South Korean tech giant launches Gear S2 smartwatch

folarin okunola

September 1, 2015 3:54 PM

Samsung has totally redone the design, opting for a round screen rather than a curved one.

Samsung's new Gear S2 smartwatch

According to several media reports, Samsung has unveiled its latest smartwatch, the Gear S2. Like the previous version, there's an option to buy the Gear S2 with a built-in 3G radio so that you can use it your phone.

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Samsung has totally redone the design, opting for a round screen rather than a curved one. The bezel of the watch also rotates, which allows you to navigate aspects of the user interface. The tech giant says there will be apps and watchfaces optimized specifically for the S2's round design.

The new smartwatch comes in two versions: the Gear S2 classic and the standard Gear S2. The Korean tech company says the classic version comes with a black finish and a genuine leather band.

The watch runs on Samsung's Tizen software just like the one before it. It's one of the few smartwatches on the market that can offer full functionality without your smartphone, if you opt for the model with a 3G radio. Most smartwatches, including the Apple Watch and several Android Wear watches, require a smartphone to get the full experience.

But that also means the 3G-enabled version will most likely be significantly more expensive than the non-3G model. Both versions of the Gear 2 also come with NFC, which likely means you'll be able to use Samsung Pay with it when it’s launched.

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Pricing and availability for the smartwatch has not been announced yet, but the company says it's going to show off the watch at the IFA conference in Berlin, which starts on Sept. 3.

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