New To The Gear S Game - Samsung Gear S

Just picked the Gear S up recently and I absolutely love it. Late but I am learning. I have created a watch face using Watch Styler app, purchased a navy and a white band and am looking at a leather and a gray gunmetal link band. There's also some bling bands but I think I will pass as I will not be happy to look down and one of the "stones" have broken off. It's bad enough the cradle is broken like so many others in here. The installed compass and the pre-installed pedometer are way off and I am upset about this. I did install Opera Mini and it is funny but usable.
I know there's not a lot of conversation about this watch as it is what 2 years old now almost?? Anyhow, thanks for reading!!

Get Wearable Widgets, great for liking a song on Google Music from watch, reading Facebook etc... basically any widget from your phone on your wrist.

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[Review] Pebble Smartwatch and the Galaxy Note 3

Hello guys. The purpose of this post is to provide some helpful information on those that will be looking at getting the Pebble Smart watch to work with the Galaxy Note 3. The watch works perfectly with the Note 3.
- Minimal battery impact. As they both use Bluetooth v4.0 the battery is quite good. The watch will last me 2 - 3 days being connected to my phone always and never disconnected. I am able to last at least 18hrs on my phone with the bluetooth constantly on, more than that actually. Battery will last you a full day of average use.
- Canvas for Pebble an app available for the smartwatch allows you to view important information from the Note 3. I am able to display my Calender Appointments (Hotmail, Gmail, Samsung etc) on the watch. If you look at the video embedded in this post you will also notice you can view the thermometer sensor reading on the Note 3. Same applies for the humidity sensor and atmospheric pressure. Pretty Cool right?
- There are a million watchfaces you can use on your pebble. There is a website dedicated to download watch faces and users to upload their own http://www.mypebblefaces.com/ this is much better than the Galaxy Gear in my opinion in terms of support and customisations.
- The App can control numerous music players, I use Spotify for example. Works well. There are other apps like 'Music Boss for Pebble' that make it more compatible with other third party music apps.
I will be posting more videos on how well the pebble works with the Note 3. This is my first post​
A review of the watch faces I have on my Pebble and the Note 3
Reserved 1
Reserved for future Pebble Reviews Tips and Tricks
Reserved 2
Reserved for future Pebble Reviews Tips and Tricks
I always thought this was more appealing than the gear. Any thoughts??
I've had a Pebble since April, and used it between three phones (Nexus 4, iPhone 5, and Note 3). The biggest issue with the Pebble and the Note 3 is the TouchWiz Talkback bug that disables some features (some can be reenabled, some cannot, ie One-handed operation) when any accessibility service is enabled, including the Pebble one. I've been keeping the service off for that reason, and as a result I get very few notifications, and no track information from Spotify.
WTB a fix for the Talkback Service bug, Samsung... The bug still exists on MJ7, and has been known for months.
I have had the Pebble for almost 10 months. I had the Note 2 before the Note 3, and it worked flawlessly. Then I upgraded to the Note 3 recently 2 weeks ago. It paired up nicely without any hiccups just like on my Note 2. It pairs and works well just like it did with the Note 2. Pebble Dialer allows me to answer, reject, mute, speakerphone calls with my Pebble. I use Pebble Glance for weather, time, counting emails, texts, missed calls. I use Pebble Messenger 2.1 (a custom apk found in the forums) to reply with custom messages (which the Glance can do with 6 presets, but the Pebble Messenger can do with 10 presets including TX9 style button replying allowing to reply/respond with anything (if you have the patience) using the buttons to type). The Pebble Messenger allows you to reply to both SMS and Whatsapp. I also use the Whatsapp Notifier apk that allows you to see and read the full Whatsapp messages as they come in realtime. It's very convenient. The battery is solid - lasts me about 4-6 days depending on the amount of messages, backlight, and music use. Yes, I use the music controls all the time - literally it can control any music app, which is a huge deal. I use it for Pandora. Before, on my Note 2 I could see every artist/song when the Note 2 screen was on, but I'm not seeing the update on the Pebble with the Note 3 so I'm guessing it has something to do with Pandora on the Note 3. Might just need to reset my bluetooth or clear cache, who knows. Yeah, so if you're seriously thinking about smartwatches, this is still the best with the most development.
Why do I say that? Because I love technology and for the sake of truly testing, I ordered both the Sony Smartwatch 2 and the Samsung Gear. Tested them both with high hopes, and sent them back because they simply could not compete with the ease/effectiveness of the Pebble. Everything from reading full emails for gmail to full texts on whatsapp etc. The Pebble destroyed them. Yes, I rooted the Gear, did everything possible to customize it with Nova Launcher, Xposed Installer, etc etc. I'm no beginner when it comes to android modding. Same with the Smartwatch 2. The music players on both were terrible. The ability to just do simple things like reading a full email and get quick notifications - they just lagged behind in comparison to the Pebble. Some people might not agree with me, and that's their opinion. I always test things to their limit and practical use. Yes, the Gear has some cooler features like a crap 1.9 camera, a nicer screen, and well that's really about it, lol. The Sony SW2 really had nothing special to offer. It was like they just took the original SW1 and added slight things to it. There was nothing about it that said NEW for 2013. Honestly, for the price, practicality, looks, the Pebble is the best. It's completely waterproof. I didn't even bother to test the waterproof features of the gear because of the many reviews I read about it fogging up the camera etc just after exercising- which is horrible because I run and exercise a lot. I never take my watch off. It's a habit of mine. I shower with my Pebble because it's convenient to read and see messages or emails or to reply that I'll respond shortly straight from my watch. That's what makes a smartwatch smart. I honestly don't ever keep my phone vibrate on anymore. It's always silent because my Pebble relays everything and I know when I'm getting a call, an email, or a message without wasting my phones battery life even by a little by keeping on vibration and sound.
