side.
Heck, the pebble is only really useful with 3rd party apps like Pebblify, so I don't know why people are so hard on the Gear.
I agree, it is a great product and a keeper here. (Had a Sony 1st gen. before.)
Battery life is better than expected. Keeps running for 2 days easily (brightness 2 / sound off).
Screen is excellent, performance sufficient.
More apps wanted now.
One of very few better-written reviews of the Gear:
http://www.zdnet.com/galaxy-gear-re...companion-watch-for-note-3-owners-7000021316/
My first smartwatch ever was the original Sony Smartwatch 1. First of it's kind widely available, it was a pretty good product (if you compare the features to it's price). I bought Galaxy Gear few weeks ago shortly after startup for it's original price of 300 euros. I had it for few days and decided to return it, as this is a beta product with no support at all (at that time). So I returned the Gear and got Smartwatch 2 from Sony.. and that watch is really cool. It's waterproof to some point, it's very VERY light, super comfortable and you can even change the wrist stripe if you don't like the original one. It costs 150 EUR for silicon version, and 200 EUR for metal version here in Netherlands. So it's up to 50% cheaper than the Gear. Out of the box, you only have to install few applications to get messages, and notification to work. Installation is super easy and it works with nearly all devices running android 4.0 or higher. It's a nice device, but lack any kind of customization - and so far there haven't been any tools to change anything in the watch at all. Lately I got a chance to get a Gear for less than 200 EUR so I decided to give it another try, and here it is..
1. After using Smartwatch 2 for a while Gear feels more solid, but it's way more bulky. It doesn't rest nicely on my wrist, and I'm not a huge guy. I could survive uncomfortable top, but the metal bottom (where speaker and mic are located) is catastrophic. I can't stand having the watch on my wrist if I'm working on my desk, as it's touching the desk all the time and leaves scratches. Very annoying.
2. Installation. I had to change my custom ROM to original TouchWiz on my S3 to get Gear to work. Maybe it can work on custom - but there would be more troubles with it than stock so.. To get the full functionality, and don't run into endless troubles, you have to be stock, where SW2 works on custom roms without a single issue.
3. Out of the box experience.. it's a tragedy. The 'main menu' is really slow to operate, and even switching between apps can take few precious seconds. Notifications do not work properly. I have to use 3rd party app to get more notifications. No SMS forwarding to your watch. No replying to messages. No Gmail support. No keyboard. Simply nothing! Out of the box this is just a bluetooth headset with a clock. I don't know anyone who is really using S Voice on a daily basis. Samsung promised us making calls straight from our wrists, and Samsung did deliver that but..
4. Speaker quality - if you are using more than 50% of volume level, you can clearly hear a lot of buzzing. Sound is far from being clear. Not a huge issue though, it's a watch after all.
5. Hardware. Builtin camera that takes decent pictures and videos (as for a watch). Big plus! Loudspeaker so you don't have to hold your wrist to your ear - nice, although sometimes I would prefer to be the only one who can hear the other side (and look like an idiot, I don't care). AMOLED display with 320x320 resolution. Looks really sharp and vivid. Love it! Smartwatch is running a real Android 4.2.2, and that's great. You can root it, sideload apps and so.. but...
6. Usability - but it's pretty useless. There is no bluetooth tethering so you can't use any internet on your wrist (smartwatch 2 has a working internet browser!). You can install app like Tablet Talk to have messaging ability but it's really cumbersome, doesn't display your contact list, only the numbers are visible and generally, you can clearly see that it just wasn't designed for a wrist. I guess runninng Tablet Talk on Gear AND phone uses more battery which results in shorter battery life...
7. Typing. I can easily imagine typing short sentences/messages using Swype-like keyboard, or T9 styled. Display is big enough to send few words within seconds. Unfortunately that is not possible at the moment.
8. Future? There is definitely a future in smartwatches. This device is great, but Samsung tottaly ****ed up the software side. Nothing is working as it should, and if it does - it's cumbersome, and far from being user friendly. You can't get apps from Play Store, you have to use Samsung App Store which is really poor. There are very few apps that are actually somewhat usefull, but they do suck. I tried app like speedometer, that takes ages to start and catch a signal, and if it finally does - it's really ugly. SW2 to compare was displaying current GPS speed within seconds. When I was done with it, all I had to is just go back to home screen, or turn on the clock face, then GPS was stopped. On Gear? You have to open notifications, click on Speedometer, and FORCE STOP it in order to be closed. WHAAAAT?
