Samsung - Galaxy Gear Smart Watch for Select Samsung Galaxy Mobile Phones - Lime Green

For me, the good outweighs the bad and makes the cons so minor and petty. I have had issues with finding a cell phone with a strong vibration. My hearing husband, who travels for work, uses text as his primary form of communication with me. Often and too many times, I would miss his messages because of not being able to feel the phone vibrating. With the galaxy gear on my wrist, I never miss his messages. Maybe this isn't something others need but I find that this watch is a great little techy device. Samsung started somewhere and in my opinion, this is a good start. It has been consistently responding as expected. I've read other reviews from different sites about needing to shake their wrist just to turn the device on from sleep mode. I have not had that issue. When I lift my wrist as if to look at the time, the device turns on from sleep mode consistently. I personally love this device. The wrist vibration is just one of the many things I like about it. I'm able to respond to text messages by talking into the watch on s voice (Yes I am Deaf and Can talk). I'm able to send messages without ever picking up the phone. Very useful when driving. (Reminder, anything that distracts you from driving is NOT SAFE so use with caution). Also, I am totally baffled at the picture quality. I could not have asked for a better camera on this device. I have posted pictures taken using the Galaxy Gear. Maybe we can play a game and see who can guess which pictures were taken on my Galaxy Note 3 and which ones were taken on the Galaxy Gear. I will look for your responses. I've only had it for one day so I will see if I can come back later down the road to add information on durability. I highly recommend this device for what it does. A lot of other reviews focus on what it does not do. Keep in mind, the battery did run out before the end of the day probably because I actually used it a lot. If you are one of those type people that expect forever life in batteries needing only to charge it once a blue moon, maybe this device is not for you because it will annoy you. Despite the battery running out by the end of the day, this thing amazingly charged fairly quick within a few hours. So I'm sold right now. Again, a durability review will come later down the road.

I've had my eye on the Samsung Galaxy Gear Smart Watch for some time. Quite literally--this is a very eye-catching watch and I was always drawn to the display of these watches at Best Buy every time I entered the store. But the full price seemed too steep to me for what the watch could accomplish, so I always moved on after admiring the watches. That is until Best Buy offered a one-day 50% off list price sale, and I immediately accepted that offer. And after using the watch for a little over a month, I feel it was well worth the money. I would highly recommend the watch to anyone who can find it at a discounted price, but would probably recommend against buying it at full price. It does some neat things, but not enough to justify the full list price. As I said, the appearance of the watch is striking and attractive. I figured as long as I was getting a somewhat frivolous toy, I might as well get it in a bold color, so I got the Wild Orange version. In the short span of a month, I have never received so many positive comments from people on any accessory or article of clothing I've ever worn. People would come right up to me and say, "Wow, is that one of those smart watches?" and then I would tell them about it. The main reason I got the watch was to avoid the hassle of pulling my Samsung Galaxy S4 phone out of my pants pocket every time I felt the buzz indicating an incoming email or text message. Especially when I am driving in the car and not able to get into my front pants pocket without undoing my seatbelt. This function of the watch alone is worth the (discounted) price. Both the phone and watch vibrate to indicate a new message, and if I am quick I can touch my watch to see the sender and at least the beginning of the message (depending on how long it is). If I don't look at the notification right away, I can easily swipe from the main clock screen one screen to the right to the notification screen, and then tapping on either the name of my email or text messaging app to get my messages. At least some of them. The system accumulates message alerts in an odd way that I do not quite understand yet. For example, right now, accessing my email alerts shows the following list: AAA Southern Pennsylvania 10:17 AM 2 new messages 9:32 AM 32 new messages 9:01 AM 33 new messages 9:01 AM 32 new messages 8:46 AM 31 new messages 8:46 AM 30 new messages 8:46 AM 29 new messages 8:31 AM and so forth. Clearly, some of these alerts are redundant, and it is somewhat annoying to see three different alerts for 8:46 indicating 30, 31, and 32 new messages. Couldn't the first two be automatically deleted from the display since the one indicating 32 new messages covers them? Also, unlike notifications of a single email, where I can actually see part of the email, notification lists only show the sender and subject line. What I have to do regularly to avoid this clutter is to manually delete these alerts. You would think that deleting emails from my IMAP inbox (from my computer or phone) would remove these old notifications, but it does not. I am one of those people who does not use my cell phone as a phone very often, but I've found the watch to be extremely useful when I do get an incoming call. Not only does it immediately show who is calling, but I actually have the option of accepting the call with my watch and conversing with the caller through the watch itself. Shades of Dick Tracy! This is a super-convenient feature, and people who've called me say that the audio quality is fine. If I actually phoned people, I could also use the watch to make outgoing calls, even employing voice activation. But like I said, I rarely use my phone as a phone so I have not tested this feature. The watch will also display missed calls as well as emails and text messages, which is a handy feature. Unfortunately, for some reason it is really difficult to get rid of missed call notifications. I think I had to reset the watch to do that, and Internet discussions have indicated that this is a flaw in the watch. Another very useful feature of the watch is that it notifies me of appointments that I have scheduled. I can dismiss or snooze these notifications. One highly touted feature of the watch that I'm not crazy about is its ability to play music from your phone. If it played the music on my watch, that would indeed be groovy. But, what it does is rather strange: It remote-controls the media player on my phone. So if I use this function, music starts to come out of my pants pocket. Weird. Also, the interface makes it very difficult to navigate and select songs. Might as well pull the phone out of my pocket when I want to play music. Another feature I found very useful on one occasion is the ability to find my misplaced phone with the watch. As long as you are in bluetooth connection distance, you can have the watch make your phone ring until you are able to find it. That worked superbly for me the one time I forgot where in the house I had placed my phone. The phone has other functions that seem pretty cool but that I have not used much or at all. The watch can take pictures or videos that are transferred to the phone. Have only tested it rather than used it a lot, but this function does work well. It's another feature that can make you feel like a detective or secret agent. I also installed a connection to MapMyRun, but haven't tried this one yet. And let's not forget the old-school function of a watch: To quickly see what time it is. I've not worn a watch for maybe 15 years because I've been able to get the time from my cell phone. I forgot how nice and convenient it is to be able to glance at my watch for the time (especially in meetings where it looks rude to pull out your phone to see what time it is). The face of the watch stays dark until you activate it by motion or pressing the button on the side. A bonus is that you also see the current temperature and weather conditions--a step up from an ordinary watch. In summary, this watch does not do a ton of things, and I would not consider it a must-have device. But it does do some pretty neat things and I would consider it well worth the price if you can find it on sale.

