"An Apple Turnover, A Samsung Challenger and Android Wear"

"An Apple Turnover, A Samsung Challenger and Android Wear."

by John S LES

Yes, yes, yes...I normally have some kind of picture to "eye please" your reading.  However, not with this quick article.  This is Summer 2014 and ohhh what an interesting two months it has been so far in the gadget world!

First, for a couple of months now, Apple has "leaked" that they will be making some sort of announcement of a new iPhone 6 by next month - this August - which is unusual in their pattern of new announcements for the past 8 or 9 years.  They usually wait until September or late in the spring to do such.  For those of you who have read my earlier articles on the reasons why Apple is making such a deviant change of their Standard Operating Procedure - let me just say it's because Apple has finally "blinked"!  In spite of what most Americans and other countries think, Apple is still not the most popular smart phone in the world, Android, namely Samsung still is.  If you want percentages in the world, still think Apple about 17 % and Samsung about 69%.

Long story short, it appears that Apple has finally blinked.  I remember reading comments from iPhone users a year ago rejoicing that their phone wasn't as big as the Android phones ever growing size.  Now it looks like they won't have a choice anymore after this August.  Apple finally has given into the demands of the market.  Consumers want bigger phones because as as users grow older, our eyes can see easier on the bigger screens.  Again, I wrote about this back in October 2013.  So that's twice in less than a year that Apple conceded on two major issues.  I actually believed that had Apple conceded on these issues two years ago, they would be holding a 40% stake in the world wide market instead of 17%.  Their 5s, released this last October, which had superseded their original iPhone 5 (the shortest lifespan in Apple's iPhone history) is now going to be superseded in just a mere 10 months time.

So goes the pace of the high tech smart phone world.  

Next, there's a new gunslinger in town...well, he's not so new.  But he has bellied up to the bar and is ready to take on the monster that is now Samsung.  LG's new G3 phone already seems to have the specs to knockout Samsung's Galaxy Note 3 from last fall.  LG has always trailed Samsung in the mostly battery life, but has always held up strong in their specs.  Now after a couple of years of close calls, they finally have a bemoth of a challenger.  Samsung will have no choice but to come out with a Galaxy Note 4 pretty soon in order to dwarf this new arrival.  I have a friend who owns the LG G2, and all I can say is that it too is a monster of a phone.  To now know that the G3, dwarf's the G3 is mind boggling.  These aren't phones anymore.  These are handheld, HD television clarity mobile devices.  Here's a review from TechnoBuffalo:  The LG G3 review

Lastly, the two new Android Wear watches.  One made by LG and the other made by Samsung.  Both watches appear to be nice for what they do, however, both are watered down versions of both the Samsung Gear, Neo and Gear 2.  Yes you can now get the blessings of wearing a watch that will work with any Android phone across the board.  Yes you will also get waterproof watches that work well with all Android applications.  However, you do not get a camera.  You do not get any new innovations.  You still have to charge these phones at least once a day.  Check out this video review from The Verge:  Android Wear review

I'll keep my original Galaxy Gear watches for now.  

I'm Back!: The Pebble or Galaxy Gear? The Argument for Both!

So...what took me so long?  It's been five months since my last post on here.  Well, I was enjoying some blogging duties on my other blogs these past few months.  In addition, I've been playing with some gadgets too.  And that's what's finally pushed me into this new post:

Which wearable technology should YOU gadget lovers buy - the Pebble watch or the Samsung Galaxy Gear?

I've had a few months of play time.  Shall I begin?

First, let me say that I originally posted waaaay back in December that I believed that the original Samsung Gear and now it's two subsequent additions were overpriced.  I still do believe that.  I have no idea of what the making of the watch cost the Samsung giant, but for what you're getting out of it - it's overpriced.  That being said, I LOVE my Samsung Gear watch so much, I've now purchased two of them.  That's right, two.  But not at the price that was being asked for this past Christmas.  $299.99?  Are you crazy?  Nope.  Try $99.99 and $124.99 respectively.  I bought them on Ebay via Geek Squad (think Best Buy) "refurbish" and another retailer selling fully functional, but little used store display models.  Both watches work perfectly and do exactly what they were designed to do.  Well for the most part they do.  The Gear does have it's limitations.  Had I paid a full $300 plus tax - I bet that I too would have been highly upset that these watches didn't toast bread, print documents, sing me a lullaby, or make video calls.