I love the idea, I like the features (AMOLED, speaker, mic, touchscreen) but there way more wrong things with it than positive.. Media Controller doesn't always work properly, so you can't really shuffle songs etc. There is no SDK available to the publicity, so there won't be any dedicated apps from community anytime soon. Samsung didn't say anything that they will release it anyway so... if you buy the Gear, don't buy it cause it's gonna be "great in the future once XDA devs hack it". It didn't happen, noone knows if it's going to happen and what will come out of it...
I would really suggest waiting for next generation. But if you have spare cash, and can get the Gear cheaper than original price - go for it...
I don't think you would any of these problems if you use a samsung supported phone (N3, or S4 with latest update.)
skyline23 said:
I don't think you would any of these problems if you use a samsung supported phone (N3, or S4 with latest update.)
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I'm using official Android 4.3 firmware provided by Samsung. S3 is officially supported.
hurdlejade said:
I'm using official Android 4.3 firmware provided by Samsung. S3 is officially supported.
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To each his own. I'm sure the camera, mic and speaker and ability to use S Voice to respond to messages all work wonderfully on the SW2.
mhoepfin said:
To each his own. I'm sure the camera, mic and speaker and ability to use S Voice to respond to messages all work wonderfully on the SW2.
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out of the box, SW2 beats Gear in every aspect, if you forget the camera/mic/speaker. S Voice? i guess it's only widely used in USA. i see a lot of people on the internet asking how to actually turn this thing off. it's one of the first things i did when i installed official 4.3 rom.
this is not a hate post. i just tried both products, they are both far from being perfect, and although gear seems to be superior, it lacks the software. and we shouldn't wait months for basic functionality that hardware is fully capable of.
It's all personal choice. I have both Sony s2 and the gear and in my opinion the gear is far better.
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ardsar said:
It's all personal choice. I have both Sony s2 and the gear and in my opinion the gear is far better.
Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk
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may i know why is it better? besides the camera/speaker/mic/svoice thingy.
It's my opinion and personal taste. .. It looks more like a watch rather than a big Square thing on your wrist. The Sony is only a second screen and is like a dumb terminal in that it can't run anything ( the Internet app you mention runs on the phone and relays the image to the watch) and you can't ignore the fact that it has a camera speaker Mike and svoice.
It's best to drop this thread like I said it's all personal opinion.
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ardsar said:
It's my opinion and personal taste. .. It looks more like a watch rather than a big Square thing on your wrist. The Sony is only a second screen and is like a dumb terminal in that it can't run anything ( the Internet app you mention runs on the phone and relays the image to the watch) and you can't ignore the fact that it has a camera speaker Mike and svoice.
It's best to drop this thread like I said it's all personal opinion.
Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk
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i just wanted to find out why you prefer gear over SW2, that's it.
i do realise that the internet browser on SW2 works more or less on screenshots.. but it works! and there is no possibility to do so on Gear, although it's capable of real rendering.
Owning 2 Galaxy Gear I guess you can tell I like it. With more and more things being added to the ability of the Gear such as ATN and launchers, etc it is growing leaps and bound sans Samsung. There are 2 versions of Sony out there and this has been out weeks. I say write this after February when it has been thru a few updates. I don't need my watch to do everything the phones does or i wouldn't have bought a 5.7 inch phone. The great things is competition is great and I'm sure Apple is gearing up for theirs and then someone will come and beat theirs and so on and so on. Consumerism at it's best.
Oh yeah, it's not consumer ready at all. But for the hacker/maker crowd out there, it's by far and away the best.
Phone calls.. you can make phone calls from your wrist!!! Come ON that's so cool. You can hack out the click sounds and take super secret spy photos from your wrist....
I have a freakin' game boy emulator .. I can play pokemon on my watch!
