Vodafone has confirmed this morning something that we heard was coming a couple of days ago: Samsung’s Galaxy Watch LTE will be coming to Vodafone, making it the second carrier launch in Australia. Better yet, Vodafone will be enabling NumberSync for the Galaxy Watch too, meaning Samsung’s latest watch will be able to share a mobile number (and your plan inclusions) with your preferred smartphone so you never miss a call.
Vodafone’s product landing page for the Samsung Galaxy Watch confirms that two variants will be available – the 42mm LTE model for $599, and the 46mm LTE model for $699:
The beauty of Vodafone’s NumberSync, as opposed to getting a completely separate SIM for your LTE-enabled smartwatch, is that it’s just $5 per month to share your number, data, and other plan inclusions. This means you can make calls, send messages and access web services on the go.
As with Apple’s Watch, it’s likely that NumberSync will be free for the first three months, reverting to $5 per month after that.
Vodafone will allow mobile repayment for the Samsung Galaxy Watch as it does with mobiles (that is, contract free, pay off over 12, 24 or 36 months with no penalty for early payoff), which is great news for customers wanting to spread the hefty price of the watch over a year or two.
For those unsure, what’s in Samsung’s Galaxy Watch? Here’s the full specifications:
| Galaxy Watch Specifications | ||
|---|---|---|
| Model | Galaxy Watch 46mm Silver | Galaxy Watch 42mm Midnight Black Galaxy Watch 42mm Rose Gold |
| Display | 1.3” (33mm), Circular Super AMOLED (360 x 360) Full Color Always On Display Corning® Gorilla® DX+ |
1.2” (30mm), Circular Super AMOLED (360 x 360) Full Color Always On Display Corning® Gorilla® DX+ |
| Size | 46 x 49 x 13 63g (without strap) |
41.9 x 45.7 x 12.7 49g (without strap) |
| Strap | 22mm (Interchangeable) Option Color: Onyx Black, Deep Ocean Blue, Basalt Grey |
20mm (Interchangeable) Option Color: Onyx Black, Lunar Grey, Terracotta Red, Lime Yellow, Cosmo Purple, Pink Beige, Cloud Grey, Natural Brown |
| Battery | 472mAh | 270mAh |
| AP | Exynos 9110 Dual core 1.15GHz | |
| OS | Tizen Based Wearable OS 4.0 | |
| Memory | LTE: 1.5GB RAM + 4GB Internal Memory Bluetooth®: 768MB RAM + 4GB Internal Memory |
|
| Connectivity | 3G/LTE, Bluetooth®4.2, Wi-Fi b/g/n, NFC, A-GPS/Glonass | |
| Sensor | Accelerometer, Gyro, Barometer, HRM, Ambient Light | |
| Charge | WPC based wireless charging | |
| Durability | 5ATM + IP68 / MIL-STD-810G | |
| Compatibility | Samsung: Android 5.0 or later Other: Android 5.0 or later iPhone 5 and above, iOS 9.0 or above ※ Activation feature for Mobile Network of Galaxy watch with Non-Samsung smartphones may not be available in some countries |
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For me, personally, this announcement has rocketed Samsung’s Galaxy Watch just about to the top of my must-have smartwatches; fast, responsive, not clunky WearOS, LTE-enabled and works on my carrier of choice.
Samsung’s Galaxy Watch is available from Vodafone in-store today.
