Samsung’s got a new smartwatch on the way. That much seems certain. It’s been about a year since the last big announcement, and the company is about to have two large platforms in the form of August’s Note 9 Unpacked event and Berlin’s IFA trade show the following month.
A couple of new tidbits, however, are fueling speculation that things might be a little different this time around. First, a trademark filing in Korea for a Samsung Galaxy Watch logo. The company dropped the Galaxy bit from its Gear line between the first and second generation watches, back in 2014.
About Gear S4 (probably called Galaxy Watch) Based on Android Wear, 470mAh battery, PLP package, it is expected to have new UX interaction and blood pressure measurement.
— ICE UNIVERSE (@UniverseIce) July 6, 2018
Among the more notable changes on that device was the move from Android to Tizen, an open-source mobile operating system Samsung has continued to bear the torch for on subsequent watches. The company never really looked back on that decision, even after the arrival of Android Wear.
But 2018 has found Google making a more aggressive push around its wearable operating system. I/O saw some upgrades, following a name change to Wear OS. That, along with a smattering of online rumors, point to Samsung potentially giving Google’s other mobile OS a big go.
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It’s hard to make the case that Google has done much to warrant another look at the operating system. The smartwatch category has largely stagnated for everyone but Apple and Fitbit, and the last couple of updates haven’t brought a lot to the table. But perhaps there’s something to be said for increased compatibility across the Galaxy line.
Last year’s Gear Sport found Samsung offering up a more universal piece of hardware than its traditional restrictively large devices, but a ground-up rethink of the line certainly couldn’t hurt.
