If you own Samsung’s first ever smartwatch, the Galaxy Gear, you may have found an update being pushed out that moved the Gear smartwatch from Android to Samsung’s own Tizen OS. Tizen OS is, of course, the operating system running on the new Gear 2 smartwatch released a few months ago.
Samsung has begun rolling out an update to the Galaxy Gear that will bring it over to Tizen. The update carries Tizen software version 2.2.0, and while the entire OS has been replaced, most users won’t notice any visual differences.
Users who have already received the update have reported that the update does wipe all data stored on the Galaxy Gear; however, there is reportedly a warning screen shown before the update applies, prompting users to back-up their data and sync with their phone, in order to restore those settings once the update is complete.
Furthermore if you have installed any third-party apps, some will not work after the update as those apps will be deemed incompatible at the moment, unless developers move their apps to Tizen.
Here is what we do know the update will bring to the Galaxy Gear smartwatch:
- Replacement of the Android OS with Tizen OS
- Improved performance
- Improved battery life
- A standalone music player (allowing users to store music on the watch itself)
- Customisable shortcuts for tap input
- Voice commands in the camera
If you own a Galaxy Gear smartwatch and have updated the firmware from Android to Tizen, we would love to hear what your thoughts are or if you have experienced any issues with the update in the comments below