Note: Go in store to buy this if you do, See if they have an "open boxed" one, price for these are $250. So I just gave a presentation to fellow nerds at work about this, so I think Ive had a lot of exposure to it, looking at all the pros/cons/use cases in the last month. Pros: when you step away furthur than bluetooth range, the watch will buzz. This is GREAT if you leave your phone at a bar or home when leaving for work. I think this is the major usecase of this watch. Also, if you lose your phone, you can alert it from the watch to find it (and vice versa). comfortable - I think its more comfy than my metal band watch tbh. Best buy return policy lets you try it out, and return if you don't like it. Bezel and clasp made of steel, so very durable. Clasp wont scratch if you have a desk job. Also Gorilla Glass, so hard to scratch. This aint no ipod! Android development - make your own apps! (only sensor is accelerometer) Battery life last 7% over a sleeping night, and about 13% during the day if you barely use it. Other than that, expect about 2-3 days from it. Cons: price, not water-proof (but is "resistant to splashes"), Nothing "fun". Its a new toy, lets face it, but once you put it on you have nothing to play with other than checking the time. Yeah, reading a text is useful on it, but then what? you need to still pull your phone out to reply. The s-voice voice-to-text logic is HORRIBLE. I have tried very simple sentences without mumbling and it didnt pick up a single word correctly... however I just tried some samples to demo what I meant, and it worked fine so... maybe an update fixed this? I'll leave this comment on hold. Anything done on the watch, the phone can do better. You arent going to use the camera ever, your phone is 100x better. Calls are useful now and then, but its speaker phone so the chances your alone are limited. gmail currently says "view on phone" along with a few other apps. Snapchat doesnt allow you to add txt. facebook only shows you notifications. Makes checking time harder - the screen locks after X minutes... so to unlock it either press the button or move your arm. What if your sitting at a desk and you want to just look down? well now you have to wiggle your arm up and down, or use a second hand. Not a huge deal, but "harder" than a normal watch for sure. Distracting in dark places. I hard to turn mine off in a movie theater because it kept shining bright when I would move. Use cases: hands full (groceries, tools in hand, gloves on) you can use with your nose. I found this particularly useful when snowboarding. with bluetooth headphones (if they dont have media controls) "set timer 20 minutes" when cooking phone out of reach because you are charging, but still want to receive txts/calls from the living room or otherside of the bar. End result - I think this watch is cool, I want to like it but what it comes down to is it cost twice as much as my galaxy S4 and doesnt do anything. Once the price comes down, I will recommend this product to others, but right now it just isnt worth the money. I'm returning mine tomorrow and waiting for the Gear 2 or Sony Smartwatch 2.