I assure everyone, that I have no bias. I just do real comparisons. If you have any questions or want to add your input, please do. I would love to answer anything to the best of my ability. The Gear and Sony SW2 were released too fast, which is why Apple and Google are taking their time to see their faults and most likely/hopefully creating something better. Think about it. Why would the CEO of Samsung say himself that the Gear was missing a few things, which is why they are already creating a Gear 2. Yeah, some companies are smart like that because they release tiny mods and crappy devices like car manufacturers do. They upgrade the Mercedes E-class with tiny tiny changes and people still buy them because they are NEW and TOP NOTCH, and then release a bigger change the following 2 years - and guess what, people still buy that. Smart marketing because despite being a horrible watch, the Gear was still sold like crazy despite having 30% returns. That's marketing. People buy sub par things because 1) they've never used anything like it and don't see their limitations 2) want the newest/trendy item 3) they're really simple and only need basic things out of technology.
Sorry for the ramble, lol. I'm a tech lover. Please feel free to comment/ask anything. I hope this was informative and helpful to anyone on the fence about smartwatches.
I also ordered the Omate - that should be arriving in December. I'll give my review and feedback on that as well to see if it's worth it or not.
Edit: Also, the talk back issue the poster above mentioned has not surfaced for me. I'm not sure if it's because he has it turned on or off. Mine's always off, so maybe that's why I have had no issues.
I like to hear everybody's opinion, all I will add is I have both the pebble & a highly modified gear.
The ONLY thing I like better about the pebble is the always on display (although it is butt-ugly compared to the gear).
My pebble is stone dead, I have not charged it once since I got the gear,
Pebble update v1.13.0
For those who may not be aware a new firmware update for the Pebble is live and it updates your device to version v1.13.0. Below is the changelog:
Changelog:
Adds support for Apple Notification Center Service (ANCS) notifications for iOS 7 users with iPhone 4S, iPad 3, iPad mini or iPod Touch 5 or greater (requires Pebble iOS app 1.3 or greater). See help.getpebble.com for more information on setting up iOS7 notifications.
The Pebble now can show >80 unread notifications, up from 8 previously.
Bug Fixes:
Issues when receiving a phone call around not showing caller-ID, dismissing a call when pressing the back button, or continuing to vibrate, have been fixed.
New iOS users no longer need to manage access to their address book in order to see Caller ID on their Pebble.
Sometimes settings would be lost when the Pebble was rebooted. This issue is fixed.
i love so much from many reviews
the only thing that make me decide to not buying it
is that its screen only black & white
so, i will wait for the new TOQ from qualcomm to compare it to it
oe the new version with multicolor screen like in galaxy or sony
Hi, how about cooperation of this two after 4.4.2 update if You've made it ?
Is Bluetooth LE being used when hooked to the Note 3? As far as I've heard, this still isn't an option for Android devices.
I have the gear I don't use it too much I'm selling it via ebay would anyone be interested in giving it a good home it was used very lightly and has a screen protector
Sent from my SM-N900V using xda app-developers app
IT's ok.
tererai said:
Hello guys. The purpose of this post is to provide some helpful information on those that will be looking at getting the Pebble Smart watch to work with the Galaxy Note 3. The watch works perfectly with the Note 3.
- Minimal battery impact. As they both use Bluetooth v4.0 the battery is quite good. The watch will last me 2 - 3 days being connected to my phone always and never disconnected. I am able to last at least 18hrs on my phone with the bluetooth constantly on, more than that actually. Battery will last you a full day of average use.
- Canvas for Pebble an app available for the smartwatch allows you to view important information from the Note 3. I am able to display my Calender Appointments (Hotmail, Gmail, Samsung etc) on the watch. If you look at the video embedded in this post you will also notice you can view the thermometer sensor reading on the Note 3. Same applies for the humidity sensor and atmospheric pressure. Pretty Cool right?
- There are a million watchfaces you can use on your pebble. There is a website dedicated to download watch faces and users to upload their own http://www.mypebblefaces.com/ this is much better than the Galaxy Gear in my opinion in terms of support and customisations.
- The App can control numerous music players, I use Spotify for example. Works well. There are other apps like 'Music Boss for Pebble' that make it more compatible with other third party music apps.
I will be posting more videos on how well the pebble works with the Note 3. This is my first post​
A review of the watch faces I have on my Pebble and the Note 3
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see the videos.
and just test it now.
Pfhortune said:
I've had a Pebble since April, and used it between three phones (Nexus 4, iPhone 5, and Note 3). The biggest issue with the Pebble and the Note 3 is the TouchWiz Talkback bug that disables some features (some can be reenabled, some cannot, ie One-handed operation) when any accessibility service is enabled, including the Pebble one. I've been keeping the service off for that reason, and as a result I get very few notifications, and no track information from Spotify.
