This Is Not the Samsung Wear OS Watch I Was Expecting

Last week, we bought a glimpse at what the rumored Samsung Galaxy Watch Active 4 may seem like. This week, Android Headlines leaked what it claims are renders for the flagship Galaxy Watch 4 Classic. But, trying on the design itself, maybe Samsung goes slightly too basic.

The design isn’t that totally different from Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 3, which is an extremely stunning smartwatch. The Classic tweaks the facet buttons to be bigger and flatter than the pushers on the Galaxy Watch 3. It additionally removes any hole between the lugs and the strap. The pictured straps additionally look like fabricated from silicone, and there are fewer coloration alternatives: a white and silver mannequin, grey and silver mannequin, and an all-black mannequin. And for longtime Samsung followers, some good news: It appears to be like just like the bodily rotating bezel isn’t going wherever.

As for what we are able to’t readily see, it seems the watch will function Gorilla Glass DX+, and are available in aluminum and chrome steel choices. Surprisingly, Android Headlines contends that the Classic may also are available in three sizes: 42mm, 44mm, and 46mm. This is a welcome change for the smaller-wristed amongst us, however total, the renders counsel Samsung is taking part in it protected. Look, this watch isn’t a hideous vogue crime—but it surely doesn’t distinguish itself in the best way we’ve come to count on from Samsung wearables previously few years.

If there was a time to make a daring assertion, now can be it. Earlier this week, Samsung gave a sneak peek of its One UI Watch expertise, which can layer on prime of the new unified platform it’s constructed with Google. Leaving Tizen behind was a Big Decision and one which will very nicely form the following few years of Android-friendly smartwatches. A design shift would even be a robust method to throw down the gauntlet to Apple, which can also be rumored to be engaged on a redesign for the Apple Watch Series 7.

Another delicate concern is that none of those appear notably female. A gripe with the outdated guard of Samsung smartwatches was they dwarfed smaller wrists and felt very very similar to a males’s luxurious watch. As time went on, Samsung did a superb job of together with sleeker, extra inclusive options. Last yr’s Mystic Bronze Galaxy Watch 3 is an ideal instance of taking a masculine design and softening it to enchantment to extra individuals and kinds. It was a glance that was uncommon amongst Android smartwatches and set the Galaxy Watch 3 aside. The 2018 Galaxy Watch additionally had a trendy rose gold-and-blush possibility. Sure, the Active 4 appears to be like to be a extra unisex possibility, however the Active fashions are often not as highly effective because the flagship Galaxy Watches. Of the three choices we see right here, the white model appears to be like prefer it could be essentially the most versatile—but it surely looks like a step again.

Listen, I get it. I actually do. Samsung has fairly a bit driving on the success of those watches, which it mentioned shall be formally unveiled throughout its Unpacked occasion subsequent month. Sticking with a well-known design could be its means of hedging as a result of huge adjustments are inherently nerve-wracking.

That mentioned, typically a daring visible break is a helpful sign to shoppers that we’ve entered a brand new period. Take Apple’s Spring Loaded occasion. To signify the daybreak of the M1 iMac, Apple chucked apart the final decade’s value of silver-and-black aesthetics for an explosion of coloration. Not solely was it an homage to the iMac’s colourful previous, but it surely additionally helped differentiate the outdated from the brand new. Samsung is taking a daring step in its wearables technique, however visually, it appears to be telling us not a lot is altering.

Ultimately, design is just one consider whether or not a product sinks or swims. I’ll be the primary to confess that I put far more emphasis on how nicely a smartwatch works than if it’s a stunner on my wrist. (Though, you already know, that positively helps!) And, in fact, these are merely leaked renders. It’s fully attainable the watch itself could be extra spectacular in individual. After all, I wasn’t bought on the Mystic Bronze Galaxy Watch final yr till I truly wore it.

But more than some other kind of tech, wearables current a possibility for individuals to precise their private model. It’d be cool if extra corporations leaned into that as a substitute of saddling us with a parade of Apple Watch and Rolex clones.

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