original Motorola Moto 360 will not be updated to Android Wear 2.0

11:20 AM

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SMART WATCH

Motorola has announced that the original Moto 360 smartwatch will not be updated to Android Wear 2.0, the revamped wearable version of Android that Google unveiled a couple of weeks ago at the I/O conference.

Earlier today, Motorola started pushing a security update (which is not related the Android Wear 2.0 update) to the second-generation Moto 360 smartwatch. A few hours later, Motorola's support team responded to a Twitter inquiry into the availability of the update for the original Moto 360. Obviously misinterpreting the question, the support team revealed that the original Moto 360 will not receive the Wear 2.0 treatment:

Unfortunately, Moto360 1 Gen will not receive the new update 2.0

Compared to its predecessor, Android Wear 2.0 brings a revamped UI design complete with new Material Design principles for Wear 2.0, standalone apps, support for handwriting recognition, as well as automatic fitness tracking. It turns out that the original Motorola Moto 360 isn't getting any of that, but at least the company announced that the smartwatch will continue to get essential patches.

Fragmentation has always been one of Android's disadvantages compared to iOS, its main and apparently only rival. Google's latest numbers show that only 10% of active Android devices run on 6.0 Marshmallow or later. By contrast, iOS 9 is installed on more than 84% of active devices.

Unfortunately, it looks like the wearable version of Google's OS is going to inherit the fragmentation issues that have plagued the standard version of Android in the past few years. 

What do you guys think, is anyone surprised to learn that a device that Motorola originally launched back in September 2014 has stopped receiving major Android updates?

source: Motorola

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Samsung smart watch Fit2 Fitness Band with GPS

4:16 AM

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SMART WATCH

It is great to see Samsung coming up with a new model of the Gear Fit, one of the most advanced fitness band at the time of its launch at MWC 2014 in Barcelona. The key feature of the Gear Fit was its gorgeous curved display, that made the device a hybrid between a smart band and a smartwatch.
Just like its predecessor, the Gear Fit2 runs Samsung’s own Tizen OS, however it is compatible with Android 4.4 and higher, which was not the case with the first Gear Fit. The new smartband features a slightly smaller Super AMOLED display, 1.5” vs. 1.84”, with a higher pixel density (322 ppi vs. 245ppi) for a 216×432 resolution. The weight and dimension are roughly similar (around 28g), except for the length which is 6.2 mm shorter in the new Gear Fit2.
The processor is the major upgrade of the system, with an impressive performance for a wearable, on the paper. The Gear Fit2 features a dual-core 1Ghz  Exynos 3250 processor, with 512 MB RAM. In addition, it now provides  4GB of internal storage. Quite an improvement from the M4 processor (160MHz), with 8MB RAM and 16 MB ROM! This configuration is closer to the Samsung Gear S2 that features a dual-core 1Ghz Qualcomm MSM8x26, with 512 MB RAM and 4 GB of storage.
The fitness activity tracking has been enhanced as well, thanks to the GPS addition and the 11additional activities that the device is able to monitor. According to Samsung, Gear Fit2 can track up to 15 different sports, and can automatically detect five, including running, cycling, and elliptical work out. Thanks to the newly added storage,  you can listen to your music without the need to keep your phone with you. Although the Gear Fit2 is water resistant IP68, I am not sure if you can use it for swimming (we have to confirm with Samsung).
The battery capacity  has been reduced from 220 mAh to 200 mAh, however, according to the manufacturer, the battery life is similar, lasting from 3 to 4 days. With a more powerful processor and a higher pixel count in the display, this could be due to a better power management of the whole hardware.
And of course, you will be able to get notifications and reply to texts and calls without the need to reach your phone.
Samsung Gear Fit2 will come in three flavors: Black, Blue, Pink and it will be available for pre-orders on June 3, 2016 at Amazon, Best Buy and BestBuy.com, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Macy’s, and Samsung.com. for $179. You will be able to buy it in stores starting from June 10, 2016.

Key Features:

• Display 1.5” Touch Super AMOLED Display
• Connectivity WiFi: 802.11 b/g/n Bluetooth v4.2
• Processor Dual Core 1GHz Exynos 3250
• Memory  4GB Internal Memory / RAM 512MB
• Battery 200mAh Li-ion
• Sensors Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Heart Rate, GPS, Barometer
• OS Tizen OS
• Case Dimensions 1.0” x 2.0”Strap Dimensions
• Large Length: 4.25”x 3.74” Fits wrist sizes 6.1”- 8.2”(155mm – 210mm)
• Small Length: 3.3”x 3.74” Fits wrist sizes 4.9”- 6.7”
• (125mm – 170mm)Weight
• Large 30g (0.066 lb)
• Small 28g (0.061 lb)Included in Box
• Gear Fit2, Band Strap,
• Charging Dock, Quick Start
• Guide, User Manual

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The Modular 'Blocks' Smartwatch Available for Pre-Order

3:54 AM

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SMART WATCH

After shattering its initial $250,000 Kickstarter funding goal, raising upwards of $1.5 million from over 5000 backers, the BLOCKS modular smartwatch is finally ready. Well, almost. You can pre-order it right now in three different colors for $330, but the expected release time-frame is October 2016.