HELLO this is like the dream
YES .. the speaker scratching is a problem on my mac book pro, I have to pull up my long sleeve shirt over the bottom to keep it from scraping across the laptop which annoys me as well.
Not sure how they're going to fix that.
There are already enough of these threads here...
The watch des exactly what it says. It is a companion to phone, not a replacement (Why does a watch actually need software?)
it also has mic/speaker/cam which all work surprising well. Didn't take long to adjust to bulky speaker when resting palm on flat surface (mind I wear it a little loose)
There are several default notifications that are sent that everyone has - sms, email, etc. Granted they could do with more detail (html emails, all text in notification), however that will have to come when apps start supporting it - 4.3 helps a lot here
it is waterproof enough - that whole thing seems to be a scare campaign. All the watches available can survive water, just not to the extent of swimming/diving
Gear looks the best out of the watches available and once you use it for a few weeks, then the chance of wanting to return is much lower. I'd say my Pebble does more currently (especially tasker integration!), however, I've not touched it since getting gear a month ago
It only supports 4.3 and Touchwiz, but if you look at the percentage of s3, note2, s4, note3, and future phones, there is no need to support others. Will people complain when apple come out with a watch and it only supports two devices like pretty much everything else they do? (latest and previous model)
Samsung really need to get a move on with releasing sdk though
Plus it is first gen, so it can't have everything. Just be thankful you aren't with Apple and have to wait years for stuff everyone already has
Still going to try out Neptune Pine when it is released, but it is a replacement not companion
blazespinnaker said:
Oh yeah, it's not consumer ready at all. But for the hacker/maker crowd out there, it's by far and away the best.
Phone calls.. you can make phone calls from your wrist!!! Come ON that's so cool. You can hack out the click sounds and take super secret spy photos from your wrist....
I have a freakin' game boy emulator .. I can play pokemon on my watch!
HELLO this is like the dream
YES .. the speaker scratching is a problem on my mac book pro, I have to pull up my long sleeve shirt over the bottom to keep it from scraping across the laptop which annoys me as well.
Not sure how they're going to fix that.
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Click to collapse
I'm enjoying my Gear paired with Note 3. Still completely stock, and I can see how some might think the price is steep for what it currently does. But again, I am ok with what I paid for it, knowing what it does so far and knowing what lays in store for it in the future.
I need to read up on rooting and side loading. How effective is a gameboy emulator on the small screen? Seems like there wouldn't be enough room
Awesome
Sent from my GT-I9500 using Tapatalk
hurdlejade said:
I would really suggest waiting for next generation. But if you have spare cash, and can get the Gear cheaper than original price - go for it...
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Click to collapse
Snipped For Space!
At 73, I cannot play the waiting game. With smartwatches, women, and fastazz motorcycles..
I want and need it NOW!!
About you comments, they seemed to be like the case of one man's terrorist is another man's freedom-fighter..
BTW, can you answer and call from the SW2?? :fingers-crossed:
I also have a Sony Smartwatch 2. It's a great watch and the SDK support is superb. I recently bought the Gear and my first impression was
1. Wow, smaller than I thought. Because of the design less bulkier than the SW2. Way more stylish (up to a point even my gf thought that i didn't look like a total nerd)
2. Much better resolution and much clearer display
3. Touch response is so much better than the SW2
4. Awful charging method..
5. Miss the always on mode that the Sony has. The magical movement thing to wake up the Gear does work in say 75% of the time for me. The other 25% makes it a bad experience as a watch. Maybe I still have to get the hang of it and learn to make the movement work.. or maybe I have to adapt myself. Have the watch for 2 days now, I'm still learning and not ready to give an overall conclusion.