WTB a fix for the Talkback Service bug, Samsung... The bug still exists on MJ7, and has been known for months.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any solutions with root?
Maybe the Pebble might be greater than any smartwatch, but I have to say; It looks like that calculator watch. I think the design is a bit weird, and the grey display adds to it.. Althrough its nice that the display stays on..

Gear 2 vs Gear Fit

I cannot seem to find any forums for the new gear 2 and am looking for a companion for my SM-G900F.
Is there anything the Fit can do that the gear 2 can't?
Samsung mentions the fit can also track sleep, but did not deny that the gear 2 cannot.
who has any of these devices and can advice me further?
My Gear 2 Neo will be here Tuesday, but basically the difference in Gear 2 and the Fit is that you cannot develop apps for the Fit. Samsung has released an SDK for the Gear 2 so developers can create apps for the Gear 2. The other difference is Gear 2 has a camera on it, Gear 2 Neo doesn't, nor does the Fit.
bullet2300 said:
My Gear 2 Neo will be here Tuesday, but basically the difference in Gear 2 and the Fit is that you cannot develop apps for the Fit. Samsung has released an SDK for the Gear 2 so developers can create apps for the Gear 2. The other difference is Gear 2 has a camera on it, Gear 2 Neo doesn't, nor does the Fit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sounds great, i will check with you again on tuesday then.
bullet2300 said:
My Gear 2 Neo will be here Tuesday, but basically the difference in Gear 2 and the Fit is that you cannot develop apps for the Fit. Samsung has released an SDK for the Gear 2 so developers can create apps for the Gear 2. The other difference is Gear 2 has a camera on it, Gear 2 Neo doesn't, nor does the Fit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i havn't seen gear 2 or gear 2 neo up for sale on Verizon website?
My Gear 2 also arrives on Tues. I'm very excited to use it with my phone.
exge said:
I cannot seem to find any forums for the new gear 2 and am looking for a companion for my SM-G900F.
Is there anything the Fit can do that the gear 2 can't?
Samsung mentions the fit can also track sleep, but did not deny that the gear 2 cannot.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have to realise that the Gear Fit is running a RTOS (Real-Time Operating System) for more accurate measurements and less battery use. The Gear Fit is not intended to be a smartwatch like the Gear 2 or Gear 2 Neo, but more like a fitness band (with some extra functions though).
If you truly want a nice smartwatch (like I do) I suggest you wait to see what LG and Moto 360 have to offer later this year.
At any rate, I'm still going to buy the Gear Fit because of it's awesome fitness tracking abilities and neat design.
bullet2300 said:
My Gear 2 Neo will be here Tuesday, but basically the difference in Gear 2 and the Fit is that you cannot develop apps for the Fit. Samsung has released an SDK for the Gear 2 so developers can create apps for the Gear 2. The other difference is Gear 2 has a camera on it, Gear 2 Neo doesn't, nor does the Fit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
EVOme said:
My Gear 2 also arrives on Tues. I'm very excited to use it with my phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hey guys,it's Tuesday.
any comments regarding your watches?
exge said:
hey guys,it's Tuesday.
any comments regarding your watches?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been wearing mine since about 1pm yesterday. It looks and feels great on my wrist. I didn't have the G1, so I can't compare it. It has a faint vibration when it's alerting you. Every text, call or email..well you can set it to alert you for any app you have installed. I found that "Alarm clock plus" does not alert. I set the stock clock alarm and it even comes across the phone and acts as an alarm to wake you.
What I have done is turn the volume down pretty low on my phone, so i don't hear it as easily when something happens, since I am getting notified by the watch. There are limited watch faces and no app to create your own like on the G1.
The biggest dislike is you cannot turn the camera shutter sound off and it's louder than my phone. No spy photo taking is possible at all.
The Plesky keyboard is not available yet, so you can only respond to texts using templates that you create in Gear manager. I added like 6 more than stock to satisfy my situations.
The battery life seems great so far. There's a motion wake setting that will make the screen come on every time you move your wrist. It was cool at first and then I thought about battery life considering I move my arm 1000 times a day and there was no need for the watch to come on every time. I turned that off and now I have to hit the button to have it come on or it does on it's own if it's getting an alert.
I made one test call and the speaker is nice and loud. The person I was talking to said I sounded clear. I was indoors. Didn't test outside. The screen is pretty visible outside in sunlight.
The S Health pedometer automatically syncs to your phone.
Overall, I am satisfied with it. Not sure what more you would get from something like the Moto360 or than directions.
Hope that helps. Ask me specific questions and I'll answer.
EVOme said:
I've been wearing mine since about 1pm yesterday. It looks and feels great on my wrist. I didn't have the G1, so I can't compare it. It has a faint vibration when it's alerting you. Every text, call or email..well you can set it to alert you for any app you have installed. I found that "Alarm clock plus" does not alert. I set the stock clock alarm and it even comes across the phone and acts as an alarm to wake you.
What I have done is turn the volume down pretty low on my phone, so i don't hear it as easily when something happens, since I am getting notified by the watch. There are limited watch faces and no app to create your own like on the G1.