BLOCKS is a curious gadget – the world's first modular smartwatch after all – and its ambitious design could either turn it into the hottest thing on the smartwatch market or doom it to tech oblivion. Modular design – its mainstream incarnation at least – is in its infancy now. Between LG's rather timid foray with the LG G5 and Google's outlandish promises for a build-your-own-phone-from-Lego-blocks (a.k.a project ARA), now we have a seemingly more reasonable in-the-middle alternative in the face of Motorola's Moto Mods system. But let's focus on smartwatches and modular design, for they might by a match made in heaven.

Think of it: while smartphone manufacturers are sweating over how to make some rather bulky swappable components fit into the overall design of their already sizable products – without botching them completely, mind you – wristwatches have always been a two-part thing with interchangeable wristbands. And since metal wristbands are pretty much always a chain of metal blocks (couldn't resist) anyway, the rather small modular components of BLOCKS might well turn it into the first truly desirable modular device that doesn't compromise design just to make something new sort of work. Anyway, we'll see how things turn out when the watch is released this fall.

Another interesting feature of BLOCKS, apart from its modularity, is that it doesn't run Android Wear, but rather a modified version of Android 6.0 Marshmallow, which makes it compatible with iOS devices as well. The watch features a round 1.39-inch AMOLED display with Gorilla Glass and a resolution of 400 x 400. The stainless steel water-resistant body encases a Qualcomm Snapdragon 2100 Wear processor, backed with 512MB of RAM, 4GB of flash memory and a 300 mAh battery, expandable via modules. Interestingly enough, users will be able to add as many extra battery modules as they want – or at least as many free slots as they have – each of which is promised to extend the BLOCKS' battery life by around 20%.

Six modules will be available for BLOCKS when it launches:

• Battery Module – extends the battery life and charges the watch even when it's turned off. Extra battery modules provide the mAh remaining as well as the charge remaining in the battery.

• Programmable Button Module – the module can be assigned to anything, whether it be a function on the watch, phone, or other connected devices.

• Flashlight Module – a white LED flashlight module

• GPS Module – a GPS/GLONASS module which allows the BLOCKS location providing independence from the connected devices.

• Heart Rate Module 

• Adventure Module – a 3-in-1 sensor which combines digital humidity, pressure and temperature sensors in one.

The BLOCKS modular smartwatch can be preordered right now in three different colors for $330, bundled with 4 modules. Extra modules are $35 each; shipping for the U.S. costs $11, while international shipping is $15. The watch is expected to be released in October 2016.

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Watch Lenovo's bendable phone prototype : you can wrap it around your wrist!

3:48 AM

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SMART WATCH

 We've seen some companies launch phones with curved (Note Edge, S7 edge), or ever so slightly flexible screens (G Flex 2), but a truly flexible/bendable phone whose shape you can adjust to your own liking is yet to be created. This concept, it turns out, may not be such a distant thing, as Lenovo has just showcased actually bendable phone and tablet prototypes at Lenovo Tech World.

YouTuber Meghan McCarthy bending a phone prototype into a wristband

The sci-fi-grade prototypes were found in the hands of YouTuber Meghan McCarthy, who conveniently happened to show up in a dress with no pockets. "So where am I supposed to put my phone?" Meghan asks, as she proceeds to bend the unsuspecting handset into a wristband-style shape and put it around her wrist: "I just wear it!"

But this wasn't all, as next up, she showcased a tablet prototype which could be conveniently folded in two, in order to assume a more phablet-type shape and footprint.

As cool as these devices may already look, Lenovo assured that they are still very early work-in-progress. However, this is the first time we get such a direct, real demo of bendable phone/tablet technology, which comes to show that real progress is made in the field. If our calculations are correct, we should be just a few short years away from actual, working, commercial flexible devices.

 

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Samsung releases the Gear Fit2 ftiness bands, here's the pricing

5:43 PM

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SMART WATCH

In case you haven't heard, Samsung has a pair of new, drastically improved wearables that are hitting the market - the Gear Fit2 fitness band, and the Gear Icon X wireless in-ear headphones/fitness tracker. Both aim to corner the exploding niche for such health and wellbeing devices, and both offer something extra when compared to the competition.

Samsung just announced that the initial availability of the Gear Fit2 will be starting today, and those who preordered it in the US for $179.99 should be getting it soon. Europe is not so lucky, as there the wearable costs EUR 199 ($223), but that's what import tax does to you. The Gear Fit2 will be be available in the United States, Canada, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, and Australia right now, while a global rollout will follow soon. 

As a reminder, the fitness band differs pretty radically from its predecessor. The second-generation device comes with enhancements such as a more ergonomic design, a better display, GPS tracking, as well as music playback capabilities. The highlights of the device include a 1.5-inch curved Super AMOLED display, an energy-efficient Samsung Exynos 3250 SoC with a 1 GHz dual-core processor, 512 MB of RAM, 4 GB of integrated storage, and a 200mAh battery. Other hardware specs include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, as well as a range of sensors such as a heart-rate monitor, an accelerometer, a barometer, and a gyroscope.

 

source: Samsung

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