Well...if you had read my recommendations here back in December - you would have known that they were overpriced from jump street.

And what about the Pebble you ask?  Well...they were selling for $149.99 last Christmas.  I purchased not just one, but two of those as well too!  I got one from Amazon for $125 and the other $110 on Ebay.  Both purchased as "new" and sealed.  What do I have to say about the Pebble watch?  Well, they do just about everything that they were designed to do too!  In addition to giving you the same notification alerts that the Galaxy Gear promised you, the Pebble also has many more additional application choices to fine tune the watch to do exactly what you want it to do: that is to alert you for email and text messages that are going to your phone.

I love both the Galaxy Gear and the Pebble.  As you can see, I could not chose between one or the other as I purchased both watches - twice!  I wear my Gear when I go home and want to dress up nice and wear a watch that looks like it has some "class" to it.  With the Gear's brushed steel body and glass, sharp color screen really make it look and feel like one of my regular high end, stainless steel, men's sporty watches.  Can it take a splash?  Look below.  I took pictures of me wearing my Gear watch while washing my outdoor patio chairs. Even though I wore gloves to go up my wrist, an unexpected light splash or two did go through the top of the glove, yet my Gear watch came out unscathed.

The next picture is of my other wrist and me wearing my Jawbone Up 2 band, which also took some light splashes.  It too came out unscathed.

And what about the Pebble?  Well, the Pebble is a fantastic wearable technology watch.  Like I mentioned earlier, they have a high number of developer apps.  In contrast, Samsung's app solutions still seems limited in both the Android operating system in the the original Gear watch, and now apparently in the Samsung Gear Neo and Gear 2 "Tizen" operating system.  By paying more customers expect more - more of everything.  So Samsung deserves a slap on the hand for this error.  I think that they are planning for software updates to help satisfy first and second round customers forking up $200 to $350 for the newer models.

In conclusion, I wear my Pebble at work.  It's mostly plastic body (Pebble came out with a few all steel body models which perform the same but are vastly more expensive) is great for me at my day job.  I could be working in wet weather outdoors, exercising in the rain, or doing any type of work that might require a more rugged, everyday watch.  My Gear watch clearly is not made for that same type of wear and tear, but that's okay.  It's beautiful color screen and finish is perfect for a date night to the movie theater.  The Pebble, with it's complete waterproof body, is great for when I go fishing, hiking, long bike rides.  It's simple black and white screen is clearly visible under all light conditions, whereas the Gear watch can be a little bit of a hassle in really bright sunlight.  But generally speaking - both work superbly as far as visibility is concerned.

Recharging?  Yep, well, the Pebble is king here.  I recharge mine once every few days.  I recharge my Gear about once every day and a half of pretty constant use.  But I knew that going in.  Both devices can sometimes miss email notifications or a text message here and there.  However, the Pebble is much more accurate and versatile as far as customizing your notifications.  The Gear may improve as the updates continue.  But it is such a beauty to look at, even if you have to flick your wrist or tap the power button to turn the screen back on, as it reverts back to sleep mode after 30 seconds.  Not so with the Pebble which looks like a time piece without the wrist flick to turn on the screen.  It's always on.  It only "lights" up when you flick your wrist, but you can see the display pretty well in just about any normal light conditions.

So, if you're a gadget guy like me, you now live in a perfect world of fashionable wearable technology and functional wearable technology.  Which will you choose?  Style, function or both?  I chose both.  That's why I write this blog!  I'm a gadget guy.  Good luck in your choice and feel free to share your thoughts once you do.  :-)

*PS - in the first picture above, not only am I wearing both watches, but both watches have screen protectors on them.  I put the screen protectors on without incident and both give me additional confidence that the watches can take more knocking around.