The biggest dislike is you cannot turn the camera shutter sound off and it's louder than my phone. No spy photo taking is possible at all.
The Plesky keyboard is not available yet, so you can only respond to texts using templates that you create in Gear manager. I added like 6 more than stock to satisfy my situations.
The battery life seems great so far. There's a motion wake setting that will make the screen come on every time you move your wrist. It was cool at first and then I thought about battery life considering I move my arm 1000 times a day and there was no need for the watch to come on every time. I turned that off and now I have to hit the button to have it come on or it does on it's own if it's getting an alert.
I made one test call and the speaker is nice and loud. The person I was talking to said I sounded clear. I was indoors. Didn't test outside. The screen is pretty visible outside in sunlight.
The S Health pedometer automatically syncs to your phone.
Overall, I am satisfied with it. Not sure what more you would get from something like the Moto360 or than directions.
Hope that helps. Ask me specific questions and I'll answer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well i was thinking of getting a neo so the camera won't matter to me
anyways, does the watch store data on itself, like if i go for a run/walk without my phone, does it sync to my s5 after i come back within range. (something like a fitbit)
oh and does it get as hot as the s5? and i tried to google plesky keyboard, but didnt get any results, is that some small keyb for the watch?
exge said:
well i was thinking of getting a neo so the camera won't matter to me
anyways, does the watch store data on itself, like if i go for a run/walk without my phone, does it sync to my s5 after i come back within range. (something like a fitbit)
oh and does it get as hot as the s5? and i tried to google plesky keyboard, but didnt get any results, is that some small keyb for the watch?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I meant Fleksy...sorry
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PpsfY7j0JY
Anyways, it doesn't get hot at all. Feels like a normal watch. As for the walking, you can set the sync intervals. I have mine set to sync every three hours, which is the soonest. You can also hit sync and do it right away.
EVOme said:
I meant Fleksy...sorry
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PpsfY7j0JY
Anyways, it doesn't get hot at all. Feels like a normal watch. As for the walking, you can set the sync intervals. I have mine set to sync every three hours, which is the soonest. You can also hit sync and do it right away.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
lol no wonder i couldn't find it.
thats good i guess. i will most likely comment after i get my neo this friday.
Sorry, needed more time to give some feedback. I also have not had a G1.
I have a Neo and it feels great on my wrist. Build quality is good and doesn't feel cheapy and looks good. I love that it integrates with music from my phone like Google Music, so I can change tracks or see what track is playing, adjust volume, etc.it works great and syncs very well with my phone. Battery life is great. I used it pretty heavily and dropped about 30% in a day. Answered a call on my Gear2 and talked to my wife while I was sitting on the couch and it sounded so good she thought I was on the phone - not the gear2. Very loud and clear! My biggest use is for email viewing. I get a ton of emails cause of my work and its really nice to be able to check them on my watch without always bringing my phone out of my pocket all of them time.
Downsides:
-As mentioned, no keyboard for it yet, so it just has template responses or s voice or emoji.
-Pedometer syncs with phone, but doesn't combine with phone - it keeps a separate counter for each device. I was hoping it would just stay in sync with my phone for a total number, but it appears to keep them separate, so I will just use my phone and not the Gear2 pedometer, oh well.
I am excited to see what apps get made for it, but really the device itself is really great for the money IMO. Anything more to it and it's just icing on the cake.
bullet2300 said:
I am excited to see what apps get made for it, but really the device itself is really great for the money IMO. Anything more to it and it's just icing on the cake.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well, after my exams i can probably mess with the tizen sdk. and after i get my device lol
I really wish you could set a Flag status from the Gear 2 since it marks emails as read, that way I would remember to follow-up with someone if I view the email when I'm not able to respond.

Are you selling or keeping your Pebble, if you have one?

I'm just curious. I just received my Pebble Steel which I ordered ignorant of Google's upcoming smartwatches. It surely looks beautiful. Is it worth keeping besides a Google watch, which I've ordered as well?
paranoid2007 said:
I'm just curious. I just received my Pebble Steel which I ordered ignorant of Google's upcoming smartwatches. It surely looks beautiful. Is it worth keeping besides a Google watch, which I've ordered as well?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I still have my Orange Pebble, i dont plan on selling it, for the fact when i go on a short break for 3-4 days my pebble will hold up for that long without having to worry about charging.
I use my original Red Pebble in the shower to control my music. I use my Steel when I use my iPhone since it's the best watch I have that works with it right now.
I've just tried my Steel. It looks so damn sexy. Hopefully the LG won't look like a peace of junk next to it.
I am keeping my original kickstarter plastic Pebble. And the Pebble steel I bought after watching Google I/O and realizing all Android Wear watches are gigantic. I bought an LG watch anyway and I can see the potential, but at the moment I'm not wearing it anywhere in public, it looks embarrassing on my wrist, like a phone strapped to it. I can only barely get away with wearing the Pebble steel, I get comments on that too saying that's a BIG watch you're wearing. I suppose it would be more acceptable if I was a man, but I can't just let all you guys have the best toys!
I'm buying the next smallest smart watch from whoever can make one smaller, possibly might even consider switching to apple though I doubt I would go that far. Pebble steel is it for now.