6 Apps.... yep the Sony has a lot more apps and yes there's a browser out there. But it also has a lot of weird amateuristic apps in the Play store (not made by Sony). I somehow am appreciating Samsung's approach now after a couple of days of using the Gear. They've teamed up with some good third party developers (a few not so good also) and seem to be very careful about what they release on the market right now. Seems like a good thing to me. I bet you can trash a potential goood product that still has to prove itself as a thing that could work by opening it for badly written and designed apps. Good thing to go easy on this. Nevertheless as a developer I love to jump on the bandwagon... But I understand that somehow one needs to direct the experience of a new product. Too many apps that do just half of what you can do can ruin the experience totally. (That said, they might have released the watch too early. On the other side, by releasing it early they now can work on a lot of feedback. It's a decision they've made and it is a decision that comes with a trade off (bad reviews), but in the end it might be the best decision. Nobody knows and nobody will know)
mike208 said:
I'm enjoying my Gear paired with Note 3. Still completely stock, and I can see how some might think the price is steep for what it currently does. But again, I am ok with what I paid for it, knowing what it does so far and knowing what lays in store for it in the future.
I need to read up on rooting and side loading. How effective is a gameboy emulator on the small screen? Seems like there wouldn't be enough room
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Are you kidding me! It's AWESOME ... well I have long thin fingers though. I use gameboid.
They could probably optimize the control setup on gameboid for the watch a bit more.
Sideloading is easy to do, don't need to root. I highly recommend it.
1. Wow, smaller than I thought. Because of the design less bulkier than the SW2. Way more stylish (up to a point even my gf thought that i didn't look like a total nerd)
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Agreed. People have commented that the watch looks great. Sony with it's geeky logo and buttons... come ON.
That being said, there are pros/cons to them all. I'd *love* the battery life of the pebble on the Gear, but I can't go without having Android on my watch. That's just a non starter (for me), but I'm a developer so my opinion is entirely unreflective of the market at large .. but I love it, so who cares.
The one huge problem with the gear, in my opinion, is the lack of compatibility. That's what is really pissing 99% of the world out there that doesn't have a Note 3, frankly. This bundling nonsense is so deeply arrogant. It's monopolistic and completely unnecessary.
It's what makes you root against a company and pray they fail as an enterprise. It's the same sort of arrogance that makes me despise Apple and why I take every opportunity I can to root against them even though my career is tied up with their technology.
I agree with you on the speaker buckle being annoying, but otherwise, it's not THAT bad.
I'm debating between the Samsung Gear 2 Neo and the Sony Smartwatch 2. The Sony is only $140 on Amazon right now and it appears to most of the features I would actually use. The one big concern about the Sony is that it doesn't have the IR blaster, so the remote is out (but meh, I've got my S5 set up with my TV, so no big deal). My big concern with the Samsung is that when I get ready to upgrade my phone under T-Mobile's Jump, who knows if I'll get another Samsung (who am I kidding, I'll probably get another Samsung, but just in case I didn't...).
I'm having trouble finding a good comparison of the two that would sway me one way or the other. It would be nice to save the $60 on the Sony, but at the same time I really like the Neo look over the Sony. Any thoughts? I don't care that the Sony lacks voice commands. I'd probably never use it, and obviously I don't care about the camera or else I wouldn't be considering the Neo.
Thanks!
It's too bad you couldn't jump in on the AT&T deal when it was 25% off with two other accessories. Saving $50 would have swayed you instantly. I am 100% glad I purchased this, as it provides exactly all of the functionality I need it to...
Vibrating alarm so I don't wake up my wife on her days off.
Notification and full text of SMS
Notification and full text of work Emails
Notification and full text of Appointments from my work calendar
Notifications are with just enough vibration so those around me don't know it went off
Don't show notifications until I look at the watch
Customizable watch faces depending on my mood for that day
Won't be overly susceptible to dings/scratches - it's got Gorilla Glass 3!
It also adds some things I didn't need, but use nonetheless
Pedometer (wish the pedometer allowed you to enter your stride length instead of estimating off height)
Heart rate monitor (a little wonky sometimes)
Exercise tracking
Tracks my sleep (when I remember to turn it on...or sometimes OFF...lol)
Backup Remote w/ the IR Blaster (need a way to add a Roku so I don't need either remote)
I can answer the phone and talk if I'm busy
I can reply to text messages with canned quick text responses
I can skip tracks and pause Pandora with my phone charging in the other room
If I had to pick a couple negatives...
Battery power is okay. I have to charge it every other day or at least top it off every day.
It would be nice if I felt more comfortable showering with it. Some people say it's possible and they have had no issues. I would rather not at this point.
