Here is my review after wearing the Samsung Gear S3 Classic for the past 5 weeks having purchased it through #InsidersGearS3 - for the first week, I used it with a Google Pixel, and for the past 4 weeks, it's been paired with my Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge...
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The smartwatch industry has taken a bashing recently, but Samsung have done a superb job of refining the Gear brand - with the S3 being the culmination of their unrivalled grasp on crafting the best hardware around. Having used a variety of smartwatches, trackers and platforms over the past 5 years, the S3 Classic is by far the best all-round (and all round!) timepiece for most parameters.
The aforementioned hardware is simply stunning, and makes the most sense within the traditional confines of what a "watch" has meant to us over the generations. This means a circular display, and combined with a rotating bezel that is a far more naturalistic way to navigate settings than a rotating "digital crown", it's easy enough to customise the S3 to your like (although, as with any product, there is always some fiddling around at the beginning).
In terms of looks, this for me is the most "watch-like" smartwatch there has been. Put it this way - I had a professional photoshoot recently and saw a couple of sample shots of me. The S3 Classic looks absolutely at home in that situation, whereas the old Nike Fuelband, the couple of Fitbits I've had, the various Android smartwatches I've had too all looked out of place. The only one that looked OK was the Apple Watch and I personally think this looks far better on wrist. Most people don't seem to realise it's a smartwatch, which is a genuine compliment.
The watch strap provided is a simple but elegant black leather variant, and Samsung have made it easy to swap it out for any standard 22mm strap. I've tried it myself with old watch straps, and it's wonderful way to transform the entire look and feel of the S3 Classic - at potentially no extra cost, if you happen to have other straps/watches just sitting there. I had a brown leather one lying about and it looks lovely with the Classic.
Battery life is possibly the biggest area where the S3 excels. It has averaged 3.5 days of usage, and that's getting to the point where the Battery Saver mode hasn't actually activated yet. In other words, if you're going on a weekend away, you shouldn't need to take another charger with you - even if the magnetic dock Samsung have provided is marvellously easy to use. I will caveat that with people use tech in different ways, but my experience is over 5 whole weeks.
Software is the one obvious area that needs work: there are simply not many apps available for the Gear S3. Plenty of watch faces, yes - but not apps. This needs urgent work but in complete fairness, the way I use a smartwatch means that this absence of apps doesn't make a big difference. I just want health/fitness tracking, notifications from my phone and for it too look good. I would never be sat there scrolling through Instagram on my watch. I wanted this watch to simplify my life and keep me AWAY from my phone! And it does that well.
Tizen OS is fast and fluid, and I've had zero connectivity issues. It's brilliant, albeit a little bit faffy and in need of customisation at times. Obviously Android Wear 2.0 is coming out within the next few weeks, so it will be interesting to see the comparisons, but I do think Samsung is winning the OS battle but losing the Apps war.
The main areas a smartwatch needs to excel in:
- Does it look good?
- Can you change the watch strap easily?
- Can you get 3 days of battery life?
- Is the software fast and fluid?
- Does it connect to your phone reliably?
- Does it free your from your phone?
- Is the health and fitness aspect useful?
- Are there a variety of apps easily available?
Every one of these - apart from the final one - gets a resounding 'Yes'. You are no longer tied to your phone - you can receive notifications, reply, take calls (which works really well). S Health will motivate you to move more (I've lose 6lbs since starting to wear the Classic just 5 weeks ago!). It looks great, the battery life is exemplary, and it has a premium feel. Get more apps out, and it would receive an almost perfect score.
It's a keeper.