Sent from my SM-P600 using XDA Premium HD app
Yeah, it's so ignorant of the companies to ignore the ladies' smaller wrist sizes. Imagine even that huge Motorola 360! My wife is begging me to give her my Steel once she saw it yesterday. And she's not into tech at all but loving the looks of it. Maybe that will be the deal when I receive my G Watch.
I've got an original Pebble Kickstarter Edition- it still is more functional obviously than my current LG G Watch. I only bought it to play for it for 2 weeks and familiarize myself with the Android Wear platform. I'll be sending it back in a few days and awaiting patiently for the release of the awesome Metal Moto360! It's just too sleek.

[Q] LG G Watch converts from Pebble comments

I had a pebble since the kickstart time. Went to pebble steel not too long ago. The LG G Watch looks intriguing. Any one that switched from pebble to LG, I'd be interested in your opinions abtout the pros and cons of you're willing to share. (Help me to decide if i should make the jump too.) thanks.
jyesucevitz said:
I had a pebble since the kickstart time. Went to pebble steel not too long ago. The LG G Watch looks intriguing. Any one that switched from pebble to LG, I'd be interested in your opinions abtout the pros and cons of you're willing to share. (Help me to decide if i should make the jump too.) thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I used to own a pebble.
Pros of g watch
Bigger, better screen quality
Android wear is awesome
Google now integration
Faster processor, ram and space( install more than 8 apps)
(Can use the watch switch my room lights, room fan etc)
People always ask me about the g watch at public places, and give compliments about the watch( never happened with tgrcpebble for me).
Charging cradle makes it so easy to put the watch on charge
Cons
Battery is not as good as the pebble, but with light usage I can easily get 2 days, a day and a half with moderate- heavy usage.
Going back to pebble is like going back in the stone age for me now.
wow! just the thread I am looking for!!
Its a coincedence but i just sold my Pebble steel two hours back and now thinking about LG G Watch..
Battery life and appearance of the watch are my main concerns.
I've had my g watch for just a week. I had the pebble before. I like the pebble but I love the g watch. The draw back is the battery. However I can get 2 days out of the g watch and one of those days or both I use it for my morning bike ride with runtastic for 1.5 hours each day.
I'm very happy that I switched. I'm sure you will be.
I sold my pebble on eBay for $89 plus shipping and I bought the g watch from Swappa.com for $120.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Free mobile app
caller id
Of all the reviews I've seen no one has mentioned caller id. With pebble and pebble dialer I could see who's calling on the watch and accept or reject the call from the watch. Does the Game watch do that?
battery life is a problem
vnsriniwas said:
wow! just the thread I am looking for!!
Its a coincedence but i just sold my Pebble steel two hours back and now thinking about LG G Watch..
Battery life and appearance of the watch are my main concerns.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're looking for good battery life you may be disappointed. I'm hearing 1.5 days on average.
Where as the pebble has about a 5 to 7 day average battery life.
jyesucevitz said:
Of all the reviews I've seen no one has mentioned caller id. With pebble and pebble dialer I could see who's calling on the watch and accept or reject the call from the watch. Does the Game watch do that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can do the same thing with no problem.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using XDA Free mobile app
jyesucevitz said:
I had a pebble since the kickstart time. Went to pebble steel not too long ago. The LG G Watch looks intriguing. Any one that switched from pebble to LG, I'd be interested in your opinions abtout the pros and cons of you're willing to share. (Help me to decide if i should make the jump too.) thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have and use both. The Pebble Steel during the week and the lg g watch on weekends only.
Pebble pro: I noticed the Pebble has much better bluetooth range than the lg g watch. It never disconnects from my phone/tablet anywhere in my house. The lg g watch disconnects often. The Pebble Steel is more acceptable to wear in a professional environment. The lg g watch back light can be disturbing at night. I have yet to find as good a multi time zone watch face for android wear as i have on the Pebble. The pebble is much smaller. The Pebble screen is much more visible in the sun.
Android wear pro: It is very, very convenient to set reminders by voice. It has colors...for those who care...
Both can connect to multiple devices (android wear needs Bee Link for Android). Both has music boss app. Touchscreen and buttons are sometimes a pro, sometimes a con. Right now I feel like the Pebble has more/better apps, but android wear will very quickly outpace it (if it hasn't already).
If they made an Android Wear watch the size of the Pebble Steel, I would buy it in an instant. The current watches are all embarrassingly enormous. The LG g watch looks like a small smartphone strapped to my wrist, and the moto 360 looks like a hockey puck strapped to my wrist. These are made for large boned men, and are a little comical on women and thinner wristed guys.
Edit: the Pebble does have better battery life but since I charge both every night this doesn't seem like enough of an advantage. It would be if I could go from Friday to Sunday night without charging, but I have not been able to do that, so I left this out of the pro/con list.
Sent from my SM-P600 using XDA Premium HD app
Double post
jyesucevitz said:
I had a pebble since the kickstart time. Went to pebble steel not too long ago. The LG G Watch looks intriguing. Any one that switched from pebble to LG, I'd be interested in your opinions abtout the pros and cons of you're willing to share. (Help me to decide if i should make the jump too.) thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Kickstarter edition here, too. Got mine in May 2013. When I got my LG G Watch, I put the Pebble in the box.
I haven't taken it out again.