It may seem strange that I gave a 4 star review for something I am on the fence about. I'll try to explain... First of all I was attracted to the James Bond techiness of the device but I don't think it fully delivers on every detail. Some of these are not issues of the device itself. For example spoken text is fine if you don't mind looking like a Mongoloid when you write. This is not an issue of the device in so much that it is a Google voice issue. Your texts will not have punctuation or choose the correct homonyms at times. Similarly with phone calls, I don't think it is loud enough in some situations. If you want to use it as a phone then this is important. Depending on who you are talking to and what they are speaking on you may not be able to hear them well and as far as I can tell there is no quick immediate way to turn up the volume. As a result I am not using it as a speakerphone. My wife has told me that I sound tinny but at the same time compared to most speakerphones it is not really a drop in quality but a difference in sound. The device is amazing flin some respects however. Notifications on your wrist are incredible and noticeable while being discreet. Also having your calender show up next to the time make it a killer watch. Finally the ability of it to find your phone (and visa versa) and lock your phone when it is out of reach are fantastic and well thought out. The camera is entirely adequate for the fact that it is on your wrist as well. The saving grace on the phone issue is that if you answer a call on your note it does not blast the caller's voice off of your wrist like old navigation systems used to do when you forgot your bluetooth was synced and you were walking away from the car. Finally it is a great watch with some bonusses: notifications (I don't miss calls and texts), calender presence and a camera (that's just cool.) The pedometer feature doesn't mean much to me but I image it will be useful for some and the thing looks better on your wrist than it does in pictures. $300 is where I am on the fence and considering returning it. It's not a cheap watch. And it is just a watch with features. It is not a phone on your wrist. Take this all into consideration and you won't be dissapointed. Samsung is a helluva innovator and this should not be discluded. It is very well designed technically and looks great too. Depending on what you want it for it could be the perfect companion to your note 3 in how easy it is to set up and relaying your most important information to you.

I did not buy this for $299.99 like most did. I actually traded in two of my old smartphones to Best Buy and they gave me a great deal in store credit, so I took the leap to partner this up to my Galaxy S4. This watch has a premium look. I went with Mocha Grey and it looks great and with the ability to customize the color or just overall face of the watch it really becomes a unique piece. This watch does have a battery life, but in my experience I have found that it lasts AT LEAST a day and a half on a full charge. I don't mind that it needs to be charged either as the battery replenishes itself incredibly fast. Feature wise this is a nice companion to your Galaxy devices. My biggest use of it is voice to text and phone calls. The voice to text is clear and correctly punctuates everything I say so my texts make sense. The call quality is crystal clear and everyone I talk to can't believe I'm talking to them through a watch. It allows for great multitasking. The ability to view notifications is HUGE, especially in an office environment where you cannot just casually pull out your phone. Of course there are fun features as well such as Spin the Bottle and Snapchat (which is great, although I'd like to VIEW snaps on the watch someday). Those are just icing on the cake for me. The camera quality isn't horrible either. It's a camera on a watch. Just be thankful that you can brag about owning such technology! haha. Of course the last thing that is great about this watch...it tells the time! There is an app in the Gear Manager that allows you to completely customize the look of your watch fast. You can use different watch faces, or an picture you took or downloaded. It really gives the Gear a nice touch because while other people might have the watch, yours can look different at least. Overall, I cannot say I would've purchased this if not for my trade-in phone value because the price tag is a little steep at $300, but at the end of the day it DOES make life easier for me and was a great purchase! Can't wait to see what Samsung has in store for us next!

Over the last week this little gadget has already made my life easier. I rely on my phone constantly throughout the day for work. Between calls, text and emails I have to grab it out of my pocket just about the time I’m putting it back in. I also deal with people all day long, being able to glance at my watch and see who is trying to get in touch with me allows me to easily determine if it’s something I should interrupt my conversation to deal with or not. You can stay informed by reading your messages quickly and discreetly and only pull out the phone for something that requires a quick response. The speaker and microphone are surprisingly good. I’m able to talk hands-free in the car with good clarity on both ends, most people assume I’m talking through a good quality Bluetooth headset. The camera takes nice pictures and transferring to the phone is quick and easy. Scrolling through menus is smooth and quick, I notice no lag time or stutter when switching between screens. I find the interface very intuitive and the fact that you can customize the order your favorite apps are in keeps scrolling through screens at a minimum. The hardest part for me was getting used to a strap style band again (I have been wearing metal band watches for the last 20 years), but after a couple of days I don’t even know it’s there. There have been some concerns about the battery life, I have been getting almost 2 days off a charge with pretty heavy use throughout the day. Charging is a breeze with the "cradle", it's actually a small device that goes around the watch face and has a micro usb port. I have read complaints about having to travel with this cradle. First off its small enough to not be a problem and second I would much rather this than have a usb port in the side of the watch allowing dirt and moisture inside or it needing a rubber plug of some sort. The other apps and clock faces are just icing on the cake, it is going to just keep getting better as development takes off. I’m very excited about the future of wearable tech if this is a hint of where it is going!

