Today at IFA, Samsung has launched the successor of Gear S2 with two new updated versions — Gear S3 classic and Gear S3 frontier. Compared to last year model, this year’s Gear S3 is bigger in size with 1.3″ screen size and 46mm diameter. The company will not be discontinuing the Gear S2, so if you are looking at a smaller form factor the Gear S2 will serve you well.
However, the Gear S3 comes with some new updated features like Always On display with 16 million color gamut and full support for Samsung Pay (both NFC and MT). In terms of build, the Gear S3 comes with IP 68 water and dust protection, but what’s interesting is its 316L stainless steel body that even handles corrosion from salt water. The display is also protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass SR+ especially designed for smartwatches.
SR+ achieves scratch resistance approaching that of “alternative luxury cover materials” (probably referring to sapphire crystal) while having 70% better damage resistance against impact and 25% better surface reflection compared to the same alternative material. The improved optical performance should help increase readability outdoors and require lower display brightness.
KEY SPECS OF GEAR S3:
- Chassis: 316L stainless steel; IP68 water and dust proof
- Bands: Leather/rubber; standard 22mm bands work too
- Display: 1.3″ circular, 360x360px, Gorilla Glass SR+; Full color Always-on display
- Hardware: Dual-core Exynos chipsets, 786MB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage
- Weight: Classic: 57gms; Frontier: 63gms
- Platform: Tizen 3.2.1 OS ; iOS support in open beta
- Connectivity: Classic: WiFi only; Frontier: 3G/LTE + WiFi or WiFi only
- Battery: 380mAh, 3-4 days (double that with battery saver)
The Gear S3 Classic and Frontier will start shipping later this year (quarter 4). Pricing has not been revealed yet.