I do miss the longer battery life of the Pebble, but I have no problem with charging my watch every night. I must've been a hard-core Pebble user, because I never got more than 3 days out of it. I took my LG off the charger at 0530 this morning, and I'm at 58% at 1720 (that's 12 hours), after I went on a 30 minute RunKeeper run this morning with the stats displaying on the watch (it stays on the whole time).
The fun/cool factor of the LG wears off after a little while, which is good. The practical aspects of Wear are almost too many to count. The apps are all over the place, but I use TickTick for shopping lists, Hangouts, Mini Launcher, Keep, and RunKeeper are the apps I use most. Reminders are a great feature, too. I look like a goof talking to my watch, but I don't forget stuff! Notifications are context-friendly, easy to read, and cool-looking.
YMMV.
Ive been using a G watch for about 2 weeks now. Its made me decide I want to buy a Asus ZenWatch.
Essentially the same as the G watch, but metal and slimmer and a few extra features.
finally did it
after starting this thread i finally bought the G watch. i saw it on sale at BESTBUY for 159 and had to.
the size is not as bad as i expected. takes a little getting use to. only a few days in and i'm not
disappointed. need a little more time to better understand what android wear can do, but i
like it so far. thanks to all that responded here and helped with my decision. one of the reasons
XDA is great.

Smartwatches - which one are you using (or plan to get)?

curious to see how many of the Samsung Galaxy S8 community have smartwatches, and which ones they are using?
I've had the Asus Zenwatch 3 since before I got the S8 back in November.
this watch is very stylish and serves as a great time piece.
everything seems to run fairly well. I get notifications, able to respond with my voice, etc. but my main concern is lag. when I disable the "OK Google" detection from the watch, the lag is almost gone. thus, in order to enter a command, I need to press a button on the watch to launch google assistant. and each time, on the first pass, I get an error that google was unreachable. but when I try a second time, it works fine. so I'm not sure if this is due to the handshake between the phone and the watch or just the watch. also, when going on a run/walk/bike ride, I would like to start the activity through the watch. however, I cannot seem to get Map My Run to work properly. I'm fine using Google Fit, but it does not call out the milestones to my bluetooth headphones - only when I start the activity through the phone. to me, this makes have the smartwatch almost pointless if I have to initiate the activity through the phone.
I know that Samsung has their own line of smartwatches, but from what I read, they do not use Google, they use Tizen. I also read that the next release of their watch (Galaxy watch, I think) will have Bixby install as it's assistant. those two factors alone will keep me away from getting a samsung smartwatch.
however, I am eyeing the Ticwatch Pro, but just want to be sure that watch is true upgrade over mine.
I used to have the original moto 360 (paired with my Motorola Droid Turbo), and that was a great combination except that the heart rate monitor was spotty at best (the Asus Zenwatch 3, FWIW, does NOT have the heart rate monitor, also a downer).
curious to see anyone else's experience....
If you're not in the rush, I recommend you to just wait for Samsung / Google next upgrade on smartwatch, because it is very near already..
Personally, I'm using Samsung gear S2 and loved it a lot for quite long... The rotating bezel is the best navigation out there imo... Sadly, Gear S3 and Gear Watch is a bit overpriced for me, so I'm still using the outdated Gear S2 for quite some time.
StardustGeass said:
If you're not in the rush, I recommend you to just wait for Samsung / Google next upgrade on smartwatch, because it is very near already..
Personally, I'm using Samsung gear S2 and loved it a lot for quite long... The rotating bezel is the best navigation out there imo... Sadly, Gear S3 and Gear Watch is a bit overpriced for me, so I'm still using the outdated Gear S2 for quite some time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I keep reading reviews of how everyone loves the rotating bezels. I'm sure I would like it, but i'm just fine with flicking my wrist to view the notifications or using my voice.
I wound up selling my Asus Zenwatch 3 and bought the TicWatch Pro. I had some difficulty setting it up at first - meaning that it took more than an hour to complete the process. but once it was done, seems to be working quite well so far.
the tough part is that in order to NFC to make payments via google pay (I think that the gear watches force you to use Samsung Pay instead?), is that you need to have a screenlock password/pin/pattern - and this is extremely inconvenient for normal use. But i believe that is more of a feature of Android Wear rather than the watch itself. if anything, I would prefer the to enter the password/pin/pattern only when I attempt to use google pay.
my only reason for waiting until the pixel watch would be to see it offered a watch with more RAM. however, this TicWatch Pro is very responsive and I'm able to leave the "ok Google" enabled - very helpful when driving.
jco23 said:
I keep reading reviews of how everyone loves the rotating bezels. I'm sure I would like it, but i'm just fine with flicking my wrist to view the notifications or using my voice.
