Tuesday, January 10, 2017

Samsung Gear S3 smartwatch launched in India, priced at Rs 28,500: Specifications and features

Samsung has finally introduced the Gear S3 in India. The Tizen-powered smartwatch made its debut in the international market in 2016 where it has been priced at $349 (approximately Rs 23,800) onwards. Available in two variants – Classic and Frontier, the Gear S3 in India is priced at Rs 28,500. It will be available for prebooking from 8PM tonight and will start shipping from January 18.

The Tizen OS-powered smartwatches also differ in terms of connectivity on offer. The Gear S3 Classic comes with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity while the Gear S3 Frontier variant offers LTE support along with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Successor to the Gear S2, the Gear S3 range features a circular bezel and has IP68 certification which makes it water and dust resistant.

Samsung Gear S3 specifications and features

The Gear S3 comes with a 1.3-inch super AMOLED full circular display running at a resolution of 360×360pixels (278 dpi) with Corning Gorilla Glass SR+ protection on top. The display comes with an ‘Always On’ feature which means one doesn’t need to wake up the smartwatch to check notifications.

In terms of designing, the Classic and Frontier variants vary. While the first has been designed for a more subtle and stylish appearance, the latter is a rugged version which has been made military-grade durable to withstand accidental damage. The Frontier version is also touted to survive high and low temperatures and can operate at altitudes of up to 15,000 feet.

The smartwatch is powered by a 1GHz dual-core processor paired with 768MB of RAM and 4GB of internal storage. Keeping the Gear S3 ticking is a 380mAh battery which is claimed to make the smartwatch run for up to four days on a single charge. It further comes with a power saver mode to further take up the battery life.

Other features include built-in GPS, NFC for mobile payments, built-in speaker to make and receive phone calls, barometer, speedometer, and an SOS option. To activate the SOS option, one can triple-tap the screen which sends a notification to the pre-saved list of friends or family members in case of an emergency.