All I know is I love it and I'll be using it for a while. I also have 3 coworkers who have Pebbles and they've all commented on how great it looks/acts. One of them is waiting for the LG G Watch to drop. I'll probably wait for the second gen of Android Wear before committing.
Best of luck to you in figuring out what it is you want/need. ;-]
EDIT: Just thought of a more significant con...
If you spend time at a desk typing, you may end up scuffing the clasp against the desk. This will cause wear on that clasp as well as metal transfer to the desk itself. It wipes off fairly easily, but the wear is very evident on the watch.
I purchased the Sony SW2 to save money and had regretted it the whole time. Some of what I am about to say can be fixed with some modifications (Sony SW2) and apps but not out of the box. Not being able to raise my arm to active the watch was a negative. Not being able to take a simple phone call was a negative. The positive at the time was being able to change watch bands that is solved with the Gear 2 and Neo being able to change bands. The health monitoring of the Gear is nice as well.
The negative for Gear 2/neo is the limited app market. Since changing to Tizen not a lot of apps out there.
I am 100% happier with the Gear 2 Neo than I was with the Sony. For what that is worth.
admiral70 said:
The negative for Gear 2/neo is the limited app market. Since changing to Tizen not a lot of apps out there.
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+1!!!
I also looked at the Sony before buying the Gear 2 (AT&T deal)...
What I did not like about the Sony is that besides watch functionality it only seems to be able to push notifications. If indeed true, the Gear 2 has much more potential to be used offline (running apps locally on the watch), once they are available of course...
The screen looks better on the Gear, but I like the Sony to be reflective (always on). Not sure if it suffers from the same issues as Pebble, such as the fact that with polarizing glasses you cannot see anything on it....
Also, I think the Gear 2 looks better overall, but that is just my personal opinion of course....
Sent from my GT-N5110 using xda premium
I'm also debating between two of them right now. Seems like if I choose to save some money I should buy SW2, but I can also buy a used Neo so.
Because I was collecting information only about sony's watch, I'd like to ask a couple of questions to the Neo's owners.
1. Can I make (root,rom, hack,etc) the Gear 2 Neo to work with sony xperia z1c? And will all the functionality remain(for example, if sw2 is connected to a phone rather than sony, you cannot answer calls) if connected to sony instead of samsung. This is the main question.
2. Is the screen always on, like on sony sw2, so I can check the time.
3. Can it control the music being played on a phone, or is there an app for that.
4. Can it answer phone calls
5. How long does the battery last
I'm even thinking not to buy any smartwatches at all, because all of them seem imperfect. What I really would like is SW2's functionality in a better screen from samsung. On the other hand, I don't want to spend money on useless(for me) features like IR blaster or pedometer, or even heart rate sensor. I just need a smartwatch to control music on the phone, check notifications, and to answer calls with a headphones on. and maybe an alarm, if its really so useful. Maybe those are not the watches i'm looking for, so sorry for the off-topic.
Thank you in advance.
necr0manser said:
1. Can I make (root,rom, hack,etc) the Gear 2 Neo to work with sony xperia z1c? And will all the functionality remain(for example, if sw2 is connected to a phone rather than sony, you cannot answer calls) if connected to sony instead of samsung. This is the main question
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I have no experience on anything other than a Galaxy phone with this watch, but I do know there are some threads out there about getting the Gear 2 working on other phones. You may have to do some investigation.
necr0manser said:
2. Is the screen always on, like on sony sw2, so I can check the time.
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No, but you can set it to turn on when you look at the phone (as well as determine whether you want it to display the clock or the last screen you had up)
necr0manser said:
3. Can it control the music being played on a phone, or is there an app for that.
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There is a music player app for playing files on the watch itself. There is also a Media Controller app to control media players on your phone. Both of these are on the device out of the box.[/quote]
necr0manser said:
4. Can it answer phone calls
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Yes. it actually works really well. The person I tested it with said they couldn't tell it was anything other than a phone.
necr0manser said:
5. How long does the battery last
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This answer really depends on settings and what you have sent in terms of notifications. I get about 2½ days out of mine, but I typically charge it in the evenings when I'm on the PC and again in the mornings while I shower.