I wound up selling my Asus Zenwatch 3 and bought the TicWatch Pro. I had some difficulty setting it up at first - meaning that it took more than an hour to complete the process. but once it was done, seems to be working quite well so far.
the tough part is that in order to NFC to make payments via google pay (I think that the gear watches force you to use Samsung Pay instead?), is that you need to have a screenlock password/pin/pattern - and this is extremely inconvenient for normal use. But i believe that is more of a feature of Android Wear rather than the watch itself. if anything, I would prefer the to enter the password/pin/pattern only when I attempt to use google pay.
my only reason for waiting until the pixel watch would be to see it offered a watch with more RAM. however, this TicWatch Pro is very responsive and I'm able to leave the "ok Google" enabled - very helpful when driving.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also ended up with a Ticwatch E model - didn't want to go all in with an expensive, high end watch until I was sure I liked the idea. Bought this one during Amazon Prime Days and have been really happy with it. Syncs to the S8, messaging, notification, Fit, Assistant, Maps, etc., all just work the way you think it should. You're right, it took about an hour before everything got set up and updated correctly. I even run Google Keep on it and check off my grocery list with the phone still in my pocket - no more burying the phone in the cart, then digging to find it!
Samsung Galaxy Watch is up, but I don't see any difference with the Gear S3?
Everything just looks the same.
The size.
The OS.
The feature.
I don't even feel Gear S3 is worth the price, and here comes a newer, more expensive one.
Yes, I totally love android smartwatch. I own Gear S2 for quite some time, and I really enjoyed it. But, smartwatch price just feels so ridiculous.
i use my moto 360.
i got a tic watch S but sending that back it was the white one. + android wear 2 is stupid... u can only voice talk in one language... but im dutch and live in france so i need 2 language... but its only french or english.. i tried looked on internet it seems normal android wear 2 is stupid, otherwise its great to talk and reply to people but i can do that same on my moto 360 with android wear 1. with just a extra app on my phone i can get keyboard and all on watch.. and i can speak 3 language and its know which it talk and it works... but for real im really disapointed by android wear 2. . its great but seems stupid to not have multi language....
so yeah i guess i will never change my moto 360...
Anyone have experience with Huawei watch 2 4G?
miloshp said:
Anyone have experience with Huawei watch 2 4G?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just picked up the Huawei Watch 2 Classic from Best Buy (also available on Amazon). I think it is JUST the bluetooth version, as I am not interested in getting the cellular version..
I compared it to the Ticwatch Pro, and the Huawei has a much better feel and classiness to it. The battery life has been great - I even have everything enabled (always on-display, "ok google detection", wrist gestures, etc.). At the end of the day (6:30am-10pm), I'm still at 50%+. I also take it off at night, and it charges very quickly. So I really do not need more than 2days of battery life. The watch also has an eco mode, where (just like the Ticwatch Pro), it will disable Wear OS, and you'll just get the time while it tracks your steps.
I'll submit my video and full specs review a bit later...
hope this helps.
Introduction:
I am comparing two smartwatches that use Android Wear 2.0. I have read where many people prefer the Samsung watches with their Tizen OS and rotating bezel, thus I felt that comparing a AW OS smartwatch to a different OS would not be fair. From my experience, Samsung tends to handcuff their customers (much like Apple), so many folks are already turned away from using any additional Samsung products. my previous devices were the original Moto 360 (paired with a Motorola Droid Trubo) and Asus Zenwatch 3. The Moto 360 had a heartrate feature, but was only available on demand, and took over a minute to find my heart rate. The Asus Zenwatch 3 is very classy, but lacked the heartrate monitor, and always seemed slow to respond. Neither of these watches had GPS, NFC, or IP68 rating. The Moto 360 capped out at AW 1.5 (which some still say is better than 2.0), while the Asus Zenwatch 3 started with 1.5 and moved quickly to 2.0. I had the Moto 360 for nearly three years (11/2014-8/2017) and the Asus Zenwatch 3 for less than one year (8/2017-7/2018). Battery life on both barely made it a full 24 hours. Both felt very comfortable and looked classy.
Tiwatch Pro:
I tested the Ticwatch Pro for about two weeks. Pairing it to my phone took well over an hour. There were many times when I had to disconnect/reset the watch, as I thought that the phone/watch was stuck. But really, it just took significantly longer than my other watches. The watch worked fine from the get go, however, setting up my credit card for NFC payments took some time as well (including disconnecting/resetting, as your watch must have a PIN/password/pattern in order to use this feature). Did not realize until later that each time I disabled the lock screen, I lost NFC, so I had to re-enable the lock screen and then set up my credit card all over again. But I think that is more of a feature of AW than the watch. Supposedly, the watch knows when it is on your wrist, so when you take it off/on, you'll have to get through the lock screen each time. The watch was not very consistent with this, so there were a few times when I had to enter the info even though the watch had been on my wrist for a while. Also, when I docked/charged the watch, I had to bypass the lock screen just to get to the nightstand mode. In terms of feel, the Ticwatch felt like I was wearing a smartphone on my wrist, and not a watch. This felt awkward to the point where I could not wait to take it off. The idea for the band is great - leather on the outside and a breathable silicon on the inside. However, the length was a little odd and felt too stiff. The battery life was acceptable, as I always take it off when I sleep, so I really only require 1-day+. The Ticwatch's best feature is what I dislike most - the digital display. In my opinion, this is not classy - not the reason to spend $250. Thus, I had to enable the always on display - which was fine, but for the stock watchfaces, I did not like having to read, "Ticwatch", and they were not that nice. I installed Watchmaker and used a custom watchface, which was much nicer, but with the always on display, my wrist was always illuminating (and not fading like the stock faces). However, the Ticwatch functions as it should, and is a nice watch. Just that it does not feel right to me.