I've been in the market for a Smartwatch for quite some time now. This past week, I decided to purchase both the Pebble and Sony Smartwatch 2 to see which would reign supreme as my side kick to my Samsung Galaxy Note 3. While both of these devices do what they say they do, I was left with an unsatisfied feeling. The Pebble is a very basic smartwatch that, let's face it, is King due to its wide compatibility with iOS and Android devices and its simplicity and price point ($159). The Sony Smartwatch 2 ($199) kicks things up a notch with a color display and enhanced notification management and huge app support, however, the display looks like it came off a cell phone when colored displays were first introduced. I finally convinced myself to try Samsung's $300 Galaxy Gear. After spending several days with this device, I can honestly say that THIS IS A SMARTWATCH! While developer support is still limited and compatibility is restricted to select Galaxy devices, its functionality, hardware, and just overall design\build goes unmatched! A smartwatch IS NOT for everyone. It is simply an accessory or extension of your device. This is probably the most important question you need to answer to determine whether you should get one or not...Do you want/need an accessory that handles notifications discretely so that you never miss another message/email or call again? After this, it's all about how much you want to invest and what works best for you. There's absolutely nothing wrong with Pebble or Sony's Smartwatch 2. Having used all three, the Gear just felt like a more polished and promising device for me. As Samsung and developers continue to support this device, I foresee increased capability and possibly even compatibility with other Android devices not manufactured by Samsung. I highly recommend any user with a compatible smartphone give this device a shot. Unfortunately, Best Buy only carries demo models of the Gear and not the others if you were to try and go into the store to do your own comparison. The Gear goes for $299 brand new or use Best Buy's In Store Clearance/ Open Box Feature to located near mint condition Galaxy Gear devices going for $250 at a Best Buy near you!

I'm liking this watch more and more each day. Since I already owned the Pebble Smart Watch, I wanted to try something new. This watch has really impressed me, and has since replaced my Pebble. There are quite a few tech reviewers bashing the product. Many claim that the notifications are great, but they were wishing they could scroll their Facebook & Twitter feeds, as well as browse the internet on the watch. I took those negative reviews with a grain of salt, because many of them said they ditched their iPhones in previous reviews for larger phones with more screen real-estate. If they claim that the iPhone screen is so small for browsing the web, then why one earth would they want to browse the web on a 1.63 in screen? I purchased the Gear because I was missing quite a few notifications and missed calls from my cell phone. My phone doesn't give off a strong enough vibration, therefore I was wanting something that would help alert me of those notifications. The Gear does a great job in that department. I have my Gmail account setup so that it'll only alert me for Emails that are in received from my Primary Inbox. I disabled notifications for all of the other Tabs, because those Emails aren't that important and I didn't want to receive a ton of notifications. The Pebble would notify me of Emails from all Tabs, even when I had those Tabs disabled. The Gear does much better in this regards. If you're using your phone, notifications won't be sent to your Gear. That way you don't have to worry about your watch steady going off while you're using your phone. The Voice Memo feature is cool. When I create a Voice Note, it'll create a recorded version, and it will also convert the message I recorded into a text file. So I end up with an audio version, as well as text version. I have the ColorNote app from GooglePlay installed to open the text file. I received a lot of compliments on my Gear. It's definitely a head turner. The Gear will also notify me when I'm beyond the Bluetooth range. This has helped me a few times when I almost left my phone behind. The microphone clasp at the bottom of the wrist band bumps up against my laptop at times. If I have to type for extended periods, then I would take it off, or angle my wrist. I wasn't sure if I would be able to see the screen outdoors, but the daylight setting makes the screen bright enough to see outdoors with no problems. I do wish that the vibration pattern could be a little stronger, or had the ability to be changed. When I go into settings and choose the strongest vibration setting, it's pretty strong. When I receive a notification, it has a series of short, subtle vibrations. I wish I could have a long and steady pattern, which would be stronger. Perhaps a future update could address this. The battery life has been better than expected. I heard that battery life may have been addressed in recent updates, in comparison to when the phone was first released. After a 16-18 hour day, I still have 60-70% battery life left. It can easily go 2-3 days with my usage. I also have wake feature disabled, so I'm not sure if that has helped. Overall, I'm pleased with the watch and would recommend it to others.