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Samsung’s Gear S2 gets updated w/ refreshed UI and Gear Sport fitness features

It’s been nearly three years since Samsung debuted the Gear S2 family of smartwatches, and despite newer hardware hitting the market every year since, the company has kept those watches up to date. Now, a huge software update is preparing to roll out to the Gear S2.

On its blog today, Samsung has announced a new software update rolling out soon to Gear S2 owners. The new update brings along a bunch of features from Tizen 3.0, as well as several new fitness features from the Samsung Gear Sport.

The first thing users will notice is the new UI which has been cleaned up with a more modern look. That extends to the quick settings as well, which have been redesigned to be more functional.

Design is not only about form, so the device’s functions have also been carefully considered to increase usability. The new App Shortcuts widget now automatically places your most recent apps, but you can still manually select your favorites. Additionally, the Gear S2’s Quick Panel for fast settings such as display brightness, volume and airplane mode can now be viewed by swiping down from all screens – not just the watch face.

One of the biggest improvements (if you ask me) is the porting of several of the fitness features from the Gear Sport which was first released last year. That includes new widgets, as well as an improved inactivity alert which suggests a simple exercise to get you moving.

With a smarter and even more intuitive Samsung Health, it’s easier to manage and track your activity.  Health information, such as pace count and heart rate, are easier to read on the screen at a quick glance. What’s more, if you have a preferred type of regular exercise, you can get quicker access to it by setting it as a preset on the newly added Multi-workout widget. There are now additional Inactivity Alert’s options too, so you can stretch when it’s convenient to do so.

Finally, this update also brings along a new and improved weather application, as well as a better weather widget for getting quick forecasts. There’s also the ability to use your Gear S2 to control certain Gear VR experiences, as well as PowerPoints.

This update should be rolling out soon to all Gear S2 users, both standard and Classic.


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