Huawei Watch 2 Classic:
I tested the Huawei Watch 2 Classic for one week. Much like the Ticwatch, it took well over an hour to pair to my phone. The functionality is essentially the same as the Ticwatch with these few exceptions: the screen lock had to be entered far less. Only had to bypass the lockscreen when putting the watch on my wrist, and NOT when I docked/charged the watch for nightstand mode. Since I had the Ticwatch previously, the Huawei had a noticeably smaller screen size. Not a big deal, but the featured watchface has a circle that shows the date, and this circle is not legible, this making it useless. In terms of feel, the Huawei felt like very comfortable. Similiar to the Ticwatch, the Huawei has a dual band with leather on the outside and breathable silicon on the inside. However, this band feels more genuine and softer than the Ticwatch band. Also, the two tone (brown leather) looks better than the black band only offered by Ticwatch (Huawei also offers a black band). Battery life is better than expected, as I could get 2-days easily with limited use, and could probably get even longer if enabled "Smart Power saving" or "watch mode" via the Battery setting. Response is realatively quick, even with "Ok Google" detection enabled.
Conclusion:
Both watches work very well as advertised, and are great for both casual users and athletes. I go running/walking/biking at least twice a week, and both watches perform well with no hiccups. Battery life is a non-issue to me due the Huawei having it's own essential mode. The key difference is that the Huawei has more RAM (thus, performance is slightly better), and the Huawei looks/feels classier and far more comfortable. The Ticwatch has a slight edge for a larger screen size and being newer. However, given that the Huawei is now on clearance (could be a bad sign), the Ticwatch is more expensive. Thus, due to these factors, I went with the Huawei Watch 2 Classic.
by the way, the Huawei Watch 2 Classic on clearance at Best Buy for $180 ($125 open box) - not a bad deal for what I think is one of the best AW smartwatches available right now. Consider that the Pixel and next generation smartwatches will be $300+ (albeit they'll have an updated processor and probably more RAM). The Huawei Watch 2 is already in line to get Android P to sync up with our phones (whenever the Samsung Galaxy S8 gets pie).
I got 2 gear S2s and they are absolutely wonderful I bought a second one as I am a mechanic and figured I would tear it up fast...Nope take most of the abuse and other than a beat up band which i have 3 others still 6 months later the watch has a couple scratches and thats it
I've got 3 watches. Diesel On Full Guard, Michael Kors Grayson, and Nixon Mission. The first 2 are essentially the same thing just different styling. The Nixon has the same processor and is more rugged for out doorsey use. All three lack NFC and heart rate monitoring. So unless you need to pay for your Starbucks after your power walk they are not for you.
Nixon has very basic functionality, it will accept voice imput, but will not talk back (no speaker). The Grayson and Full Guard has a speaker and is a real '**** Tracy' watch. All of these are considered fashion watches and have built in watch faces that are extensive. Add an app like!e Watchmaker and you can expand the looks. Nixon is pretty fixed when it comes to bands, while the other will easily take any 24mm band and the stock bands are quick release.
Working with my S8+ has been easy. Notifications are easy to read and interface with. Assistant works well. Battery life needs improvement, and the next generation should address this. But for now I'm pleased with these choices. All are in my daily rotation based on my mood or style preference for any given day.
I've got a LG G Watch R and I'm happy with it after all these years. The battery sadly doesn't lasts that much anymore but it's perfect for me.
With Bluetooth : ~2-3 days
With Wi-Fi : ~1-1/2 day.
Airplane Mode : ~ 4-5 days.
It's rooted, all the bloat removed and TWRP on it. Android Wear 2 installed. Cheap too nowadays
TheMadScientist said:
I got 2 gear S2s and they are absolutely wonderful I bought a second one as I am a mechanic and figured I would tear it up fast...Nope take most of the abuse and other than a beat up band which i have 3 others still 6 months later the watch has a couple scratches and thats it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got those for my kids (used on e-bay), so far, so good. lone downside is that I had to a samsung phone for best results. I feel that samsung is trying to be like apple with all of their propriety crapps.
jco23 said:
I got those for my kids (used on e-bay), so far, so good. lone downside is that I had to a samsung phone for best results. I feel that samsung is trying to be like apple with all of their propriety crapps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I found a modded gear app for any phone and any ram size no 1.5 gb ram limit Its posted in the gear s2 thread
I used mine on a 30$ ZTE straight talk and my lgs
TheMadScientist said:
I found a modded gear app for any phone and any ram size no 1.5 gb ram limit Its posted in the gear s2 thread
I used mine on a 30$ ZTE straight talk and my lgs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah, I saw those apps. somewhat unreliable in my experience. but since I won't be using the phone or watches, I needed something that would require zero maintenance (or as close to zero as possible).
if it was just for me, then I probably would have gone the same route. however, I did use the windows executable that copies MP3 files from the computer to the watch via WiFi - that was pretty nifty.
I'm using a Fitbit Versa and it works flawless with my S8+ (before I had a Moto G4 and it worked terrible tbh).
I'm looking at the new Galaxy Watch but A. It's too expensive, B. It doesn't have MST like the Gear S3. So that's a deal breaker for me.
I have tag heuer connected modular 45 and seriously it's great to use both together with 1.5 day battery.
I am using Zenwatch 3. Its more than 1 yr now and running fine.

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